Hier wurde schon öfter diskutiert, ob die aus der Homöopathie bekannte Erstverschlimmerung auch bei Hautpflege zu erwarten oder gar wünschenswertes Zeichen für die Wirkung der neuen Produkte (alles kommt raus!) sei. Dass dem nicht so ist, habe ich immer schon angenommen. Wenn die Haut blüht, ist die Pflege nicht richtig/zu reichhaltig/was auch immer. Nun sagt Paula das in ihrem neuen newsletter auch mit besser gewählten Worten:

Dear Paula,

When I start a new skin-care routine, should I expect my face to break out really badly? In the past, for example, I tried Clinique and my skin got so bad for three months, I finally quit. Everyone tells me "It has to get worse before it gets better." But is that really true? By the way, I love your Web site, it’s very informative.

Laurie, via e-mail


Dear Laurie

The notion that skin has to get worse before it gets better is generally not true. It is also a complete fiction that the skin is breaking out because the new products are somehow purging toxins lurking in the pore or under the skin, making skin worse before it can get better. Women have heard this repeatedly from cosmetics salespeople, and even from some dermatologists who either don’t know any better or haven’t had the time to explain what may really be happening to the skin. As a result, this long-standing myth puts women in a position to tolerate bad or ineffective skin-care products longer than they need to. Here’s what can happen:

Typically, breakouts occur from a new skin-care routine because it is just bad for the skin and probably contains ingredients that trigger blemishes, or are ineffective or irritating, causing a rash-like breakout. If you experience immediate breakouts from using a new product, it is not acne but rather an irritant contact dermatitis (which can resemble acne). However, the most common cause of breakouts from a new skin-care routine is really one of coincidence that has nothing to do with the new products you are using. If you have a skin type that tends to break out, you could very easily start a new skin-care regime at a time when you may be going through a normal breakout phase. Remember that effective acne products can take two to three weeks to show an effect, so there wouldn’t be time for them to have an impact on the new cycle of breakouts you just happened to be going through.

On occasion, for some skin types, it is true that an effective skin-care routine can cause breakouts. This is particularly true when you are using disinfectants, exfoliants, and Retin-A, but that isn’t a necessary phase. Rather it may be due to the initial effect of the active ingredients, which can be irritating and cause breakouts, and then the skin may need time to adapt. You do not and should not have to suffer through months of redness, flaking, stinging, or other lingering side effects in an effort to endure skin getting worse before an improvement is seen!