Luckily, the powerhouse skincare ingredient glycolic acid is a fast, effective, and affordable way formulators can help consumers to both treat and prevent whiteheads.

Whiteheads are a form of acne blemish that look like a small, round, white bump on the skin’s surface. They’re a very common acne blemish and are often a result of ineffectual exfoliation practices.

Our skin naturally exfoliates itself, shedding off dead skin cells, dirt, debris, and excess oil over the course of the day. However, when the sloughed-off dead skin cells, oil, or debris become trapped within the sebaceous gland of the hair follicle, individual skin cells can become clogged. 

Once clogged, the plugged-up pore then forms the raised bump of the whitehead, which earns its eponymous name from the thin layer of skin covering the top of the blemish plug.

Unfortunately for many consumers, whiteheads often occur not just on the face, but also the neck, shoulders, chest, and back.

Regular exfoliation is the key to managing the frequency of whiteheads. However, many consumers mismanage their exfoliation routines by using manual exfoliating products that are too rough for the skin or dry out their complexions.

Exfoliators for the skin can be either manual or chemical. Manual exfoliators use particles like coffee grounds or volcanic clay to physically rub off dead skin cells and debris from the face. For most consumers these kinds of physical exfoliators are far too rough and harsh, leading to dry, reddened, irritated skin that becomes stripped of naturally occurring oils.

Additionally, while rough, physical exfoliators might “scour” off whiteheads through the sheer force of scrubbing, these products can cause permanent damage to the skin, leaving behind rips, tears, lacerations, or even scars.

Instead, the solution to managing whiteheads and breakouts lies not in forceful, skin-stripping exfoliators, but in utilizing the powers of that skin care superstar and gentle exfoliator, glycolic acid.

Whiteheads can be both prevented and treated with consistent exfoliation via glycolic acid-based skincare products. Glycolic acid is one of the best skincare ingredients for treating whiteheads because of its powerhouse ability to gently dissolve dead skin cells.

Thanks to its miniscule molecular size, glycolic acid is able to quickly and efficaciously penetrate the walls of the clogged skin cell – and banish whiteheads for good. Once glycolic acid has infiltrated the clogged skin cell, this Alpha Hydroxy Acid softens and sloughs apart the bonds holding the plugged, dead skin cells of the whitehead together.

Then, once the debris and dead skin forming the bump of the whitehead are dissolved, glycolic acid works double time to repair skin by driving newer skin cells to the surface. These new, healthy skin cells are most likely to exfoliate themselves properly and naturally – and thus prevent future whiteheads from forming on the skin again.

For consumers, outbreaks of whiteheads can be an all-too-frequent and frustrating skincare problem. But by utilizing the gentle chemical exfoliation properties glycolic acid, skincare products showcasing the acne-combatting abilities of this incredible ingredient can provide quick – and much needed – relief. 

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