The Right Facial Cleanser Should Balance Your Skin's PH
Most soaps, even some natural cleansers, are not well suited for your skin. When your skin is taken good care of, it not only promotes your general health by keeping toxins and disease antigens off, it also promotes your attractiveness and beauty, as well as enhancing your self esteem levels. For this and other reasons, it is of great importance to maintain a healthy skin especially by taking measures dedicated to balancing skin’s pH levels. The term pH biologically refers to the potential of hydrogen in a particular media of concern. In other words, it indicates the acidity or the alkalinity of a substance in a scale of 1 to 14; 1-6.9 being acidic, 7 being neutral, and 7.1-14 bring alkaline. A dire need thus arises to determine the normal hydrogen potential of a normal skin, and perhaps your own.
What is the normal skin pH?
Different academic and healthcare sources have different suggestions on the normal skin pH level. However, as far as this is concerned, the normal range is usually between pH4.5 and pH6 as the skin should always be slightly acidic. This state may however be affected by exposure to products and substances that the skin comes into contact with, such as soaps, commercial cleansers, cosmetic products and detergents.
Why you should maintain a balance in skin pH
The reason that the skin is slightly lower in pH (4.5-6) is because it is composed of a film of amino acids, sweat, and sebum; which together form the layer referred to as the acidic mantle. The acidic mantle not only acts as a barrier that eliminates any threat that may be caused by invasive disease causing microorganisms in the environment, but also keeps the skins integrity intact. When substances that are rather too acidic are introduced to the surface of the skin, the protective barrier may be interfered with. Too much of alkaline substances may also lead to susceptibility of the skin to bacteria, viruses and fungi, or even lead to dry and irritated outer layer. If you are by any means conscious of your immunity, the pH balance of your skin should not be by any means compromised.
Commercial skin products and skin pH
There are dozens of thousands of skin care products out there in the global market. As much as it is important to have a positive or unbiased perception towards them, not all of them are designed to assist consumers in restoring skin’s pH, lest the promises they come with. However, some notable products are quite potent in maintaining a good and healthy skin. Products that contain ingredients such as antioxidants are effective in maintaining the acid mantle by enabling the proper functioning of skin cells and protecting them from environmental stresses that may interfere with pH levels. On the other hand, most products used as sun screens are able to shield the skin form the harmful rays of the sun, which are capable of disrupting the cellular skin pH as well as interfering with natural oils. Moisturizers help keep the skin moist and healthy, protecting the skin’s acidic mantle and rejuvenating dry skin. The wrong moisturizer can cause oily skin or chronically dry skin, though.
Diet and water
It is recommended that you take more of alkaline foods than acidic foods for a healthy and pH balanced skin. This is mainly because most foods that are marked acidic, end up being alkaline in the body after undergoing digestive processes and vise versa. Plenty of green leafy vegetables, citrus fruits tomatoes and carrots are among others advisable as far as balancing the skin’s pH is concerned. Water is also one of the most important chemicals of life known to man. It has an important role in pH balance not only for the skin, but also in other internal and external parts of the body. Its role in thermoregulation also plays an important role in moisture conservation when administered topically, externally during bathing.
Effect of cleansers and acids
You should always observe the type of soap you use when taking a shower, and the type of detergent you use in doing your laundry and household tasks. This is because some of these substances are capable of tampering with the acidity or alkalinity of your outermost protective layer, and may eventually cause loss of moisture, dryness, and disease in some instances. A good example is the regular bar soap, which is purported to have a pH of around 9-12, which may be injurious especially for people with sensitive skin.
It is always important to work closely with your dermatologist, beautician o health practitioner in choosing the best skin care product for you. This is because in some cases, a product may turn out to work against your efforts of correcting the PH levels of your skin, especially if you are under medication, if you have a history of skin conditions, or other health conditions. They will probably also assist you in choosing registered and approved skin care products.
What is the normal skin pH?
Different academic and healthcare sources have different suggestions on the normal skin pH level. However, as far as this is concerned, the normal range is usually between pH4.5 and pH6 as the skin should always be slightly acidic. This state may however be affected by exposure to products and substances that the skin comes into contact with, such as soaps, commercial cleansers, cosmetic products and detergents.
Why you should maintain a balance in skin pH
The reason that the skin is slightly lower in pH (4.5-6) is because it is composed of a film of amino acids, sweat, and sebum; which together form the layer referred to as the acidic mantle. The acidic mantle not only acts as a barrier that eliminates any threat that may be caused by invasive disease causing microorganisms in the environment, but also keeps the skins integrity intact. When substances that are rather too acidic are introduced to the surface of the skin, the protective barrier may be interfered with. Too much of alkaline substances may also lead to susceptibility of the skin to bacteria, viruses and fungi, or even lead to dry and irritated outer layer. If you are by any means conscious of your immunity, the pH balance of your skin should not be by any means compromised.
Commercial skin products and skin pH
There are dozens of thousands of skin care products out there in the global market. As much as it is important to have a positive or unbiased perception towards them, not all of them are designed to assist consumers in restoring skin’s pH, lest the promises they come with. However, some notable products are quite potent in maintaining a good and healthy skin. Products that contain ingredients such as antioxidants are effective in maintaining the acid mantle by enabling the proper functioning of skin cells and protecting them from environmental stresses that may interfere with pH levels. On the other hand, most products used as sun screens are able to shield the skin form the harmful rays of the sun, which are capable of disrupting the cellular skin pH as well as interfering with natural oils. Moisturizers help keep the skin moist and healthy, protecting the skin’s acidic mantle and rejuvenating dry skin. The wrong moisturizer can cause oily skin or chronically dry skin, though.
Diet and water
It is recommended that you take more of alkaline foods than acidic foods for a healthy and pH balanced skin. This is mainly because most foods that are marked acidic, end up being alkaline in the body after undergoing digestive processes and vise versa. Plenty of green leafy vegetables, citrus fruits tomatoes and carrots are among others advisable as far as balancing the skin’s pH is concerned. Water is also one of the most important chemicals of life known to man. It has an important role in pH balance not only for the skin, but also in other internal and external parts of the body. Its role in thermoregulation also plays an important role in moisture conservation when administered topically, externally during bathing.
Effect of cleansers and acids
You should always observe the type of soap you use when taking a shower, and the type of detergent you use in doing your laundry and household tasks. This is because some of these substances are capable of tampering with the acidity or alkalinity of your outermost protective layer, and may eventually cause loss of moisture, dryness, and disease in some instances. A good example is the regular bar soap, which is purported to have a pH of around 9-12, which may be injurious especially for people with sensitive skin.
It is always important to work closely with your dermatologist, beautician o health practitioner in choosing the best skin care product for you. This is because in some cases, a product may turn out to work against your efforts of correcting the PH levels of your skin, especially if you are under medication, if you have a history of skin conditions, or other health conditions. They will probably also assist you in choosing registered and approved skin care products.