How Long After A Chemical Peel Can You Exfoliate
Avoid exfoliating for at least 3 to 5 days after a light peel and perhaps weeks after a medium or deep peel. Always follow your practitioner’s instructions. Avoid touching your face – Try not to touch your face, pick, peel or prod for a few days after the treatment.
Using sunscreen is essential after a peel as your skin is more sensitive to sun damage. Ask your dermatologist for advice on which sunscreen to use, as some chemical-based products may irritate. Use an SPF 30+ for at least 6 weeks after treatment. read more on removing dead skin after chemical peel and best moisturizer after chemical peel.
How Long After A Chemical Peel Can You Exfoliate
Chemical peels are specially formulated blends of natural acids and enzymes designed to exfoliate your skin and stimulate new cell growth and collagen production, resulting in fresher, clearer, brighter skin.
They can be used to even the skin tone and texture; reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles; eliminate hyperpigmentation and blemishes, and reduce inflammation and breakouts caused by acne. After a peel, your skin should be hydrated, nourished, smoother and softer. You can read our ultimate guide to skin peels here.
You can maximise the treatment results and the speed of your skin’s recovery by following simple aftercare tips. In this blog, we discuss what to expect after a chemical peel and chemical peel aftercare. Read on to find out more.
What To Expect After A Chemical Peel
Chemical peels are one of the most misunderstood beauty treatments. The media tends to show us sensationalist photos of celebrities with peeling, flaking, irritated, painful-looking skin. But these images portray the results of old and outdated peel formulas, which used to have these unpleasant side effects. Today’s peels work in a different way. They contain multiple exfoliating, natural enzymes and acids that leave skin glowing rather than peeling or flaking.
If you have your peel done by an experienced doctor, using professional grade product, you can expect these results:
- Immediate results: Professional grade, advanced peel blends exfoliate the top layers of the skin at a microscopic level. This action tightens the skin, unblocks clogged pores and improves fine lines. Skin is left feeling smoother and softer.
- Usually no peeling, flaking or irritation: Most clients do not experience peeling or flaking skin after treatment. Of course, this will vary depending on the skin type and type of peel advised by your dermatologist, but most peels no longer result in flaking skin.
- No downtime: A well prescribed and blended peel will not trigger effects that cause the need to hide until they’re gone. You should be able to continue life as usual.
- A slight increase in sensitivity: Your skin will likely feel sensitive for a few days after the treatment. This is when you can aid recovery following aftercare advice
Removing Dead Skin After Chemical Peel
When the dead skin starts to shed, avoid touching, picking or scratching it with your fingers. Let the dead skin shed off naturally, and don’t peel the skin off with your own fingers – using fingers to remove the dead skin can lead to possible scarring.
Chemical peels can help turn sun damaged skin into fantastic, radiant skin. This type of treatment helps reduce hyper-pigmentation and improves skin tone, while leaving the skin noticeably brighter and smoother.
Once you’ve invested the time for a chemical peel, it’s equally important to have a good after-treatment plan to see the best results possible.
CHEMICAL PEEL AFTER CARE
Here are a few great tips for chemical peel after care, so you can maintain the best results from your treatment:
1. Hands Off
The main goal of a chemical peel is to pull up and slough off the damaged skin cells, revealing healthy, glowing skin underneath. When the dead skin starts to shed, avoid touching, picking or scratching it with your fingers. Let the dead skin shed off naturally, and don’t peel the skin off with your own fingers – using fingers to remove the dead skin can lead to possible scarring.
2. Pull It Back
Pulling your hair back away from the face with a hair band can help prevent you from touching, and keep breakouts at bay. It’s important to allow the skin to go through its naturally peeling process, without accidentally contacting your skin while brushing back your hair. Touching the skin with dirty fingers and hands will only aggregate the new skin and may lead to breakouts. If breakouts do occur, don’t treat them yourself! Have your aesthetician treat them for you or just leave them alone.
3. Moisturize – But Just Enough to Be Comfortable
After receiving a chemical peel, your skin will be sensitive. There may be certain products in your normal skin care routine that you’ll want to avoid, as they may have active and irritating ingredients. The only two products you will want to use on your skin during the peeling process are sunscreen and just enough of a bland (neutral) moisturizer to be comfortable. The skin feeling and looking dry is part of the peeling process, and your moisturizer won’t be able to correct that.
Our advice is to use little to no moisturizer for the first couple days after treatment. In some cases, there will be a specific post care moisturizer provided at the time of treatment, which is safe to use, and your SkinSpirit aesthetician will walk you through the details. For some people, the only thing that won’t sting the skin is Aquaphor, which is easily available over the counter.
When applying moisturizer to the skin, be careful as well not to rub or scrub it in. Gently apply a thin layer of moisturizer all over the skin multiple times throughout the day, as needed. You’ll be able to go back to your regular skincare routine once the peeling process is complete and skin no longer feels sensitive – generally within a week of receiving your chemical peel.
4. Protect Your Skin With SPF
You’ve just gone through the process of getting rid of damaged skin with a chemical peel – so it’s important to avoid damaging the new, vulnerable skin coming through by protecting it with a layer of sunscreen anytime exposure to the sun is possible.
Best Moisturizer After Chemical Peel
For strong peels, you may use petroleum jelly for the first few days or as needed on sensitive areas that are peeling. When you start to peel, use a non-comedogenic moisturizer such as AveenoⓇ, VanicreamⓇ, CetaphilⓇ, or CeraVeⓇ, until the skin feels back to normal.
Chemical peels — whether done at home or in the dermatologist’s office — will make your skin more sensitive than usual. Since your body starts creating new skin after your procedure, you’re going to need to take extra-good care of it in the weeks following your treatment. According to dermatologist Dr. Noelani González, who spoke to Elite Daily for this article, the best moisturizers after a chemical peel contain nourishing and hydrating ingredients like ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and glycerin.
The Expert
Dr. Noelani González, M.D., F.A.A.D., is a board-certified dermatologist. She holds degrees from the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins University. Additionally, she completed her dermatology residency at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
How To Care For Your Skin After A Chemical Peel
After a chemical peel, you’ll want to “stay away from any exfoliating ingredients, retinols, or other acids, such as salicylic acid and glycolic acid,” says Dr. González. Stick to gentle skin care products in general by only using basic cleansers, moisturizers, and sunscreen to hydrate and protect the incoming skin. To help you figure out which products are safe to use on your extra-delicate skin, look for words like “calming,” “soothing,” and “nourishing on the label.