Lifestyle Habit Correction Part 3 - Continuous Scrubbing Will Ruin Your Skin: A Dermatologist's Perspective

1️⃣ ‘You have to scrub off dead skin to be clean.’ Is this really true?

Many people think:

✔ Scrubbing feels refreshing

✔ Exfoliation is essential

✔ Skin improves when you keep peeling it

👉 This is a common belief.

However, from a dermatologist's perspective,

👉 This is the exact opposite of the truth.

2️⃣ You first need to know the true identity of ‘dead skin’.

What we call ‘dead skin’ is

👉 Not simply waste,

👉 But the outermost protective shield of the skin (the stratum corneum).

This structure plays crucial roles such as:

✔ Blocking external irritants

✔ Retaining moisture

✔ Defending against bacterial invasion

👉 It performs these vital functions.

👉 In other words, dead skin is not something to discard, but a structure to protect.

3️⃣ What happens to your skin when you scrub

Scrubbing is not just simple exfoliation;

👉 It is the act of shaving down the skin through physical friction.

As a result,

✔ Removal of the stratum corneum

✔ Loss of the lipid layer

✔ Micro-injuries

👉 All occur simultaneously.

👉 Ultimately, this leads to:

✔ Collapse of the skin barrier

✔ Increased moisture evaporation (increased TEWL)

✔ Increased sensitivity

4️⃣ Therefore, these changes occur:

✔ Increased dryness

✔ Easier reddening

✔ Stinging when applying cosmetics

✔ Recurring breakouts

👉 The reason many people feel ‘My skin got better after scrubbing’ is

because it becomes temporarily smooth.

However, in reality, your skin is left in a much more sensitive state.

5️⃣ Strictly forbidden, especially for these people:

✔ Rosacea

✔ Sensitive skin

✔ Acne-prone skin

✔ After laser treatments

👉 In these cases, scrubbing is an aggravating factor.

6️⃣ Is exfoliation really unnecessary?

👉 Here is the important point.

✔ The skin originally

👉 Has its own system for generating and shedding dead skin cells.

🔬 Normal dead skin generation & shedding process

The skin continuously regenerates from the bottom up.

1️⃣ Basal layer

→ Generates new skin cells

2️⃣ Spinous layer → Granular layer

→ Gradually hardens and transforms into dead skin cells

3️⃣ Stratum corneum

→ Completes the structure that protects the skin

4️⃣ Natural shedding (Desquamation)

→ Naturally and invisibly falls off

👉 This entire process

👉 Repeats on an approximately 28-day cycle.

🔑 Key Point

👉 In normal skin,

✔ Dead skin cells do not accumulate.

✔ There is no need to forcefully remove them.

👉 Rather,

✔ Excessive cleansing

✔ Overuse of cosmetics

✔ Repetitive irritation

These factors ruin this normal shedding process.

👉 As a result, the following phenomena occur:

✔ Dead skin cells flake up

✔ The skin becomes rough

✔ It appears thicker

✔ Breakouts occur

👉 Many people think at this point,

‘I need to exfoliate more,’

👉 But the actual solution is not to remove the dead skin cells,

but to restore normal turnover.

7️⃣ Dermatologist's Conclusion

👉 Scrubbing is

✔ Not exfoliation, but an act of destroying the barrier.

👉 The skin is

✔ Not a structure that improves the more you rub it,

✔ But a structure that recovers when protected.

8️⃣ Conclusion

If your skin has become sensitive,

👉 You shouldn't manage it more,

👉 You should touch it less.

👉 The moment you scrub your skin,

Your skin doesn't become clean; it loses its defensive shield.

🔥 Preview of the Next Article

👉 Part 4 – Exfoliating Incorrectly Will Ruin Your Skin Even More