IS BENZOYL PEROXIDE MORE HARMFUL THAN GOOD???
Today’s post is about the most controversial and most popular topical acne treatment 😱😱 Benzoyl peroxide 2.5% , 5%, 10% 🤔
What is it?
It’s an over the counter gel/creme/face wash that is is a peroxide type of medication which releases oxygen on the skin to destroy bacteria underneath the skin, as well as helping the pores shed dead skin cells and excess oil.
(You’re thinking wow, it’s antimicrobial, plus anti-inflammatory, plus exfoliant 😍😍 but it has limitations! errk 😣) 🤔
My experience?
About 3 years ago I began using BP. Thinking that a higher percentage was more effective I started off with 5% BP. 🥴This burnt my face 🙃 lol my face became so itchy I would scratch the living hell out of my face during the night 😭😭 BUT I noticed my cystic acne was drying up and my pustules were flattening. 😱 I was desperate...So I continued through the struggle and while on this journey I stumbled across acne.org which is like an online acne forum for all sufferers to share info + their experience. They also sold a simple 3 step regimen (the main ingredient being 2.5%) that’s when I learned higher percentages were actually more dangerous and unnecessary.
Fast forward, after using 2.5% bp for 8 weeks 90% of my acne cleared! My skin got used to the BP and I didn’t experience the burn, itchy or flakiness. It controlled my oils and smoothed out my texture. But lo and behold, when I stopped BP my acne came back full force. 😣Cystic acne grew across my cheeks and so I quickly jumped back on 2.5% and occasionally 10% cause I was stubborn af. 😅Skin cleared and then I stopped bp and wa-la, the vicious cycle began. 🙁
However I learnt that in order for your skin to lay off it, it’s important you don’t go cold turkey. Slowly minimise by skipping days then weeks! I don’t use it anymore but I do when I feel like my face is excessively oily. It’s more of my last resort than a must have skincare product. I realised that my acne could only heal if I took a more holistic approach so —> healing my internal health issues such as poor gut health and a heated liver.
SO..
PROS
-fast results (2-4 weeks)
-kills bacteria which clears acne
-controls oils to prevent further breakouts in the initial stages
-exfoliates skin for smoother texture
-very affordable and available in many places
CONS
-can cause burning, itchy sensation
-flaky patches that peel
-increase sensitivity to the sun (can cause premature ageing so please wear sunscreen)
-stained clothing/towels
-damages skin barrier overtime
-causes skin to depend on it (recommend to wean off it instead of stopping abruptly)