Salicylic acid works more effectively when layered with niacinamide. Niacinamide is an antioxidant that reduces inflammation and helps with acne. It's always good to use salicylic acid in a cleanser or a face mask and layer it with niacinamide.
Salicylic acid can be paired with popular ingredients like hyaluronic acid and niacinamide if you want to decongest your pores and avoid dryness.
Actives That Can be Used With Salicylic Acid
She also suggests combining salicylic acid with hyaluronic acid to enhance skin hydration and counteract any dryness resulting from the exfoliation that salicylic acid provides. Another ingredient to use with salicylic acid is vitamin C.
Salicylic acid and vitamin C are both effective products on their own but, when combined, they can be even more beneficial. Whether you're looking to brighten your skin, reduce the likelihood of blemishes or just help slow down the skin's natural aging process, these ingredients may be just what you're looking for.
Can niacinamide and salicylic acid be used together? The simple answer is yes. They complement each other well. Being oil soluble, salicylic acid can penetrate deeper into the skin layers, but it can also dehydrate and irritate skin.
Absolutely, hyaluronic acid and salicylic acid are perfectly safe to use together. This is because, although they are both carry the name acid, they do in fact work very differently on the skin. Hyaluronic acid is a highly effective skin ingredient because of the humectant properties it contains.
Can I use salicylic acid, niacinamide, and hyaluronic acid together? You can indeed! The main benefit of using niacinamide and hyaluronic acid together is their ability to provide hydration and protection for the skin.
To fight the good fight against acne, you may also use salicylic acid, a beta hydroxy acid (BHA) that increases skin cell turnover, to keep pores clear. But on its own, each can dry out the skin, so together they should be combined with caution.
Don't use with: Although salicylic acid can be combined with other exfoliating ingredients, Mudgil says that in order to avoid irritation, it's best to stick to only one exfoliant at a time.
Can glycolic acid be mixed with salicylic acid? You can certainly use glycolic acid and salicylic acid together, but we would suggest avoiding mixing them together. This is because combining such potent ingredients will cause a severe reaction to the skin, as well as potentially damaging the skin barrier.
It is considered the best idea to apply niacinamide before salicylic acid. This is because the humectant traits of niacinamide ensure the natural skin barrier contains the correct levels of water. When the skin barrier is moisturised and healthy it can keep itself protected from exposure to free radical damage.
It is safe to use products with salicylic acid every day, unless it is specified otherwise on the product usage guidelines or by your health care professional. CeraVe's SA Smoothing Cream and SA Smoothing Cleanser are suitable for daily use.
Does it have any contraindications? The experts don't recommend combining this product in the same regimen as products containing peptides, EUK-134 0.1%, pure or ethylated vitamin C, and other direct acids (glycolic, lactic, mandelic, salicylic etc).
Having two different cleansers for morning and night sounds unnecessary, but Jaliman says it's good to mix it up. “You can use a salicylic acid–based cleanser in the morning to unclog pores and avoid acne and a glycolic acid–based cleanser at night to exfoliate your skin and get rid of dead skin cells,” notes Jailman.
Can I apply moisturizer after using salicylic acid? Yes. Moisturizers can help hydrate and repair skin, making it a good step to do after using an exfoliating treatment with salicylic acid.
I started applying salicylic acid after the cleansing and toning steps and before moisturising. It is important that you let your skin absorb the product. While applying salicylic acid, I massage the product into my skin in a circular motion. I also make sure to keep the product away from my eyes and mouth.
You want to make sure that you're not using a product that has too high of a concentration of salicylic acid. Gels should have no more than 5% acid. Lotions that are applied once or twice a day should have 1–2% salicylic acid, and solutions like cleansers or toners should have 0.5–2% salicylic acid.
“AHAs and BHAs can certainly be combined. For example, for oily skin, a salicylic-based cleanser can be used followed by a glycolic acid toner.
By using a salicylic acid enriched wash after cleansing the skin of any remaining makeup, you are helping to rid the skin of any dead skin cell build-up allowing any nourishing products applied afterwards to absorb quicker into the lower layers of the skin and show results quicker.
Using products that contain both ingredients ensures a pH-balanced formulation and reduces some of the guesswork of layering products to achieve desired results. While it's safe to use salicylic acid and niacinamide together, Leung advises that it's best not to combine BHAs with other exfoliants or retinol.
Both mandelic acid and salicylic acid should be applied to dry skin a maximum of three times per week to avoid irritation. If your skin isn't particularly sensitive then you can use both exfoliants together, although it's better to use a multi-ingredient product than to layer mandelic acid and salicylic acid yourself.
Yes, you can, BUT you will get better results if you use vitamin C and glycolic acid/salicyclic acid separately. We recommend using vitamin C in the morning and your AHA or BHA at night.