You might think the answer of this question is very simple. Why someone wrote a blog post for this!
Sorry to say your thought is slightly wrong. The answer is not that simple like you should exfoliate your body 2-3 times a week. The frequency of body exfoliation, intensity, and way of exfoliation depends on various factors.
Here, I help you to know all of them in detail.
Benefits of Full Body Exfoliation
Truly body doesn’t get half of the attention we give to our face. It is not a good practice. You should know the benefits of body scrubbing because it will motivate you for regular exfoliation.
Let’s see the most important benefits of body exfoliation with a short detail.
Removes Dead Skin Cells and Unclog Pores
The main purpose of exfoliation is to remove dead skin cells and dirt either from the face or body. Dead skin cells continuously shedding on our skin surface, some of them also fall off.
These dead skin cells and dirt are attached on the skin surface with the help of skin oil called sebum. Regular exfoliation will remove all this and reveal the new cells to surface.
Stops Acne Formation
Don’t think acne only appear on the face. It has some other favorite place such as chest and back. Acne forms when our skin cells get clogged. And regular exfoliation prevents acne by unclogging pores.
Lowers Skin Toxicity
Open pores mean more sweat without any blockage. And we know sweat brings toxins out from the body. Thus, exfoliation helps use to stay safe from various skin problems.
Promotes Cellular Regeneration
After exfoliation, your skin gets relief from dead skin cells, dirt, excess oil, and pollutants. And the new skin cells get enough space on the surface. It motivates your skin to grow more new cells. As a result, your skin will get a supple and radiant look.
Evens Out Skin Tone
The main reason of skin patches is shedding of dead skin cells. Some skin problems also responsible for this. Exfoliation removes dead skin cells and bring the newer cells in the front. Thus, it evens out skin tone and gives an attractive glow.
Helps to Penetrate Other Skincare Products
Exfoliation opens up skin pores and open pores mean the clear pathway between surface and inner layers of skin. This allows the skincare products penetrates easily and works well for the better result. Moreover, it saves your money by reducing product wastage.
Solves Ingrown Hair Problem
Ingrown hair is a common problem for those who shave regularly. And regular exfoliation can relief you from this. But, don’t exfoliate just after shave.
Improves Blood Circulation
While exfoliation you also do gentle massage on your skin. It improves circulation and makes your skin healthy.
Synthesizes Collagen Production
Exfoliation also gives you a younger looking skin by promoting collagen production. Mild friction while exfoliation triggers a healing response in the skin. As a result, the fibroblast cells begin to produce collagen.
Factors Influence Body Exfoliation Routine
Sorry to say there is no perfect time and frequency of body exfoliation. It depends on various factors. If you know the factors you can identify easily which shower frequency would be perfect for you. Let’s see.
Skin Types
Skin type is the first factor that tells you when and how to exfoliate your body. You cannot set the universally so-called standard exfoliation routine like “2-3 times a week” for every skin type. It is because the structure and nature of every skin are different.
There are several variations in skin types such as normal, oily, dry, combination, and sensitive. Before everything you need to identify the demand of your skin and decide what to do to fill that needs. It is the key to perfection behind every skincare routine.
Read Also: Proper Way to Exfoliate Back
Normal Skin
For normal skin type, the general exfoliation routine works better, twice a week. You can extend it thrice if your work type or environment make your skin dirty.
Dry Skin
Exfoliation has a tendency to make your skin dry. So, you should limit exfoliation frequency if you are a dry skin owner. Twice a week exfoliation for dry skin is good enough.
If your skin is extremely dry, cut it down to one. And gives a deep moisturization after finishing every exfoliation. It could be a lotion, cream, or moisturizer. Change your eating habit, add watery foods in the diet.
Oily Skin
Exfoliation is very necessary for oily skin as it acts as a glue board for dust and dead skin cells. They clog the skin pores and creates various skin problems like acne, pimples, zits, etc.
Exfoliation every day is better for oily skin. But the daily exfoliation intensity should be mild. Just put body wash on loofah pouf, create lather, and rub it on your skin very softly. You can do a deep exfoliation once a week, like with body scrubbing salt.
Sensitive Skin
Putting anything on sensitive skin is really challenging. If you have sensitive skin you should think twice before exfoliating skin. But exfoliation is necessary too. Here you should limit exfoliation, once a week is enough. And the exfoliation process should be very gentle.
