I have no doubt in my mind as you read this article you can recall once owning some sort of scrub or some form of product to remove the dead layers of skin?

Or using something to try to remove those pesky black heads from your nose, chasing the look and feel of a smooth, glowing and flawless complexion? I can bet in most cases after a while your skin has felt Sensitive, red and raw. We have truly become a nation of over exfoliators and do I blame you? NO….. Media, clever marketing and Celebrities have been raving about the wonderful benefits of exfoliation since the early nineties. It has become such a massive industry now I could say it has become the epidemic of over exfoliation…… with about 70% of clients coming to see me with skin conditions related to the over-use of exfoliators and we are now as therapists creating skin conditions!

The purpose of exfoliation is to remove the dead cells that may have accumulated on the top outer layers of Skin “the epidermis”. However, the question you should be asking yourself is… Why did the skin accumulate dead skin cells in the first place??? When naturally our skin should be desquamating by “soughing off” millions of dead skin cells daily??? Hhhmmmm got you thinking…..

Not only is our outer layers of skin there to protect us from UV rays and nasty chemicals penetrating our skin. One of our most vital functions of the skin is this whole process of cells coming to the surface and desquamating. Our outer layer of skin, the "Epidermis" is where this whole process takes place. Now, our Epidermis is about the density of one sheet of paper.

So can you imagine what your regular quick scrub in the shower is really doing to your skin. Not only would you be removing the dead cells that have accumulated, but potentially removing live tissue also.

Are you creating your own skin conditions?? Or are you creating skin conditions for your clients by over-exfoliating their skin? As skin therapists we have a responsibility towards our clients. If you are promoting Peels or Microdermabrasia treatments during Summer, you are seriously putting your client's skin at risk!

Article written by Justine Bell.

Hi, I’m Justine Bell, founder of Belle Beauty and Advanced Skin Therapy in Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. 

At Belle I specialize in corrective skin treatments and when treating skin conditions I have the upmost respect for this fascinating organ, the skin.

I have been in the industry for 7 years and my passion for skin education, and gaining knowledge grows the more I learn, I travel internationally to surround myself with the most elite in our industry including Dermal scientist and skin specialists, and the more I learn I realize how little my clients actually know about how to gain or maintain a healthy functioning skin.

Our skin is one incredible organ that has many vital cells and systems that we have neglected for too long. I am a firm believer that by working with the skin’s own natural defense system and  functions you can gain the best results possible from skin treatments, I now feeling it’s my calling to educate clients as best as I can  to save on skin at a time.
 

Belle Beauty and Advanced Skin Therapy Suite 2, 8 Knuckey St Darwin City justine@bellebeautydarwin.com.au Join us on Facebook.