Why St. Ives Apricot Scrub is Damaging your Skin

I have had so many clients in the past month tell me that they use this product and internally I cringe.  Now don't get me wrong, there are alot of good skincare products at the drugstore.  This product is NOT one of them.  Don't worry I am not here to just bash this product. I promise I will tell you why and I will give you alternatives.

The number one problem I find with using this product is that my clients are exfoliating too often.  Many of my clients are using this product twice a day.  When you exfoliate you are taking off the topmost layer of skin, this is the layer that protects your skin from external damage.  If you are doing this everyday, your skin never has the chance to heal.  With your skin constantly wounded, it is vulnerable to even more damage from the environment.

The next problem is that all the ingredients in this product either clog your pores or irritate your skin.  I will be pointing out specific ingredients and I apologize if this gets a little technical, but I think it's important that you know exactly what is in your products.

1. Walnut shell powder

This powder creates microscopic tears in the skin and this can push acne bacteria into the deeper layers of the skin.  Another problem is that "the act of scrubbing also causes inflammation, especially in this type of client who believes the more you scrub the better your skin will be"(etherealauraspa.com).

2. Glyceryl Stearate SE

This ingredient is highly comedogenic, which means that it will definitely clog your pores.  Because your pores are clogged, they are not getting any oxygen.  An environment without oxygen is one where bacteria growth flourishes.  This makes acne worse.

3. Sodium Laureth Sulfate

This is a foaming agent that is found very frequently in drugstore skin care.  It clogs pores and is very irritating.

4. Cocomidopropyl Betane

This is the last one, I promise! This badboy strips the oil from the skin and in high concentrations it can be very irritating.

These are only four of the many ingredients that irritate and clog pores.  Keep in mind that this is marketed as an acne product. But this product clogs pores.  For those of you who are oily, l recommend that you buy the Transforming powder Dual-Action Cleanser and Exfoliator (here's where you can purchase https://www.murad.com/product/acne-cleansing-powder). You can use this product instead of your cleanser 1-2x a week.

If you are on a lower budget, I recommend that you use a coconut oil/sugar exfoliant.

 With either of these products you will only use them TWICE a week at the most!!!

I apologize for this post being so long and I hope that this helped all of you learn a little something!!!

I love you all!!!

XOXO