Repairing Skin Barrier, recommendations and thanks
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Wed Jun 13, 2012 3:11 pm

Dear members,

You guys recently saved my face! About 2 months ago, my face started to look terrible. I am 29, and was experience deep fine lines, huge pores, extremely oil skin, saggy skin, crepey undereyes and general ugliness. I have always had somewhat large pores, but this was horrendous. I was starting to despair, and starting to look into glycolic peels, etc. I am so glad I found you guys first!

Through this forum, I learned that I was over-exfoliating my face. I was manually scrubbing with a loofah very harshly, using a harsh soap, and using an enzymatic exfoliater once a week (Alba Botanica Papaya Enzyme Mask). My barrier was gone, and my face was a dehydrated mess.

So, after reading this forum, I stopped exfoliating completely about 10 days ago, and started using a new routine. My face has improved dramatically. Fine lines are gone, pores are looking much better, oiliness is under control.

My question is this. I want to start using two additional products once a week: the Alba Papaya Mask, and Aztec Secret Clay Mask. One exfoliates, the other deep cleans pores. I am planning on adding these products this weekend (2 weeks after beginning barrier restoration). Is this too early? Should I wait longer to start using these products on my skin?

My current skincare regime is this:

AM
Alba Coconut Cleansing Milk
Humphrey's Witch Hazel Toner (alcohol free)
CerAve AM

PM
Dr. Bonner's Lavender Soap
Humprey's Witch Hazel Toner
Apricot Intensive Night Cream (Earth Science)
Sweet Almond Oil on under eye

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. You guys have been a big help already!

free skin care · Wed Jun 13, 2012 9:39 pm

Welcome!

What are you skincare issues and goals? Do you consistently meet or exceed all your government's recommendations for healthy eating and lifestyle?

IMO it is far too early to start exfoliating again because much inflammation and irritation is invisible. Furthermore research suggests it can take up to ten weeks for barrier function to be fully restored after contact dermatitis
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10789840
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9237006

IIRC Dr Bronners is an alkaline soap, if so is potentially still damaging your skin barrier. Even without alcohol, witch hazel is astringent so you might consider something soothing and hydrating like an aloe vera toner. Personally I would do your morning routine twice a day - a gentle cleanser followed by CeraVe. Both almond oil and apricot oil are rich in oleic acid which research suggests may contribute to irritation and abnormal keratinisation, and in turn to clogging or acne.

There are methods of exfoliating that will clean pores and dead skin simultaneously, or at least not assault sensitised skin with a raft of chemicals. You might consider using your lotion cleanser with simple tap water and a microfibre or muslin cloth, or add in a light lactic acid peel or combined lactic-salicylic acid peel. Lactic acid is naturally found in healthy skin, is a humectant and encourages the production of ceramides (lipids in skin barrier); salicylic can be very drying but has anti-inflammatory properties. By contrast enzymes are known irritants - the reason why those with sensitive skin are advised to use non-bio laundry powder.

Wed Jun 13, 2012 10:39 pm

FireFox, you are precisely who I was hoping to hear from.

My skincare issues are:
largish pores with clogging
fine lines
spots and small blackhead/pore plugs

My goals are:
pore reduction (or appearance of reduction)
minimizing fine lines
reduction of break outs (which unfortunately, seem to be hormonal)
doing this all as naturally as possible

I do meet or exceed my government health standards, by a long shot. I am very sure this isn't any kind of nutritional deficiency, although I am vegetarian. I supplement anything that might be missing from my diet pretty carefully.

As of today, I ditched the Dr. Bronners and am using the Alba cleansing milk twice daily, with the toner and lotions mentioned above. I will look into an aloe vera toner. I bought the Witch Hazel toner primarily to help with the large pores.

Is it possible that people have different reactions to apricot oil and almond oil? Is it a dosage dependent? My skin seems SO happy in the morning after using my apricot night cream. Firm, smooth and any redness from spots is reduced. I am on a pretty tight budget, so am reluctant to throw anything away if it isn't doing damage. Is this night cream likely to do actual damage to my face?

Should I avoid using the Betonite Clay, then? I was using it a few months back, and it did a great job unclogging sebum plugs (something that has been a problem for me my whole life). I know clay is drying, and I am just unsure if it is also damaging to the barrier layer.

Should I wait a full 10 weeks to begin exfoliating at all, or is it okay to do gentle manual exfoliation now? I am getting very small blackheads and clogging, which I would like to eliminate.

free skin care · Wed Jun 13, 2012 11:44 pm

Hormonal issues can be helped by diet modification, not to say your diet is deficient it may even simply be adjusting quantities or combinations. Key is plenty of fibre which you will likely be getting plenty of, assuming you eat only whole plant foods (not refined grains, not juice). Secondly the balance of essential fatty acids is critical, and that can be an issue in vegetarians and vegans. Are you taking in plenty of long chain (DHA/ EPA) or short chain (plant oil) omega-3s? Thirdly is your diet consistently low glycaemic index? For women and veggies there may not be sufficient complete protein or healthy fats early in the day.

