Are you new to skincare? Or you have been at it for a while now and you have up to 10 or more skincare routine steps or products you follow or use? Regardless of your position either new or old, the odds of you resorting to mixing skincare products are high.
When it comes to skincare products, different producers or brands use different ingredients in their making, hence, it becomes pertinent that you, the user, learn how to properly mix them otherwise you end up mixing products and achieve little or no results because the ingredients cancel each other out. Asides from achieving low results, mixing products wrongly can harm your skin rather than heal or repair the skin.
There are lots of products in the world and these products contain ingredients like acids, pore refiners, retinol, hydrators, etc., and these products perform better when they are mixed with certain other products. Do you have lots of products and you don’t know which ones go with the others? Then you are in luck, in this blog post, you’ll learn the dos and don’ts of mixing skincare ingredients.
Do Mix
Glycolic acid and vitamin C
It’s no longer a secret that glycolic acid and vitamin C have exfoliating properties. They aid in increasing the turnover rate of dead skin cells within the skin, inhibit melanin production in the skin, increase collagen production, and help to fade dark spots.
If you should use these products together, they can help with hyperpigmentation, bumpy skin texture, and enlarged pores. They can be used together on all skin types but severely sensitive skin types. If you have that type of skin, it’ll be best to use any of the exfoliates, one at a time.
Retinol and hyaluronic acid
Retinol is widely known for its anti-acne benefits, anti-ageing benefits, and it’s a highly effective chemical exfoliant for the skin. Due to its great exfoliating properties, retinol has been known to irritate the skin and cause dryness for beginners with sensitive skin types. Because of that, retinol can be used together with moisturizing ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and that’s because it’s a humectant and as such, it does the work of drawing in moisture and keeping the skin hydrated thereby eliminating the negative dryness effect of retinol making it more beneficial to the skin.
Benzoyl peroxide and SPF
When dealing with acne, you can either visit an acne clinic or treat them using products like benzoyl peroxide. The effectiveness of using benzoyl peroxide to treat acne is so high that it can be used to treat severe cases of acne.
Benzoyl peroxide helps in treating acne by drying out flare-ups and regulating oil production in the skin which leads to decreased breakouts and makes the skin less oily. Just like retinol, benzoyl peroxide can lead to drying when used frequently which now opens your skin to attacks from the sun. If you use benzoyl peroxides then you use sunscreens to protect your delicate skins. You should also use sunscreens even on days when you did not use benzoyl peroxide.
Don’t Mix
Retinol and chemical exfoliants (AHAs/BHAs)
Retinols and Chemical exfoliants (such as AHAs and BHAs) exfoliate the skin from under the top layer. Whether you use chemical exfoliates or retinol, they are both great for treating early signs of acne and acne scars, ageing, hyperpigmentation, etc., but when used together, they can irritate the skin and/or cause severe drying of the skin most especially when they both have strong concentrations.
Rather than use them together, a safer and better option would be to alternate the days you use each ingredient in order to prevent damaging your skin.
Retinol and vitamin C
Vitamin C chemically exfoliates the skin, brightens the skin, and helps in fighting off free radicals. They are best used in morning routines together with sunscreens to protect the skin from being damaged by the sun while brightening the skin.
If you should use vitamin C with retinol, you may experience some side effects since they are used for different reasons. Hence, using both products together can irritate your skin. Rather than use them together, you can use vitamin C in the morning during your morning routine and retinol can be used at night.
Vitamin C and niacinamide
Even though both ingredients are known to be antioxidants, if you use them together, it decreases the effectiveness of each ingredient. Both of them work great when used individually to treat enlarged pores, hyperpigmentation, and uneven texture. Hence, rather than use them together and reduce their overall effectiveness, use vitamin C in the morning during your morning routine and niacinamide in the evening or at night during your evening routine.
