What if: Wash your body with just water without shower gel?

There is an urban legend that shower gels are purely a marketer’s invention and spoil the skin, they say, there is enough ordinary water for the body. Like it or not, we decided to find it in the new issue of “What If?”. With the help of a dermatologist. In the past, by the way, we dealt with shampoos for dyed hair.

Olga Antonova, dermatologist of the network of clinics Re:new

Time is the way you want maximum minimalism. Conscious consumption (and more often spending cuts), travel, lack of time – perhaps a skin break can be beneficial?

The skin starvation fashion trend most likely arose in response to the theory of autophagy (the natural process of regeneration and cleansing of the body at the intracellular level – Approximate pressure). The relationship is clear: if there is a general belief that fasting is good for the body, then if you do not nourish the skin with cosmetics, it must be reborn.

On the one hand, this system has its own logic: we often choose cosmetics, succumb to marketing gimmicks. Many formulas contain allergens and irritants that leave a film of petroleum products on the skin (glycerols) or impair the skin’s protective function to help retain its natural moisture (surfactants – foaming agents). The philosophy of skin fasting is very simple: drop all cosmetics for a few days to a week – and the skin microbiome will heal on its own.

But in our stressful time (social disasters and the consequences of a pandemic), the skin reacts atypically. The percentage of people with complaints of sensitivity, acne and irritation, also seen in the body, increased.

Skin fasting is prohibited for people with allergies and sensitive skin and chronic diseases (dryness, redness are included in this list) – lack of proper care causes exacerbations. Body cleansers in this case should be selected by a dermatologist and marked as sensitive.

Even if you have healthy skin, you should be careful – for example, there are many sebaceous glands on the back, so the skin of the body always needs systemic care: sebum mixes with the pollution of the metropolis, becomes a sebaceous gland. the source of inflammation that remains on the skin of the back in the form of post-acne scars and stagnant spots. And it will be possible to remove it only with the help of a series of peelings and laser therapy.

We live in mega cities, so heavy metals, smoke, bacteria and germs stay on our skin. In contrast, tap water has a number of negative properties, dries the skin, and is definitely not a great cleanser. And that’s not so good for her microbiome and her youth.

How to correctly create a conscious beauty cosmetic bag of skin cleansing products?

Refuse aggressive cleansers, then “skin breaks”. Avoid products based on Sodium lauryl sulfate – Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS), sodium laureth sulfate – Sodium Laureth Sulphate (SLES) and sodium myret sulfate – Sodium Myret Sulfate (SMS) – these are inexpensive surfactants that create a thick foam but also damage . the skin’s natural protective barrier, causing it to dry out and peel.

Coco-betaine – Coco-Betain, cocamidopropyl betaine – Cocamidopropyl Betaine, coco-glucoside – Coco-Glucoside, caprylil / caprylglucoside – Prefer formulas based on surfactants such as Carpylyl / Capryl Glucoside or Sodium Coco-Sulphate – these are soft surfactants foam They can also form, but at the same time, they provide a gentle cleansing of the skin.

The human epidermis is completely regenerated within 30-40 days, during which time the stratum corneum thickens and inhibits the process of regeneration of new cells and maintaining the desired skin moisture. Use a body scrub or exfoliation once or twice a week to remove stratum corneum scales, ie dead skin particles. Self-massage during such procedures improves blood circulation, tone and relaxation of the skin.

Please note that shower gels and peels enriched with enzymes (rice enzymes, papain, bromelain) are gentler than gommages and scrubs, especially if you have sensitive skin.

You can use a toner according to your skin type to restore the pH after showering on the sensitive décolleté and neck areas as well as on the back (if there are rashes).