All your skin issues *may* indicate chronic dehydration ... good because it's relatively straightforward to resolve! Very Happy

Do you have a past history that might indicate premature ageing - sun worshipping, smoking? Or years of dehydration - acne fighting products or harsh exfoliation? My pores virtually disappeared for the first time in my life when I made over my entire routine to be hydrating - cleanser and exfoliator not just moisturisers. Wish I had stopped trying to attack blackheads with scrubs and drying masks years ago! Laughing

You don't need to wait ten weeks, but I would wait at least two weeks after you stop using the Dr Bronners if possible. Anything that dries out the surface of the skin will damage the barrier function and disrupt normal exfoliation so IMO avoid the clay for as long as you can. Dehydrated skin not only will have the symptoms you are trying to eliminate but is at greater risk of irritation from ingredients in your skincare products. When you do return to exfoliation, my preference would be initially a cotton muslin cloth OR very dilute lactic acid solution because these are incredibly gentle, effective and super cheap! Then work up to either a microfibre waffle cloth OR lac-sal peel, both of which will clean into the pore but would be easy to over-use. Other options for unclogging include the Oil Cleansing Method or *gentle* manual extraction. Most peel off masks and scrubs will only remove the oxidised (black) top they don't actually clear the blockage.

Oleic acid won't do any damage as such, it might contribute to clogging and build up of dead skin which, in turn, increase the need and desire for exfoliation or harsh cleansing. The 'dose' will absolutely make a difference, this is demonstrated in acne and seborrhoeic dermatitis research. It also depends what else is in the formulation, I could only find a virtually unreadable ingredients list for that moisturiser: if you want to post the whole thing it would be easier to comment.

I don't throw much away nor advocate doing so: if your skin is happy keep on using the moisturiser on your face, otherwise use it on your neck, decolette or body. What is worth knowing is that sometimes oils and butters are working as a barrier in two ways: firstly preventing TEWL, and secondly protecting the skin from other products you are using! Or the change is partially down to what you have stopped using/ doing as much as what you have started using/ doing. When you say redness is reduced, what are you comparing that to? Right after cleansing with soap? A few hours after using CeraVe in the morning?

HTH! Wink

Thu Jun 14, 2012 12:01 am

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I do get both fiber and protein early in the day , as well as a large dose of flax oil.

I also have a history of sun exposure, as I grew up in the american southwest.

I think it is chronic dehydration. I have been using harsh exfoliation methods (scrubs and loofahs) for years. Probably most of my life. I have looked into OCM, and will probably buy some castor oil tomorrow. Seems like a healthy way to clear out gunk.

As far as redness, that is compared to when I getty out of the shower, which probably isn't a fair assessment...

free skin care · Thu Jun 14, 2012 12:37 am

So is flaxseed oil your source of omega-3s? Try a algae supplement plus omega-enriched eggs for long chain EFAs, ideally you would get 3g combined DHA and EPA per day but this may be unrealistic. The conversion rate of short chain omega-3s in plant oils to the useable long chain format is low - granted higher in those with a healthy diet but you still need to take in huge amounts of raw flax oil which is pricey and restricts meal planning. http://www.opti3omega.com/

Sounds like your skin is already recovering well which is VERY encouraging, but do let us know how you get on. If you are concerned about ageing and past sun damage you might consider adding in something like DragoN's KinNiaNag serum once your skin is fully recovered. This is gentle enough for even rosacea and my eczematous skin, is jam packed with actives proven in anti-ageing, beneficial in acne or for balancing sebum production. You can make this for $15 and a bottle lasts a couple of months of nightly use. Very Happy

http://skinessentialactives.blogspot.co.uk/

With the OCM you might consider buying an emulsifier like one of the polysorbates so your oil rinses clean without needing to scrub at your face, and selecting carrier oils which are lower in oleic acid.

free skin care · Thu Jun 14, 2012 7:06 am

I recently read of one study that showed incredible barrier repair using sunflower seed oil.

BFG

Mon Jun 18, 2012 11:18 am

Hey All,

Just wanted to give an update!

My face is definitely on the mend, in a big way. I haven't had a serious break-out since I stopped my intense exfoliation and drying soap regime. I have also quit using the witch hazel toner and noticed an immediate improvement in my pores. I am definitely in PMS mode, and I typically have at least one large, semi-cystic pimple at this time...nothing (so far)

I started using the OCM this week, with the plan to use it once a week as a sort of deep facial. I definitely didn't notice an immediate purge as others have, but my pores definitely looked better refined after cleansing. I followed up with a wash with my oil-based cleanser, just to make sure all of the gross purged stuff was off my face.

I plan to reintroduce gentle exfoliation next week with a muslin washcloth. Would you guys recommend exfoliating daily, or just a few times a week?

Also, has anyone used safflower oil as an "night cream"? I like putting something nice and hydrating on my face over night, and I have been reading that high linoleic acid safflower oil is one of the very best for barrier repair/maintenance. What do you guys think?

Thanks again!

Fri Jun 29, 2012 4:10 pm

sekhmet1 what did you do to help your skin barrier improve?

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