With summer ending, you are likely feeling refreshed and bright from the sunlight and warmth and ready for fall. But is your skin on the same page? Hopefully, your skin was exfoliated and protected, but extra sun does affect the skin. Fall is a great time to focus on your skin care routine and get regular professional chemical peels to correct sun damage. No matter your skin type, peels offer great benefits.

What is a Chemical Peel?

A chemical peel is a treatment applied to the skin to remove the top layer and uncover newer skin, allowing it to grow back smoother and refreshed. There are several types of peels, categorized by their strength. These include superficial peels that exfoliate the outermost layer, the epidermis; a medium peel that removes skin cells from the epidermis and the upper part of the middle skin layer; and a deep chemical peel that dives much further into the skin and is great for treating scars or precancerous growth and is best done medically. For more information, please check out our previous blog on this topic.

Why Consider a Professional Chemical Peel?

Anyone looking to ease fine lines and wrinkles, refine uneven skin tone, clear acne and reduce dryness should think about adding chemical peels into their skin care routine. This is because peels are far more powerful than any other skin care treatment as it digs deeper into the layers of the skin to make corrections and remove damage. 

While some at-home peel treatments that can be effective, there are great benefits to seeing your esthetician on a regular basis to administer a professional peel due to the following:

• Effectiveness: Professional peels are far more powerful as spas have access to products with a higher concentration of ingredients. In this case, you will clearly see more dramatic results immediately or shortly after the treatment. At-home peels are only superficially deep. In addition, spa treatments are relatively quick.

• Safety: Professionals will ensure they are applying the right product strength and depth of the procedure that will react best to your skin. They know how to apply correctly for the best effectiveness and to be risk averse from side effects such as redness, which is very common, swelling or change in skin tone. They can also flag any issues per a client’s family history, medication usage and current conditions where it might not be best to get a peel, including during pregnancy. 

• Customization: An esthetician can tailor the procedure to the individual needs of the client and address specific issues. Peels also work well to target differences in skin type and tone, so it is difficult to know which peel to use on yourself, while a professional will easily know which type is best to apply.

Furthermore, the ability for an esthetician to customize the chemical peel greatly benefits the patient considering the combination of skin issues he or she may be concerned with. Chemical peels are a great option to remedy several different skin issues in the following ways:

• Acne: A common inflammatory skin condition, peels can break down plugged hair follicles, reduce oiliness, kill bacteria, decrease inflammation and boost the absorption of topical treatments.

• Rosacea: An inflammatory condition that causes redness, peels can relieve the swelling and red bumps on the skin caused by mild to moderate rosacea.

• Mature Skin: Chemical peels can minimize wrinkles, fine lines, age spots, uneven skin tone, roughness, dryness and liver spots. As the skin grows back after a chemical peel, collagen and elastin production are triggered to make skin stronger and smoother.

• Hyperpigmentation: Peels can improve melasma, freckles, surgical scars or discoloration from sun damage.

• Dullness: A chemical peel will also brighten the skin’s complexion.

Before and After: What to Do at Home to Get the Most Out of Your Peel

Preparing for a professional chemical peel is key to getting the most from your treatment. It is important to regularly use skin care products that are appropriate for your skin type and condition to ensure your skin has been replenished effectively. At Moonstone Skin and Body Care, we recommend using our PCA SKIN® daily care products to help prep skin for 10 to 14 days ahead of treatment to allow for best results and reduce the risk of any side effects. 

In addition, it is important to temporarily stop using prescription medications including any form of retinols and high percentage AHA and BHA products five days prior to treatment. Other prescription medications may be recommended to discontinue so check with your doctor to be certain. If you are lactating, pregnant or may be pregnant, consider a deep pore treatment instead or consult with your doctor. 

As noted, the darker months of the year are the best time for chemical peels as extended sun exposure should be avoided 10 days ahead of the appointment, which is far easier to do in the fall season when it is cooler and dark earlier. It is also imperative to not use a tanning bed two weeks before treatment.

After your peel, the skin may be slightly red, tight, peeling, flaking or dry. These after effects will reduce the further you dive into your series of treatment, while the desired results will only get more dramatic. In fact, there is no downtime, and you can apply foundation makeup after 15 minutes, if needed at all. Your esthetician will direct you on the kinds of products to take to relieve any after effects and to help maintain results until the next visit, but do not pick, rub or scratch the skin.

How Often to Get Peels?

The fall season is the perfect time to start chemical peel treatments. As peels typically cause skin redness and sensitivity to the sun, the best time to do this would be during colder months. October through December are best, considering skin needs the most repair from the summer season’s high outdoor exposure. Throughout this time, it is best to get treatments every two to three weeks.   

At Novato’s local Moonstone Skin & Body Care, we offer five chemical peel treatments to choose from that offer various levels of strength:

• The 60-minute Microdermabrasion With Peel: A great choice for combatting aging, pigmentation and acne-prone skin, this peel focuses on shedding the skin damage created by the summer sun by removing the superficial layer of the skin. It is followed up with a chemical peel that penetrates deeper into the dermis to stimulate the regeneration of the new epidermis. Integrated into this treatment is the Yam & Pumpkin Enzyme Peel, an effective at-home superficial peel that the patient can also use in between fall professional procedures to enhance the results at home. 

• The 50-minute Moonstone Clinical Peel Treatment: This option is available in four different variations, tailored to the skin concern at hand: the Calming Peel Series for rosacea; the Lightening Peel Series for pigmentation; the Wrinkle Peel Series for signs of aging; and the Acne Peel Series for acne and acne scars. Four treatments are recommended for mild conditions and up to six procedures for more severe needs.

• The 60-minute Microdermabrasion With Custom Facial: Revolving around gently exfoliating the skin’s top layer, once the new skin cells are exposed via the chemical peel, we then hydrate, correct and nourish the skin with proper antioxidants and a nourishing masque.

• The 75-minute Microdermabrasion With Double Oxygen Facial: This facial’s goal is to re-oxygenate the skin by infusing microdermabrasion and oxygen along with plant-derived stems cells, peptides and a high concentration of enzymatic botanicals into the skin for immediately luminous and radiant results without downtime.

• The 60-minute Nanofusion With Peel: Take a quick break with this type of peel as it takes your clinical peel treatment to the next level with zero downtime or discomfort. This is due to using the NanoFusion pen to refine wrinkles and boost collagen with an infusion of peptides and antioxidants, resulting in instantaneously youthful skin.

Continue Seasonal Skin Care Routine

Take advantage of these upcoming cozier months to revitalize your skin’s complexion and meet your target needs. Chemical peels are an easy way to do that by checking in with your skin care professional throughout the fall season. Once you do, you’ll be ready to shine for your holiday travels and create a landscape set to welcome your winter skin regimen. All you need to do is activate your skin care plan one season at a time.

Ready to experience glowing skin this fall? Book one of our chemical peel treatments today!