Hyaluronic acid, itself, is not considered to be comedogenic and, while comedogenicity ratings are somewhat flawed, is unlikely to cause breakouts by clogging your pores.
“Hyaluronic acid is neither good nor bad for acne,” she says. “However, it can be used incorrectly, or it can be mixed with other ingredients that may not agree with a person's skin and therefore cause a breakout.”
Hyaluronic acid will draw moisture from wherever it can find it to hydrate the surface of your face, including the deeper layers of your skin if there is no humidity in the air." Which is to say, too much hyaluronic acid can leave skin thirstier, and dehydration lines more prominent.
Helps In Reducing Acne Appearance
Hyaluronic acid is known for its soothing and hydrating properties. It helps in improving the acne marks and reduces inflammation as well. Skincare products with hyaluronic acid are a great way to tackle it.
While hyaluronic acid can't fill in visible acne scars, it can help reduce redness and the visible appearance of acne. In addition, hyaluronic acid can help protect the skin, which is especially helpful for acne-prone skin, as it typically doesn't have a very strong lipid barrier.
Hyaluronic acid by itself is non-comedogenic (doesn't clog pores), but you should be careful when choosing a hyaluronic acid serum that the ingredient list doesn't contain any sneaky pore-clogging ingredients you're not expecting.
If you want to prevent skin purging or limit a purge's severity, make sure you introduce your new acne treatment products slowly into your routine. This is true of other skincare products for most skin conditions! Slow and steady usually wins the race.
Can I use hyaluronic acid every day? Yup! And you can even use it twice a day as long as you're applying it to clean, damp skin, then locking it in with a moisturizer and face oil. “If you put hyaluronic acid on top of a sunscreen or a moisturizer, it's not going to work,” Dr.
It's purely a hydrating skincare ingredient that helps to increase the amount of water within your skin. If you have experienced a breakout after using a hyaluronic acid product, it is highly unlikely to be due to 'purging' unless the product also contains an AHA, BHA, or retinoid (e.g. retinol, retinaldehyde).
“Hyaluronic acid plays well with most ingredients, while caution must be taken when using retinol in combination with alpha hydroxy and beta hydroxy acids, benzoyl peroxide, and some types of vitamin C.”
Hyaluronic acid is well known for its skin benefits, especially alleviating dry skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and speeding up wound healing. It can also help relieve joint pain in people with osteoarthritis.
Skin purging typically looks like tiny red bumps on the skin that are painful to touch. They are often accompanied by whiteheads or blackheads. It can also cause your skin to become flaky. The flare ups caused by purging have a shorter lifespan than a breakout.
Generally speaking, dermatologists say purging should be over within four to six weeks of starting a new skin care regimen. If your purge lasts longer than six weeks, consult your dermatologist. It could be that you need to adjust the dosage and/or frequency of application.
Purging is a sign that the product is working and you should continue with the treatment as prescribed. After a few weeks of purging, your skin and acne will have noticeably improved. Breaking out is when your skin is reacting because it is sensitive to something in the new product.
Occasionally, though, serums can actually cause acne—so proceed with caution. "They can lead to breakouts—especially if you're using the wrong one for your skin type," says Green.
Sudden acne breakouts can be because of numerous reasons, including hormonal changes or hormonal imbalance, an unhealthy diet including lots of deep fried and junk food, release of cortisol hormones because of excessive stress, excessive production of sebum and much more.
Skin purging occurs because newly introduced skincare ingredients increase the rate at which your skin cells turnover, causing you to shed more dead skin cells than usual. This, in turn, pushes layers of dead skin off and also brings clogged pores to the surface, Chang says, resulting in more breakouts.
What does it look like? Distinct, acne-like bumps may be purging. However, if you're noticing welts, diffuse redness, or anything resembling a rash, stop what you're doing. Inflammation is a sign of reaction and generally appears as all-over redness rather than individual, blemish-like spots.
A purge can last as long as two months, and you should start seeing an improvement by the six-week point, if not sooner. On the other side of a purge is cleaner, clearer skin!
Many have questioned whether skin purging is real. It may seem contradictory that continuing to use a product through breakouts and holding on through some serious bad skin days can result in your complexion eventually clearing. But purging is absolutely real—especially if you have acne-prone skin to begin with.
A cystic pimple on your chin? You're probably not purging. Though a skin purge can technically appear as any type of acne, it typically looks like “small, red, tender bumps on the skin, and often [can be accompanied] with the appearance of blackheads or whiteheads,” says Dr. Nazarian.
Larger HA molecules, despite being the best at binding water and offering hydration, cannot penetrate into the skin. When applied topically (to the skin), these molecules sit on top of the skin, offering hydration only at the very surface.
Does Hyaluronic Acid Have Any Side Effects to Note? Hyaluronic acid is generally safe for all skin types and doesn't typically lead to any adverse reactions when applied topically, Marchbein says. “Hyaluronic acid is a natural substance in our skin, and as a result one should not expect any problems,” Dr. Rothaus says.
Hyaluronic acid is best if they're looking to moisturize dry skin, while retinol works better by encouraging better skin by boosting collagen production. They have several benefits that can work in tandem for better results, though patients need to be careful with the exact formulations they use.
Hyaluronic acid and Niacinamide are a great pair as both are water-based treatments. When used together, always go with applying hyaluronic acid first, followed by Niacinamide. By following this, you would be able to attract plenty of hydration first.