#walnutscrub

Our Shascrub Plus is an ayurvedic facial and body scrub specially created to exfoliate the skin and help to remove dead skin cells. It is also ideal for cleansing the pores and toning the skin.

Last week I talked about confidence in relation to our skin, and how our mental health is ultimately impacted by conditions like acne. In times where I’ve felt hopeless, I turned to educating myself further on my own skin and the products that could help me. Understanding the products we use and how they can affect your skin can ultimately save you from both harming your skin further and wasting your money. There’s been countless times over the years where I’ve purchased a product and was so hopeful of it improving my skin, but in the end I saw no changes and I had spent my money for nothing. Through the trials of using natural oils, niacinamide serums, or exfoliants, I grew to know the feeling of disappointment after using a product for a whole month and not having my expectations met. It was easy for me to feel hopeful about a product after watching one YouTube video about it, or reading a couple good reviews here and there. Once the product was in my hands, I felt excited to start using it right away––maybe this was the next miracle product I’d been searching for. I had used the product for one week, two weeks, three... but I saw no real difference in my skin. For a while I’d feel in denial––maybe I still hadn’t been using the product long enough to see results. It wasn’t until the bottles were empty that it would really hit me that this was another failure. It was yet another instance of false hope. Nowadays, I make sure to research a product more in-depth, look at the ingredients, and see if I can find reviews by others who have personally already tried the product. Armed with the right information, I’m able to make more conscious skincare decisions that make my skin feel and look better. I encourage you call to do your own research. 

Introducing Kylie Skin

This week, I want to shed light on a particular product that has been under fire on social media. On May 22nd, Kylie Jenner launched her new skincare line, Kylie Skin. The 21 year old billionaire has already released a successful makeup line, Kylie Cosmetics, and has stated in her Instagram post announcing Kylie Skin that “skincare and makeup go hand in hand and Kylie Skin was something i dreamt up soon after Kylie Cosmetics.” 

Her new skincare line includes six relatively affordable products: Foaming Face Wash, Vanilla Milk Toner, Moisturizer, Eye Cream, Vitamin C Serum, and the product most under fire––Walnut Face Scrub. Altogether the set costs a combined total of $125. The products claim to be cruelty free, gluten free, sulfate free, paraben free, vegan, and dermatologist tested.

Expectations and Reactions

When I first saw that Kylie was dropping a skincare line, I wanted to be hopeful. With such a large platform, Kylie has a large audience following her and interested in the products that she sells or promotes. Many young girls look up to her and take inspiration from her. Because of her massive influence and privilege to access resources many of us can’t, I genuinely hoped she did her research to put out products with great ingredients and market them honestly. However, in the first video I watched about her skincare line, the way in which she described using her walnut scrub immediately came off to me as dishonest.

In the video, she says “My walnut skin scrub is my secret to a fresh face.” Considering Kylie is in a privileged position where she has access to the most expensive products and treatments, as well as links to top rated dermatologists and professionals, I somehow doubt her secret to her smooth glowy skin is a $22 face scrub. Also, I was appalled to hear her say that the product was gentle enough to be used every day. Physical exfoliants can easily irritate the skin if they are used too frequently, and you can end up damaging your skin further as opposed to helping it. I’ve experienced this with my own skin after I used my physical exfoliant every other day for a few weeks. My skin eventually grew sensitive and would burn any time I applied any of my regular skincare products. In general, considering the negative reputation that walnut face scrubs have, her words appear even more realistic to me. 

This negative reputation of walnut face scrubs was clearly manifested in the tweets replying to the video. Tweet after tweet, numerous individuals––and aestheticians––voiced their disapproval and concern over the marketing of this product. 

This Sounds Familiar...

Clearly, many people aren’t happy with the scrub due to its potential to harm your skin. Some individuals even compared Kylie’s products to yet another infamous face scrub––the St. Ives Apricot Scrub. The St. Ives scrub is said to be too abrasive on the skin, and some dermatologists have voiced their concerns. An article from The Atlantic shares insight from dermatologist Annie Chiu, she says “The problem [with scrubs] is that with over-zealous or too often use, they can irritate and cause more inflammation.” And here’s a fun fact: two women sued St. Ives for $5 million as they claimed that the product has the potential for damaging skin and its “dermatologist tested” label is suspicious.

Figuring Out the Formula

Evidently, walnut face scrubs have a bad rep. But how can these products actually harm your face? What should we be wary about? 

