Why You Should Be Careful with DIY Skincare

By: MaryJo

DIY skincare has increased in popularity over the past few years. The pseudoscience of minimal ingredient skin-care as been heavily promoted on the internet. Especially amongst the YouTube community. Yes, minimal ingredient skin care can be especially good for your skin. But, using “natural products” (products that you can find in your cupboard) aren’t always great for your skin. The two that I’ve tried myself are the lemon juice masks & the baking soda scrub. 

These two, in particular, are the two that you need to be extremely wary of. 

Lemon Juice:

Lemon juice is extremely acidic first of all. While the pH of your skin sits at about 5.5, lemon juice has a pH of about 2, which is highly acidic! Something with that level of a pH can be truly damaging to your skin. Overall, you want to use skin care with a pH level that is close to the pH of your own skin. 

 Citrus oils such as lemon juice are also extremely phototoxic; meaning that if you sit in the sun, the sunlight can irritate your skin and causes chemical burns! That will definitely lengthen the process of lightening your acne scars and possible make your scars worse than before! 

My own experience with it is that it stung my face like crazy! Something that makes your skin irritated and burns like that can not be good for your skin. Remember, your skin is a living organ. It is a vital part of you. Treat it nicely! Anything you use that is soothing and calming is always a good sign. 

Baking Soda:

Baking soda is a huge no-no! Whatever you do, please do not apply this to your face. Baking soda is a whopping pH of 9! That is completely different from your own skin’s natural pH level of 5.5. 

I sadly believed that baking soda would do exfoliating wonders that all the bloggers and YouTubers raved about. After using the baking soda scrub on my face, my skin started to flake…It was a horrible experience. My skin became irritated, itchy and flaky for a couple weeks. It took that long to heal. The reason my skin was flaking was because the baking soda compromised the acid mantle of my skin. Basically, I ruined the protective layer of my skin that fights against bacterial infections! I was just asking to get more acne breakouts. 

That being said, be careful what beauty tips and advice you read or watch about online. Always do your research and only use the best products for your skin. Sometimes the “natural” route isn’t the best for it.