Please do not use baking soda as an exfoliator to be mixed in with your cleanser.
Apparently it strips something called the “acid mantle” off your face, and scrubs it raw, which really irritates your skin.
I am so sorry! If it makes you feel any better, I was ruining my own skin as well…
Other (mechanical or physical) exfoliators should also be avoided for your face, because it is too damaging & harsh.
Here’s the list
- baking soda (!!)
- bits of nutshells
- bits of bark
- sugar
- salt
- …basically crumbly chunks of anything that looks rough & hard & sharp
If you want a gentler alternative, ground rice starch (not broken bits of rice), jojoba beads and just a soft face cloth seem to be the answer, because those are very gentle on the face.
You can find all three in most beauty supply stores, and rice starch can be found in grocery stores, especially any of the Asian ones.
You can just mix the rice starch or jojoba beads into your current cleanser & use it like that.
(P.S. Rice starch mixed as a batter, makes for a nice crispy “baked” textured, without having to use panko bread crumbs or deep fry anything).
HOW DID YOU FIND OUT?
How did I NOT find out for so many years, is the real question. :\
Interestingly enough, this factoid about baking soda came about as I was researching this expensive Origins Modern Friction exfoliator.
The only secret ingredient I could find was: rich starch, supposedly cushioned in cream, and blessed by fairies.
(Okay, so the last part is made up. No fairies were involved.)
The kicker is that it costs $37.50 USD, which in CAD even though we’ve been hovering around par, is $45. Bah.
SO, WHAT NOW?
I have now switched to not using any additives in my cleanser at all, and I found a use for that little blue sock thing from Suzie’s giveaway.
Just a girl trying to find a balance between being a Shopaholic and a Saver.
I cleared $60,000 in 18 months earning $65,000 gross/year.
Now I am self-employed, and you can read more about 
Wherever you are, try getting chickpea flour and use a tablespoon of chickpea flour mixed with water as face exfoliator.. People all over South India do that. It works great esp. if you have applied coconut oil as moisturizer over your face in the night and you want to wash all the oil remaining from your face in the morning, chickpea flour is what we go for.
I have oily/combo skin with huge pores and use a facewash and toner with salicylic acid, but would still get these little oily bumps on my chin and forehead. Using a rough washcloth didn't help at all. Lately I've been using sugar – using a light touch! – which leaves my skin really shiny and smooth and washes away clean. Sugar is probably too rough for most people to use on a regular basis but works well for me – I've never been irritated and the bumps are much reduced. If the baking soda leaves your skin irritated and raw definitely it's too rough for you; you don't need it. Everyone's skin is different.
I use Origins Modern Friction and I love it! I only use it once or twice a week though.
last time i got a facial, they told me the best scrub and facewash – avoid harsh chemicals totally – is isntant OATMEAL (the ground up kind). that's it. i used it a few times but missed my fancy products. but it is cheap, and chemical free if anyone else is up for it.
Of course! I cant believe that was recommended without proper research. At least it was handled. Cat Litter has proven to be a nice exfoliated and with proper search has not been discounted yet.
Hm. Cat litter you say 😛
That's the one thing I didn't expect that sock to be used! But if it works, it works! 🙂 BTW, there are more stuff (pink ones) coming your way. 😛
I am so excited, thank you!
But jojoba beads never feel like they're doing ANYTHING. I love the instant gratification of a sugar scrub, plus it dissolves in the water that you splash your face with beforehand anyway. I'm thinking about trying the Clarisonic but it's an expensive investment!
That’s what I thought too! Until I realized that your skin can’t handle that kind of abrasiveness, no matter how good it feels.
That being said, if it works for you, go for it. I can tell with my skin, that it doesn’t, even though I thought it could…
I've always read about making your own sugar scrubs, and shuddered at the thought. The grains are just too rough! They would tear up my skin in a second.
New reader, here. Been enjoying this and EM! On skin, the happiest mine has ever been? When I was using plain (low fat) organic yogurt as a cleanser. The lactic acid in the yogurt (I guess?) and texture of the terrycloth wash cloth were enough to leave my face baby's bottom smooth. Never had the need for further exfoliation.
I’ve heard about that. I should pick up a tub and try it.
Any exfoliator is going to be stripping, since that's what exfoliation does. Even chemical exfoliators are going to strip. And that's not a bad thing — in moderation. Many people exfoliate way to often and with things that are far too rough (like bark and nutshells).
There definitely are some things that are worse than others. I have a friend who works professionally with cosmetics and skincare and I've heard him rant many times about scrubs containing nutshells (the St. Ives Apricot exfoliator in particular). They are just too rough and really scratch up one's face. Then people wonder why their faces look irritated! (I happened to be one of those people until I met him.)
Of course, I am happy to see people using more environmentally-friendly ingredients. The little plastic beads in many exfoliators are gentle and do a good job, but I shudder to think about all those plastic beads heading straight down the drain!
I think an exfoliating brush or cloth is really the best solution, maybe with a bit of baking soda or sugar or salt occasionally when in need of something more. I just use a nice rough washcloth and it works great for me.
I’m sticking to a washcloth. It seems to work fine for me, and I don’t want my skin to be stripped down to where it’s raw and painful (which is what baking soda did in SOME areas of my skin, like my cheeks)
Paula Begoun used to recommend the baking soda/cetaphil combo. She no longer does. But the scrubs with ground nutshells are so damaging that I can't believe anyone uses them. I follow Paula's advice–for exfoliating, use an AHA or a BHA lotion. Paula sells her own brand, but you can also use AlphaHydrox, which is sold at drugstores.
I did try her AHA or BHA lotion, and it worked BEAUTIFULLY
It really got my skin to strip off, but then I couldn’t get the rest to pull off, so I was left with hanging (eww) strips of skin…
WOW! I just used baking soda on my face last night for the first time! What a timely article :0