What,exactly,isachemicalpeel?Anexperttellsusallaboutthe

popularskintreatmentByMarieLodi|March29,2019

Chancesareyou’veheardofthetermchemicalpeel,oratleasthaveseentheSexandtheCityepisodewhereSamanthagetsonethatleavesherfacetomato-red.ButeventhoughchemicalpeelsarethethirdmostcommonlyperformednoninvasivecosmeticproceduresintheU.S.,manypeoplemaystillbeunsurejustwhatgood(orbad)theycandoforourskin.Accordingtotheboard-certifieddermatologistandcelebritybeautyexpert,Dr.AnnaGaunche,M.D.,achemicalpeeliswhenachemicalsolutionthatisacidicorlowpHiscarefullyappliedtotheskintoinducepeelingandskinsloughingtohelprevealsmoother,fresher-lookingskin.“Whenacidisapplied,thedeadskincellsareletgo,whichresultsinpeelingandacceleratesskincellturnover,”Dr.GauchetellsHelloGiggles.“Skincellsareactuallyreplacedevery45days!”Talkaboutabrandnewyou.

Thefirstthingtoknowisthatthereareseveraldifferenttypesofpeels,rangingfromsuperficialorlightpeels,tomediumpeels,andfinallydeeppeels,whichcansometimesrequireanovernightstay.Therearealsodifferenttypesofingredientsused.Glycolicpeelspenetratedeeply,andaregoodforagingskin.Lacticpeelsaregoodforthosewithskinthat’sdryorsensitive.Beta-hydroxypeelscontainsalicylicacid,makingthembestforacnepatients.Thereare,ofcourse,at-homeproductsthathavethesamekindsofingredientsasprofessionalpeelsdonebyyourdermatologist,butarejustmilder.Ifyou’veeverusedtheDrunkElephantBabyfacial,thenyou’vedoneapeel,asitcontainsglycolic,tartaric,lactic,citric,andsalicylicacids.TheDr.DennisGrossAlphaBetaUniversalDailyPeelpadscontainAHAsandBHAs,andcanhelpwithphotoaging,uneventone,andscars.

Below,Dr.Guanchetellsuseverythingweneedtoknowaboutchemicalpeels.HelloGiggles:Whatarethebenefitsofachemicalpeel?Dr.Gaunche:Chemicalpeelsarebeneficialtohelpfightthesignsofaging.Theyareusedtorefreshandrenewtheappearanceoftheskin.Theyoftenhelptosoftenfinelinesandwrinkles,andlightenbrownspots.Certainchemicalscanbeusedtotargetpigmentorevenacne.Oncepeeled,theskinlooksbrighterandmoreeven.HG:Isthereacertainskintypethatbenefitsbestfromchemicalpeels?Dr.Guanche:Chemicalpeelsworkbestforthosethathavefair/mediumskintypes.Thedarkertheskin,themoreriskthereisofpigmentationissuesandotherpooroutcomeswithpeels;of

course,thisdependsonwhetheritisasuperficial,medium,ordeeppeel.Choosinganexperiencedphysicianiskeytogoodoutcomes.HG:Canyouwalkusthroughtheprocess?Dr.Guanche:First,theskinispreppedwithacetoneinorderto“de-fat”theskin.Next,thepeelingsolutionisappliedtotheskinverystrategically.Thewell-trainedphysicianwillbelookingforreactionsintheskinsuchasredness,andfrosting(skinturnswhiteasproteinsaredigested).Thepeelisthenneutralizedbyeitherasolution/creamorbytheclientwashingtheirface.Then,topicalaftercareisapplied,includingsunscreen.HG:Whatistherecoveryandaftercarelike?Dr.Guanche:Thisdependsonwhichtypeofpeel.ForlightchemicalpeelslikeJessner’s,thereisverylittledowntime.Fordeeperpeels,likePhenolpeels,sometimesastayatahospitalisneeded.Downtimemustalwaysbediscussedwiththeproviderbeforepartakinginapeeltreatment.

HG:Howsooncansomeoneseeresults?Dr.Guanche:Somepeelsmakeyourskinlookamazingrightafterthepeel.Somepeelstakefivetosevendaystoseetheirfulleffect.This,again,shouldbediscussedwiththedoctor.HG:Whataretherisksofachemicalpeel?Dr.Guanche:Therisksofchemicalpeelsarehypopigmentation,hyperpigmentation,scars,redness,unevenpeeling,irritation,allergicreaction,anddermatitisorrash.Soundsscary,butIdothemalldaylongandhaveminimaltonoproblems.Thesearetheknownrisksandreallydependontheexperienceleveloftheprovider.

https://hellogiggles.com/beauty/what-is-a-chemical-peel/