Trend alert- Skin cycling- a myth or a must-try

“Without treating skin from both the inside and outside, you are missing an essential ‘layer’ to your skincare routine.” Dr. Whitney Bowe.

The viral TikTok trend has grossed more than 2,5 million views, everyone wants to get a piece of this. Every dermatologist’s nightmare are these fads and trends from the internet that are typically just badly botched up fads, with low research and almost no scientific base. Most DIY hacks are poorly researched and not good for the skin or hair, like getting rid of tans or acne pimples, etc usually followed by warnings by most dermatologists. Skin cycling however is a refreshing trend that focuses on the night regime, when the body rests and cells rejuvenate and repair. Skin cycling is one trend that all dermatologists like and recommend. So what is Skin cycling?

What is skin cycling? Is it a trend that one should follow?

Unlike most trends that have originated based on assumptions and wild facts, this is a trend that has its roots in clinical research- created by Dr.Whitney Bowe MD. As a dermatologist and a medical specialist as well as the founder of her brand, her quote about beauty being skin deep - i.e. being treated from the inside and outside impacts both the gut health - what we eat and how we deal with stress- i.e. mental health. Being a doctor the approach to the skin cycling trend has a practical and holistic approach.?

What are the steps to follow and at what frequency?

The Trend that has been credited to Dr. Bowe, encourages users to change skin care products every night. Dr. Whitney who has self-practiced this process for over 20 years, says the regime can be followed while traveling or on vacation, or at home. The sheer simplicity of this process has contributed to its popularity.?

Essentially, the daytime routine remains the same, with cleansing moisturizing plus sunscreen.? The night-time regime is when we do the skincare regime of skin cycling. The cycle is based on the 4-night regime, beginning with exfoliation night, retinoid night, and one time of rest or recovery night followed by another recovery night.?

The concept is to give the skin less irritation and breaks as well as completely benefiting from the retinoid night and exfoliation night routine. Skin is thus smoother and more ready to absorb moisturization.?

Steps for Skin Cycle:

1. Exfoliation: This needs to follow the cleansing stage, most dermatologists recommend a chemical exfoliant rather than a physical one as they tend to be less harsh on the skin. The idea is to do this to benefit the skin without making it too red or irritated.
2. The second night is the Retinoid night, find one that is well suited, Retinoid helps reduce the lines of wrinkles. If your skin is sensitive or prone to being hyper-sensitive, it's a good idea to moisturize the more sensitive part like under eye area before wearing the retinoid on. If the skin feels dry, you can top a moisturizer on top of the retinoid.
3. Steps 3 & 4 are about resting the skin, with no exfoliation or retinoid. You can clean your face and follow it with a good moisturizer for the face. The idea is to rest the skin and let the different treatments and products settle in.

Frequency: On a final note you can go back to repeating the steps from point 1 of exfoliation and continue to follow this as a skin regime for the night. Do not forget to do your usual morning routine. Once your skin adapts well to the exfoliation and retinoid, you can even step up the retinoid use. Remember that consistency is the key to success.

How is Skin Cycling beneficial to the skin?

“Your skin is 90% of your selfie”

Taking it from the point above that consistency is the key, products will show results once use is more established and the regime is regular.?

There are some benefits to skin cycling:

1. Skin cycle helps repair the skin barrier - A skin barrier is needed before the application of cosmetics and skin cycling helps build this. The rest and recovery nights help in nourishing the skin barrier.
2. It can also help in reducing the adverse side effects of products -the less you use a product the lesser the chance of adverse side effects, as a result, the product effectiveness is well balanced.
3. It can help protect the skin against seasonal changes and environmental side effects- the night focus means that the skin gets less dry especially when facing cooler fall or winter weather.

Some skin types like hyper-sensitive skin need to avoid skin cycling, adjusting to retinoids makes it difficult for some sensitive skin types. Still in general if the regime is followed effectively the results can be seen, as opposed to sporadic use of products that are not consistent.

In conclusion, most dermatologists insist that a good skin regime is a surface treatment, one has to ensure that the diet is a healthy one devoid of excessive alcohol and other processed food. A more balanced diet, as well as a good amount of sleep, and exercise together, make the treatment of the skin more effective and beneficial for the user.???

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