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Acids - How long to leave on?
Hi all, i’ve been doing a bit of research on acids and wondering if you’re able to point me in the right direction. How do you determine how long an acid product can stay on skin to be effective without having adverse effects? This is for skincare, and not medical grade.
For the sake of being specific lets say Product 1 is a mild acid peel with AHAs pH 3.5 @ 10%, and Product 2 is a face mask with Salicylic acid at 2%. Both products used for the purpose of exfoliation and brightening. Specific answers welcome! But also, interested in how one goes about determining the length of application, based on different acid concentrations for a particular type of acid (glycolic, lactic, salicylic, etc). I’m aware some are ‘stronger’ than others but failing to tie this in with application time. Thank you
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9 Replies
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AHA’s at pH>3.5 and 10% or less concentration are generally safe as leave-on products with no rinse-off required. Salicylic Acid … same, at 2% is a leave-on product that is safe to use without rinsing off.
If you are getting into higher concentrations of acids that would be more in the chemical peel category, the leave-on application time is generally in the 10 minute range and perhaps up to 20 minutes before the acid is neutralized. Some of these acids are up to 40% concentration (can be applied by an esthetician). An esthetician or physician will generally monitor the client and if/when the client is experiencing too much pain, it is neutralized.
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Thanks @MarkBroussard very helpful as always. I’ve read derm articles stating lactic acid at 10% can be considered a superficial ‘peel’ (pH not mentioned but i’m guessing below 3.5). Is a product marketed as a ‘peel’ considered a cosmetic (if it stays within the 10% AHA range and @pH3.5 or higher)?
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In the US the regulatory on AHA’s is that the pH must be greater than 3.5 and bear a Sunburn Alert Warning Label.
I think anything outside of this range would be consider a “peel”, but even those are now available to consumers on Amazon, for instance.
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Noted, thanks Mark. Do you know if multiple products (when sold as a kit), can contain AHA’s exceeding TOTAL 10% when added together? It’s worded “<strong style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; color: var(-bb-body-text-color);”>are safe for use in cosmetic products at concentrations ≤10%” so its not clear if they are referring to per/product concentration or per/total application (eg-in the instance where multiple products in a kit are used as one treatment system). FDA info is pretty minimal and I couldn’t find anything on the full CIR safety report. Thanks much, appreciate any thoughts
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It’s 10% per product. The FDA just took action against several companies that were selling chemical peels online to consumers.
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To reduce your fear about the acid irritating factor, you could make a clay mask and add the AHA to that?
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Thanks Catherine. Unfortunately pH would still need to be low enough for acid efficacy which would negate the need for clays (and a very difficult formulation to preserve and stabilize I would imagine?).
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Thank you, will look into them. There’s a subsection of ‘peels’ out there above 10% that can be used at home (eg Paula’s Choice 25%AHA @pH3.5-3.9), I’m assuming these are drug approved, and FDA considers safe enough to be used unsupervised. The research continues.. thanks for your input mark, much appreciated.
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I believe that was the issue that resulted in FDA action. They were not registered as drug products. Anything above 10% AHA, I believe is not considered a cosmetic product.
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