In its list of ingredients, Kylie’s Walnut Face Scrub includes some seemingly-beneficial ingredients that claim to benefit you skin. 

However, the problem lies within the “walnut” part of the face scrub. Walnut scrubs are quite self-explanatory––they contain crushed up bits of walnut that then serve to exfoliate the skin from dead skin cells. This kind of scrub is a physical exfoliant (as opposed to a chemical exfoliant). Physical exfoliants involve some type of granules like sugar or walnut shells (these face scrubs look like they have little “beads” in the formula) and you literally use them to “scrub” away dead skin cells when you wash your face. Chemical exfoliants, on the other hand, involve acids––like glycolic, salicylic, or lactic acids––and are found in serums, toners, or peels in order to gradually dissolve dead skin cells as the product seeps into the skin. Board-certified dermatologist Mary P. Lupo describes more in depth how you should choose the right exfoliant and how often you should use it.

Remember the Risks

Using a walnut face scrub comes with its risks. This exfoliant is prone to irritating the skin and can actually leave micro tears in the skin as you are literally scrubbing it with physical granules. Joshua Zeichner, MD, states that “Walnut shell scrubs have traditionally been considered to be harsh on the skin,” and, “The issue was that if the powder wasn’t finally ground up enough, sharp edges may disrupt the skin barrier.” If used too often and too abrasively, walnut scrubs can work on your skin like sandpaper instead of an effective exfoliant. This problem is also not necessarily exclusive to walnut face scrubs, as other kinds of physical exfoliants can also become abrasive if used often and harshly. Such aggressive scrubbing and everyday use of walnut scrubs can not only contribute to micro tears in the skin, but can lead to broken capillaries in the face.

A Second Opinion

In addition, I found this video tweeted by Hassan Sayyed, who created his own all natural skin and body care called Haus Urban. He explains well the idea that using scrubs like the one in question can essentially pierce the skin instead of exfoliating it. His warning reflects those of other voiced concerns as he depicts that using products like this one without the proper knowledge can result in more harm than help. 

Cassandra Bankson, who I mentioned in my previous blogpost, made a video talking more in depth about the walnut scrub and also addressed the rest of Kylie’s products from her skincare line. She describes further the benefits and concerns revolving the ingredients inside these products. 

What Are the Alternatives?

There are plenty of options out in the world of skincare that serve the same purpose as Kylie’s scrub. I’ve looked into two other kinds of exfoliants that may produce satisfactory results with smaller risks. But, it is important to note that you shouldn’t just take my word for the products you want to buy. Everyone has different skin and different needs. Everyone’s skin will react differently to the same product. My goal here is to provide you all with a place to start looking. 

The two products I’ve found are chemical exfolinats. As I explained above, chemical exfoliants are found in a variety of products and include different kinds of acids (glycolic, lactic, salicylic, ect.). These products dissolve dead skin cells gradually as opposed to having them scrubbed off with physical exfoliants. I have personally turned to using chemical exfoliants because they are less abrasive on my skin. 

The first product is the T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum from Drunk Elephant. This night serum is packed with a blend of AHA acids such as glycolic and lactic acid that help smooth, even-out, and brighten the skin. In addition to the acids, this serum includes several beneficial ingredients that contain antioxidants and are soothing. Raspberry fruit extract, cactus extract, and horse chestnut are just a few of the many ingredients packed into this small bottle. However, this serum is on the pricey side, as it costs $90 for a 30 ml bottle. 

A more affordable alternative is the Skin Perfecting 8% AHA Gel Exfoliant from Paula’s Choice Skincare, priced at about $25 for 3.3 oz of product. This gel naturally helps to shed dead skin cells as it evens skin tone, smooths out fine lines, and improve the skin’s surface. While this product may not have as many ingredients packed into it as the Drunk Elephant exfoliant, there are still many great ingredients inside the bottle. Chamomile, green tea, and Sodium Hyaluronate are a few of the skin-soothing and antioxidants in the ingredients list. I’ve personally been using this product for the past couple of weeks, and so far it hasn’t irritated my skin or dried it out. I’ve also been experiencing less breakouts, but I’m not positive if this is due entirely to the exfoliant itself. In general, I’ve been liking this product so far and hope to see if it helps reduce any of my hyperpigmentation as I continue to use it. 

Think Before You Buy