Question of the month July 2010: Facial Cleansers

Dear Paula,
I often refer to your reviews of skin-care products, and I’ve read in past “Dear Paula” letters as well as in your book that if a potential skin irritant is applied over a long period of time, damage can be taking place beneath the skin’s surface even though you may not be able to see it. Does this statement apply to facial cleansers as well? If a product is just being rinsed off the skin, can it still do actual damage to it? This question has been on my mind for some time and I have been purchasing many different cleansers in an attempt to find a “safe” one, but to no avail. I appreciate your time and hope to hear from you.

J., via email

Dear J.,

Yes, as a general rule keeping problematic, irritating, or sensitizing ingredients off the face is very important to healthy skin. Yes, irritation or inflammation of any kind is damaging, despite the fact that your skin neither feels it nor reacts to it in any visible negative way. Yet underneath, your skin's collagen is being depleted and your immune cells are being destroyed. However, that doesn’t mean you should stop using the cleanser you are using. Most likely, the amount of those ingredients is so negligible it doesn’t really affect skin in the least, not to mention, as you stated, that in a cleanser they would be rinsed down the drain before they could ever impact your skin.

I always warn about potentially problematic ingredients in skin-care products to paint a clear picture of what they really can and can’t do for skin. Often the amounts of those ingredients aren’t significant or they are present in rinse-off products, but I still feel it is important to understand the potential problems. I regret that I haven't always made it clear that it is not as significant an issue when those ingredients are in a cleanser.