Learning About Chemical Peels

Greetings Everyone,

 

 

In the light of our current situation with COVID-19, and being limited in our daily activities, it is normal for some of us to gravitate inward towards ourselves and take a critical look in the mirror, and say… ok.. what can I do to improve my health? Self esteem? Self confidence? The sky is the limit when we turn our focus to matters of health and beauty.

 

Thanks to a dear friend of mine who lives in LA, she invited me to a private Facebook group called Natural Kaos Tribe. This is a group which enjoys a membership of 13,000 members. I took the plunge and accepted the invitation to join the group. Much to my surprise, this is a group that promotes at home skin care, utilizing procedures that are normally reserved for those under the care of licensed skin care providers.

 

I was floored. I did not know that such resources are available to us by vendors who have been vetted by the group’s admin and there are people who are willing to perform innotox (Botox), skin peels, microneedling, threading (application of fillers), lipo dissolve, etc., all for a fraction of the price for which you would pay for professional services. There are units provided in this group to study for each area of interest, and type of procedure. It is strongly advised that the units are to be studied, and to go online and study even more before proceeding with what you feel needs to be addressed and to proceed with caution.

 

I have discovered a few things while learning to accept my face the way it is for now. Since I do not want to self inject fillers or Innotox, I decided to research the easiest thing I could do… facial peels. These are promoted to help your skin turnover older skin cells and promote regeneration of collagen to obtain smoother and healthier looking skin. An example of this would be a TCA peel (Trichloroacetic Acid). My internet research revealed that it is best to prepare your skin about a month prior to the peel with Retin A. Prescription strength can be purchased online through a vetted website, and then proceed with a peel of a lesser percentage of 7 to 15%.  I have discovered in browsing this group, there have been some people who experienced very nice results, and some people who were overzealous in their approach and application, suffered from potential scarring and hyperpigmentation, resulting from the induced chemically controlled burn. There is no ‘one size fits all’.

 

It is also advised following a peel, it is imperative to apply sun screen daily to protect the new skin from hyperpigmentation, sunburn from UVA and UVB lights from both the sun and tanning booth.

 

It is also advised to have it done professionally the first time so you can feel how it will burn. If you are able to tolerate the discomfort in a clinical setting, and are comfortable with doing this at home, then proceed with caution and care.

 

Contrary to what some members have endorsed, here are a couple of my findings through my internet research: Once a person has had a 25% peel on his or her face, it is medically advisable not to use that strength again, and it will inhibit your skin’s ability to tan. 

 

I had a question pop into my mind that I did not find an answer to while browsing in the group. My question was: “Does a constant exposure to skin peels, thin the skin?” Short answer is yes. Due to aging, the cellular turnover slows down along with collagen production, this in turn, with constant applications of chemical peels can accelerate the aging process.  

 

A tca peel for example, is fine, in my opinion, every six months, or once a year, at the lower percentages of strength, but not on a monthly basis, that is just too much of a good thing.

 

I have enclosed a link to a clip of Kim, who is an admin and founder of Natural Kaos Tribe, demonstrating how to do a peel correctly.