Angela Turovskaya, founder of clean beauty e-boutique BALMESSENCE, shares her advice on an all-natural skincare routine for acne-prone skin
A common skincare woe caused by a number of different reasons — including stress, genetics, hormonal imbalances and environmental changes — acne, which is often considered a teenage problem, can continue well into adulthood; leading to scarring, low self-esteem and even depression.
While there is no straight forward cure, and different types of skin reposed to different treatments, there are a few simples steps you can take toward a cleaner, more natural skincare routine that can help fight acne-ridden skin.
“My first word of advice is to swap to clean beauty products, they are essential for acne-prone skin”, said Balmessence founder Angela Turovskaya. “Organic and natural ingredients will gently treat skin unlike generic beauty products with aggressive preservatives and ingredients.” Here's Turovskaya's advice on a natural skincare routine to fight acne-prone skin.
I would suggest enzyme peelings for acne skin, those are gentle ones and can be used 2 times a week, one suggestion is the Codage Micro Peeling Mask. It’s a light emulsion composed of AHA, BHA and fruit enzymes. Within only a few minutes and without abrasion, it unclogs pores and eliminates impurities, spots, dead cells and others skin imperfections.
Another thing to remember is to avoid oil-based cleansers, use gel cleansers or even better, use foam cleaners, toner and light hydrating serum. One foam cleanser I would recommend is the Senteales Foaming Cleanser Cream. It removes make-up, purifies and cleanses. A rich and gentle soap free foaming cleanser which removes impurities and all traces of make-up. Extracts of green tea, magnolia, grapefruit and kelp purify the skin gently and regulate water balance. Once clean, the skin feels fresh and silky.
If you used to over cleanse your skin and your acne skin feels tight, then your skin flora was affected, you may need to use a probiotic serum for a certain period to boost skin’s microbiome. A product that I strongly believe can help this is the Essence Sensitive Serum, it increases probiotic microbial populations to the point that there are no available niches for invaders. This prevents activation of your skin’s immune system and reduces redness and irritation.
Chemicals and harsh ingredients inside your make-up products can lead to irritable acne, one suggestion I have is to use a natural mineral powder foundation instead of foundations containing oil and harsh preservatives and ingredients but apply a light moisturizer first.
Mineral foundations are formulated by grinding minerals into very tiny particles, such as iron oxides, talc, zinc oxide, and titanium dioxide. As mineral foundations are free of oil and fragrance, they are ideal for oily and acne-prone skin. My all time favourite and go-to product for this is the Lily Lolo Mineral Foundation – which is coming soon on Balmessence.com.
The most important when it comes to acne and makeup is that don’t forget to clean your foundation and powder make up brushes regularly to avoid bacteria. This is the simplest thing you can do to help prevent acne from spreading and developing, but it makes the biggest difference.
