As the monsoon steps in, it brings dust and dirt along with sweat and oil that damage our skin. In this humid season, the body perspires less which results in dead skin cells and blocked pores. While dry skin becomes flaky and itchy, oily skin becomes clogged and prone to breakouts. Skin exfoliation, which is really a fancy word for removing old, dead skin cells is the only way to prevent acne, pimples and various other skin problems, and keep your skin smooth and radiant. To keep your skin healthy, there are plenty of products to choose from but they might not suit your skin. In that case, or if they don’t work, you can always fall back on home remedies to cleanse your skin well.

Read on to find why cleansing and exfoliation are important during the rainy season.

Oily skin

During monsoon season, people with oily skin frequently complain about a dull skin or getting pimples. What happens is that dirt particles in the air stick to the outer layer of the skin (epidermis) due to oiliness. Mere washing your face often does not remove all the particles. If left untreated, they may go deep inside the skin and result in bacterial growth. So if you want to keep your skin healthy during monsoon, you should be consistent in your exfoliation regimen. You may adopt a daily or weekly schedule to treat your skin. If skin problems are persistent, it is better to consult a dermatologist.

A critical step in skin care that takes your skin from good to radiant

Dead cells

Due to less perspiration our skin pores become blocked. With the passage of time, this blockage increases to the extent that we see prominent spots or pimples on our face or another part of the body. In order to keep our skin clean and clear, we need to remove this blockage as soon as we can, otherwise our skin will suffer and we will end up with multiple spots on our face and body that can look hideous. Experts suggest that exfoliation works best and brings swift results in this regard. For that matter, you may use a moisturiser, cleanser or various other skin care products to keep your skin neat and clean.

Dull face

Exfoliating your skin helps your pores to breathe properly. Of all the body parts, face suffers the most from pore blockage. If you have oily or sensitive skin you are prone to develop this condition faster than others. This gives your face a dull appearance, and they appear unattractive with all those acnes, pimples and dark spots. When you exfoliate your skin, you remove the dust particles stuck in your pores and let it breathe.

How to exfoliate your skin

Skin exfoliation removes dead cells from your skin by scrubbing and leaves a soft and smooth touch on your body. A very simple and cost effective method is to prepare a mixture of two to three teaspoons of white sugar and two teaspoons of water; mix with a wooden spoon until it forms a thick paste. Wash your face before going to bed, and then apply this sugar paste on your face and gently scrub it over your face in a circular motion for about five minutes. After that wash the face and apply moisturiser. You can also use this paste for body exfoliation; just increase the quantity of sugar and water.

While yoghurt is a good source of nutrition, you can also use it to exfoliate your skin. Apply yoghurt on your face and neck and leave for 15 minutes, then wash with normal water.

For full body exfoliation, wet your body, apply soap or body wash directly on your body or on the loofah, or you could use a mix of salt and olive oil, or a variety of exfoliating body washes and shower gels available in the market. Start to scrub your body softly from head to toe. Use a pumice stone to remove dead skin on your feet. When the whole body is exfoliated, rinse off with water. Pat dry with a towel and apply moisturiser on your skin. You will get a noticeable glow on your skin.

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Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, August 14th, 2016