If you want to exfoliate with a scrub, do a patch test before exfoliation. Apply the scrub on a small area of your skin and see what happens. If it doesn’t create any itching or allergic reaction, you are safe to do a full body exfoliation.
Read Also: Safest Body Wash for Men
Combination Skin
There is no exact rule of exfoliation for combination skin type. You need to do some trial and error to find the right exfoliation frequency for your combination skin.
Specific Skin Parts of Body
Our skin structure isn’t same throughout the body. So the exfoliation routine and intensity should vary.
Some body parts you should exfoliate regularly are the neck, decollete, shoulder, underarms, and groin area. It is because dirt (especially dead skin cells) accumulation rate in these areas is higher than the other body parts. Moreover, they have the tendency to sweat more which creates odor.
The skin of underarms and groin area is soft and delicate. As you have to exfoliate them regularly, be very gentle here. Use a soft and gentle exfoliator for these parts. If you want to use body scrub for them, use just once a week. And the granules of the scrub should be very small.
Besides, all of us have to shave these parts regularly. And ingrown hair is very common. Regular mild exfoliation helps you to stay safe from this problem.
Neck and shoulder are also prone to being dirty as they remain uncovered throughout the day. A regular gentle exfoliation keeps them fresh and clean. Just don’t forget these parts while taking shower.
Using Frequency of Exfoliating Tools
We need some tools to exfoliate our body. It could be natural loofah, shower pouf, exfoliating gloves, microfiber towel, exfoliating brush, scrubbing salt & sugar, etc. You should use them for different purposes because they give different type of exfoliation.
For daily exfoliation you could use microfiber tower or loofah pouf. They are comparatively soft and gives gentle exfoliation. You can use exfoliating gloves as well.
Natural loofah and exfoliating brush are comparatively hard. You should use them by putting a gap between two exfoliations. If you want my opinion, I suggest you to use twice a week.
And the scrubbing salt and sugar are good for better exfoliation. If you want to remove stubborn dirt and impurities, use body scrub either it is made with salt or sugar. But, don’t use them too frequent. Once a week or couple of weeks is good enough.
If you use them too frequent, you skin will get damaged. Sometimes it may create tiny nicks and cut. Moreover, exfoliation with body scrub is time consuming.
Read Also: Over Exfoliation Damages
Seasons
Season plays an important role on skincare routine. You need to use skincare products suit for that specific season. You should exfoliate your skin by keeping season in mind. Just try to figure out what the impact of a specific season on your skin, then set the exfoliation procedure to minimize those problems.
If you want to know which season is best for exfoliation, you won’t get the right answer. Some say winter is good and some say fall (autumn) is good. Please don’t hear them. The frequency and intensity could vary, but you should exfoliate your skin throughout the year.
Note: Best practice for exfoliation is to follow the routine according to your skin type. You can do some minor changes considering the seasons. Remember there is no drastic difference between seasonal exfoliation routine.
Summer
Summer is the time for heat and sweat. Your skin produces more sebum than any other season (source). And this sebum acts as glue for dirt and other pollutants. So you should put a special focus on summer.
One of the main skincare products of summer is sunscreen. Excessive use of it may cause pore blockage. To keep your pore clear you need regular exfoliation.
Fall (Autumn)
In summer your skin goes through a devastating situation. Your skin faced sweat, excessive sebum, dirt, and grime in summer. Sunburn also darkens the tone of your skin. Fall is the time to remove the dark tone from your skin with exfoliation. Newer skin gives you glowing look.
Winter
Winter is the season when you need to careful while taking care of your skin. It makes your skin dry and flaky. Regular exfoliation will remove dead and flacky skin and bring back the supple look. It also helps the moisturizer penetrates easily into the skin.
But you can limit the exfoliation frequency slightly as the maximum area of the body get covered by cloth. I think, in winter, body exfoliation once a week is enough.
Spring
There is no special recommendation for the spring season. Just follow your regular exfoliation routine according to your skin type.
The Last Words
Exfoliation is beneficial if you do it in the right way. Excessive exfoliation will damage your skin. On the other hand, less exfoliation will create various skin problems. So, let your skin be happy with proper exfoliation.