Should I Exfoliate?

Jan 16, 23

By: Hanna Heic | January 15, 2023

If you grew up all around the peak YouTube beauty guru era like I did, you must have watched one too many skincare videos that never missed to mention about the mystery of exfoliating. But what is it exactly and why do experts recommend exfoliation as a crucial skincare practice for healthy, glowing skin? In this post, we'll break down the basics of exfoliation, and unravel the hidden benefits of exfoliation whilst sharing some (not so) fun facts!

What is Exfoliation?

Skin exfoliation is the process of removing dead skin cells and oils from the outer surface of the skin. Exfoliation is a huge buzzword that has been around for centuries. Not only does it help your skin feel super smooth, but it also has quite a few other benefits! So if you're wondering how exfoliation would have a positive effect on your skin, keep reading!

Why do we Exfoliate?

Let's talk dead skin. Simply put, exfoliating helps to keep your skin be free of dead skin cells. Every minute of the day we lose 30,000 to 40,000 dead skin cells off the surface of our skin...and we won't even notice it through our naked eyes. How much dead skin do we lose everyday you may ask?

Millions.

They don't fall off all at once. Instead, you leave a trail of shed skin wherever you go. Yikes.

So where does it all end up?

*drumroll*

Let's start with your pillows, blanket, your entire bed, kitchen, laptop, magazines, shelves, iPad, dressing table, makeup, clothes, couch, TV....literally the entire house. Phew.

Fun fact! (Or not so fun in this case..)

The dust that collects on your tables, windowsills and on those picture frames that are so hard to get clean is made mostly from dead human skin cells! In other words, your house is filled with former bits of yourself.

Look, I know we all preach about self-love, but this is not the kind of self-love that we want for y'all ok. Yes you should pick up your broken pieces and come off stronger, but not literally collecting your bits of dead skin. In just one year, you'll shed more than 3.6 kilograms of dead skin. It gets even grosser: Your house is also filled with trillions of microscopic life forms called dust mites that eat your old dead skin.

"Y'all are trippin. Dust is grey, not the color of our skin"

Babes, the only reason it turned into grey looking is because our skin sheds together with the natural oil that our body produces.

There is a reason why skin experts deem exfoliation as a necessary and crucial skincare practice for those who want healthy, glowing skin. Without proper exfoliation, the old skin cells that you *unknowingly* shed everyday start to pile up and get trapped on the surface of the skin. This build up of dead skin cells then leads to excess oil and clogged pores, which would then snowball into dark spots, rough skin texture, dullness, dryness, acne, ingrown hairs, and so much more!

You see, exfoliation helps remove the barrier of dead skin cells, clogging skin and uncovers fresh new cells underneath.

It's like killing two birds with one stone; a squeaky clean house and healthy skin. It all comes down to the following question.....