What Are Chemical Peels? Understanding Types & Benefits

Ready, Set, Peel!

It is that time of year when we can cozy up at home. There is more time for family, more time for preparing and savoring delicious meals, and more time for getting our facial rejuvenation on just before the new year.

Depending on your unique skincare needs, you might be looking for a variety of treatments to improve skin health — these could include topical treatments, supplements, and solutions. But another option is a chemical peel — a treatment that is growing in popularity and can help even out your skin, improve vibrance and help you stand out as we head into the holidays.

What Are Chemical Peels?

A chemical peel is a topical procedure for improving the look and feel of the facial skin. This technique can improve scarring and smooth the skin as well as improve pigmentation.

Chemical peels work by removing the top layers of the facial skin — this results in a controlled injury, but one that facilitates the healthy regrowth of skin cells.

The are multiple chemical peel types to choose from, these range from superficial to deep. While there are so many peels to choose from, it can be hard to decide which one is right for you.

Explore this guide to help you think through which peel may be just right for you. As always, please go see your local friendly dermatologist make the right decision for your skin.

Types Of Chemical Peels

Superficial Peels

Superficial peels stay high in the skin and mostly help with exfoliating any clogged pores, improving acne, evening pigmentation, and addressing flaky skin. Some examples of superficial peels include glycolic acid or salicylic acid peels. Setting up weekly peels can be a great way to keep the skin maintained.

There is little downtime but there can be some scaling and peeling for a couple of days after the treatment. While these peels can be used safely in all skin types, it is best to stop the use of any topical retinoids, like retinol, several days before getting a peel.

Medium Peels

Medium peels go more deeply into the skin to the level of the dermis and can help with correcting wrinkles, uneven color, and superficial acne scars. Some examples of medium peels include Jessner’s peels or the VI Precision Plus peel.

There is more scaling and peeling after a medium peel but the recovery is fairly quick within several days. They can be used safely in most skin types.

Deep Peels

Deep peels, as the name suggests, penetrate the deepest into the skin. These peels offer longer-lasting facial rejuvenation than the previous types of peels, but they also require the longest recovery time.

As a result, when it comes to deciding on the deeper peels, patients can consider other pathways to skin improvement in the form of laser skin resurfacing.

Benefits Of Chemical Peels

Chemical peels are a relatively non-invasive procedure to improve facial texture and improve skin facial skin health. But what do these benefits entail?

• Chemical peels can
• Soften scarring
• Even out discoloration
• Improve acne
• Reduce wrinkles
• Balance facial texture

Skin Implications: Taking A Holistic Approach

The health and appearance of your skin, however, transcends the depth of your skin. It is related to nutrition, digestion, sleep, physical activity, and emotional wellbeing. For this reason, achieving and maintaining a radiant complexion requires a holistic approach.

For example, there are supplements like l-histidine that can improve your skin’s barrier function and help maintain its hydration, and there is research to suggest that exercise can help maintain the health of our skin as we age. Working with an integrative health care practitioner can make for a wonderful addition to your skincare team.

How Zen Dermatology Can Help

Zen Dermatology offers several chemical peels to help improve how your skin looks and feels — giving you the confidence you need to succeed.

But not only can we provide the services to help your skin glow, but we can also offer the tools and resources you need to continue on your skincare journey. It’s important to take a holistic look at your skin health to better understand how certain implications and factors can impact your unique skin profile.

Are you interested in getting a chemical peel? Schedule a chemical peel consultation with Zen Dermatology today.