Bring Back the Cleanse

A clean demographic

“Wash your face and hands, and brush your teeth.” Hasn’t this been a mantra since childhood? Yet, speaking from 24 years of experience in the skin care industry, people don’t really know how to clean their skin. Research conducted confirms that most women spend fewer than 20 seconds washing their faces in the morning. However, they may spend a bit more time in the evening, if they are removing makeup. At least I hope so. Very simply, there is need for massive  re-education. Improper and inadequate cleansing and the use of inappropriate products, such as conventional soap, all get a skin care regimen off on a very dubious footing. As a demographic, teens and tweens actually come the closest to understanding the need for clean skin. This is, of course, because they are dealing with rampant sebum production, and the looming threat of acne. Nevertheless, the problem is that consumers are using heavier oil-based moisturizers and more water-resistant makeup and sunscreens that are not adequately removed with water-based cleansers.

 

Combine this with how quickly average individuals cleanse their skin and too many people are walking around with dirty skin. For this reason, I always recommend a second cleansing to thoroughly remove oils from the skin. As a matter of fact, even if the skin is cleansed twice with a water-soluble cleanser, there still may be some oil-soluble substances that remain. A key part of the education surrounding cleansing is helping you to understand what happens when the skin is cleansed. When a cleanser is applied to the skin, surface active agents provide the primary cleansing action. During the initial cleansing process, the surfactants are emulsifying the fat or lipid grime, such as sebum, makeup, environmental hydrocarbons and sunscreens, allowing them to be solubilised in the rinse water. Meanwhile, the water-based portion of the cleanser solubilises the water-soluble debris, namely sweat and some environmental pollutants. Considering the amount of material that potentially collects on the skin, it’s not surprising that this initial cleansing will only remove superficial debris and is not adequate for a thorough cleansing.

 

A clean start

Just a splash of warm water and a single pass with a sudsy gel or milky cleanser—even a good one—is not enough. In fact, a light oil-based solvent should be used on the skin first as an initial step. This should not be mineral oil, although in generations past mineral oil and oily cold creams did perform the task of dissolving makeup. Today, there are non-greasy, microprocessed oils that do not require an alcohol-based toner to remove them. The methodology here: Like attracts like. Oils applied to the skin attract the oils produced by the skin for an ideal, non-aggressive cleansing. Water added to the mix allows the combined, released oils to be rinsed away. Ideally, the pre-cleanse oil step is recommended, as well as the double-cleanse, twice a day, to start off on the path to your best skin. So, every morning and opportunity, regardless of your age, your skin deserves a clean start. It’s like eating a good breakfast: Unless you do it, the rest of the day—or the rest of your skin care regimen—simply won’t click.