Basic information about AHA Fruit Acids

As soon as there is a new trend, many cosmeticians, cosmetics institutes and consumers influenced by advertising jump onboard, with no regard for the possible health consequences. The media, who often have no technical knowledge, and advertisements by marketing experts have highly commended AHA fruit acids and other peels as a great discovery. The possible long-term dermatological consequences, particularly with the incorrect application, do not appear to interest everyone. Particularly for normal, healthy skin with a normal, distinctive horny layer, the use of peels and the thinning of the horny layer is completely absurd, even damaging. The horny layer forms an important protective barrier for our body, which on no account should be damaged. If one thins a horny layer of normal thickness, one weakens its protective function. Here one should the thinning of a callous in mind. This leads to increased sensitivity to UV-rays, which can infiltrate the skin much more easily. The possible cell damage can lead to an increased likelihood of malignant skin tumours. Intensive exposure to UV always causes premature ageing of the skin and a corresponding development of wrinkles. If one has peels in winter when there is less exposure to the sun, cold weather can cause cold damage to the skin. What is particularly alarming is that daily application can interfere with the physiological skin flora, allowing pathogenic germs to spread. Even the immune defences against bacteria, viruses and fungi can be weakened. The impairment of the skin’s barrier function can increase the skin’s susceptibility to problems such as eczema and contact allergies.

Peels should only be applied in cases where a thickened horny layer is the basis for skin problems. E.g. when the skin is extremely thickened and impure, this peeling of the horny layer is sensible, to eliminate the thickening on the sebaceous glands and thereby get rid of the basis for acne. In cases such as this, fruit acids in particular provide a valuable and problem-free method of treatment. When used as a treatment it is sensible to allow the skin time to regenerate between applications. Dr. Baumann SkinIdent offers the fruit acid glycolic acid in the form of a peel. To enable cosmeticians to make an exact match between skin type and the proposed peel, we offer graduated concentrations of 10%, 20% and 30%.

Note: Fruit acids in the form of a peel are superbly suited to thinning a thickened horny layer as a normal measure when problem such as pimples or acne are the result of skin thickening. In contrast, our findings have shown that it is not recommended to ill-treat a skin with a normal horny layer by applying a peel daily.