Activated Charcoal in Skincare
It is important to highlight the growing boom that activated charcoal has acquired in the world of beauty. This growth in its use is mainly due to the benefits it produces on the skin and hair, provided it is used properly.
One of its merits is that it is an entirely natural product that does not add any chemicals to the body. In addition to this characteristic, it is a purifying agent. Thanks to this property, it helps in the treatment of acne and excessive oil present in many skins.
While some skincare ingredients are promoted as another fashion or obsession for beauty, activated charcoal is gaining the notoriety it deserves.
What is Activated Charcoal?
Activated charcoal was primarily used in medicine as a powerful way to combat alcohol intoxication and drug overdoses because of its ability to attract toxins from the body and expel them.
Although it is similar to the natural carbon we know, the difference is that it needs to be heated with gas.
This heating process allows a kind of pores to form in its interior that will be responsible for this product’s ability to attract toxic substances.
Activated charcoal also undergoes a thorough purification process to ensure that it is safe to use on the skin.
It is also important to note that the difference between the terms charcoal and activated charcoal is that activated charcoal is produced only for medicinal use.
How Does it Help the Skin?
It is usually used as an exfoliant and neutralizer of free radicals, as well as an absorbent of impurities, excess oil, and toxins. It can absorb 1000 times its weight in nocive agents.
Its benefits are enhanced when we add that it can be used on almost all skin types, although it is the grease and acnes that benefit the most.
Due to its high absorption and antibacterial properties, activated charcoal provides deep cleansing. It also helps stimulate blood circulation and promotes collagen formation, leaving the skin more luminous, balanced, and smooth.
Among its effects is the fight against skin impurities, which includes the reduction of free radicals that are, to a great extent, one of the main causes of the premature aging process.
In the same way that we talk about its benefits, we also emphasize that this type of product should not be abused in its use. That is to say, it should only be used for the time and frequency that the specialized personnel indicates, since, in excess, it can hypersensitize the skin, dry it out, and even make it thicker.
Activated charcoal can be found in various presentations of aesthetic and cosmetic products such as exfoliating creams, cleaning or detox masks and soaps.
We can summarize that activated charcoal helps balance oily skin, has a strong antibacterial effect, cleanses the skin gently and deeply, is effective in fighting acne, reduces pore diameter, and helps purify the skin and provides it with luminosity.
