Face Your Skin Facts: Are you excessively exfoliating?

PROBLEM: You’re using a facial scrub (apricot, almond, oatmeal, microdermabrading, skin-polishing or pore-minimizing) regularly, but instead of a dewy complexion, you’re left with dry, flaky skin.

VIV SOLUTION: You’re not using the wrong facial scrub; you’re using the scrub too often. Sure, we’ve all heard about the importance of sloughing away dead cells to reveal the fresh skin that’s just waiting to strut its dewy stuff. But excessive exfoliating — i.e., more than once or twice a week — doesn’t give your skin time to renew itself, and the result can be dry, flaky skin.

Even the experts have been tripped up by overeager exfoliating. Take Los Angeles-based skin guru Ole Henriksen, whose botanically based products are a favorite of Renée Zellweger, Linda Evangelista and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark. “For years I used my facial scrub three times weekly and my at-home peeling kit at least once a week in an effort to eliminate the dry patches on my skin’s surface,” Henriksen says. “To my frustration, my skin kept getting more and more dry. I finally realized that patchy skin is often a sign of overtreatment.” Now, Henriksen has achieved a smoother complexion by forsaking scrubbing in favor of a regimen that includes a weekly hydrating mask (try his Blue/Black Berry Enzyme Mask, $32, olehenriksen.com), a moisturizing serum and a nourishing day cream.

Women may be similarly misguided in overtreating what they believe is oily skin. “They’ll see some oil on the surface of their skin but, in fact, they’re really dehydrated,” says El Segundo, CA-based dermatologist Howard Murad, M.D., author of several books including Wrinkle-Free Forever: The 5-Minute 5-Week Dermatologist’s Program (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2004) and The Murad Method: Wrinkle-Proof, Repair, and Renew Your Skin with the Proven 5-Week Program (St. Martin’s Press, 2003). The telltale sign: Your skin feels rough against your fingertips. When you use products that strip away oil, such as a daily cleanser with salicylic acid, your skin responds by producing even more oil. Instead, opt for a light moisturizer that attracts and retains water without adding greasiness. Look for hydrating ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, glycerin and sodium PCA; all are found in Murad Skin Perfecting Lotion ($33, murad.com).

Tags: author, away oil, California, Cleanser, Crown Princess Mary, Denmark, El Segundo, Facial, Health, Health/Medical/Pharmaceuticals, Howard Murad, Linda Evangelista, Los Angeles, Medicine, Moisturizer, Murad Skin Perfecting, Nature, oil, Ole Henriksen, products, Renée Zellweger, Skin care, ST MARTIN'S PRESS INC, USD, Wrinkle