The use of lactic acid is on the rise these days, especially due to the trend that influencers are setting regarding beauty standards that demand flawlessly beautiful skin.
For this purpose, the use of lactic acid has increased. However, there are many aspects to it — how to use it and why include it in your daily skincare routine. It is essential to break it down to know all about it.
Understanding lactic acid
As the name suggests, it is extracted from dairy products, and also from synthetic sources at times.
Lactic acid belongs to the AHA family, and it is one of the milder members as it belongs to water-soluble acids that chemically exfoliate the epidermis or the skin surface.
It works by breaking the bonds of the skin and flaking it off. This way, your skin is rejuvenated, renewed, and the result is firmer and refined skin with reduced wrinkles and fine lines.
Who should use lactic acid?
It is beneficial for all skin types, but for beginners, it is essential that they perform a patch test to determine if it suits their skin type.
Next, you can begin using it once or twice a week to understand how it affects your skin quality.
Using lactic acid in skincare routine
Lactic acid comes in a variety of concentrations. To begin with, use nothing more than 5% and the higher variety of 12%. This can be used as a cleanser for beginners.
Another way of using it is a leave-on product like cream, lotion and other skincare formulations that are designed to stay on the skin, such as moisturiser and skin hydration products or serums.
Peel-offs and masks contain a strong presence of lactic acid, but these should only be used once a week.
Safety tips for lactic acid skincare
Avoid frequent use of lactic acid as it leads to over-exfoliation, damaging your skin barrier.
It may cause skin irritation and rashes in some cases.
Using other skin aggressors like retinoids with it is not recommended due to their chemical composition and their adverse reaction on the skin when you use them together.
Your skin gets exposed to sun damage due to skin peeling off, which requires SPF 60 protection.
Possible side effects of using it include severe itching, swelling, burning sensation, redness and skin peeling that is noticeable or unusual.
Alternatives to lactic acid
The primary use of lactic acid for skin is using it as a peel-off solution. For this purpose, it makes the skin vulnerable to environmental stressors and pollution, sun and other factors. Additionally, it is a chemical product that causes skin allergies, too, as mentioned above. However, there are Ayurveda-suggested recommendations or alternatives to it:
- Using papaya pulp on the skin
- Applying a mix of brown sugar and lemon to the skin
- Mixing honey with a few drops of lemon juice as a natural exfoliant
Banner image by Youssef Labib: https://www.pexels.com/photo/hands-with-syringe-touching-patient-face-9157201/
