To All the Skincare We’ve Used Before—we need to take a break. We’ve tried to make things work, but it’s just become too much for our skin to handle. Each new essence, serum, and cream that we added to our routines just gave us false hope for our skincare concerns, even making our skin more agitated and sensitized in the process. And with so many steps to keep track of, skincare has just become too complicated and simply… not. fun. We deserve better. What our skin really needs right now is some time to heal and find itself again, so it’s time for us to try something new. Goodbye 10 step skincare routine—we’re taking the #SkincareDietChallenge. Our skin is smarter than we think, so it really doesn’t need a 10 step routine to look and perform at its best. That’s why KraveBeauty is here with an easy as 1, 2, 3 guide to the #SkincareDietChallenge so that you can give your skin some time to find itself and remember how to do its job. What is the #SkincareDietChallenge? It’s exactly what it sounds like — a “diet” for your skin. Through this challenge, you’re cutting down your skincare routine to the basic essentials of cleansing, moisturizing, and protecting (using SPF). This skincare cleanse is all about giving your skin the chance to recover from its sensitive, irritated state after dealing with skincare product overload. Learn more about the Skincare Diet through Allure’s recent article. Let’s break down the #SkinCareDietChallenge into three simple steps, shall we? Step 1:  #PressReset on your current skincare routine (Skincare Fasting) We’re going to need to start off with a clean slate. This step is essential for rebuilding our skin’s barrier, which may be damaged or compromised after handling so many products that it really didn’t need. In other words, it’s time to #PressReset on your skincare routine by prioritizing two skincare goals: hydration and recovery. Here’s what we recommend for morning and nighttime skincare fasting routines! AM: Step 1- Skip cleansing, or opt for a gentle, non-foaming cleansing gel such as our Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser Step 2- Hydrator/moisturizer Step 3- SPF, SPF, SPF— because UV rays are NOT FRIENDLY! PM: Step 1- Double cleanse/cleanse off your SPF and makeup Step 2- Hydrator/moisturizer + add oil if your skin is too dry Stick to this phase for a month or more. And try making overall transformative lifestyle changes during this period by working on your diet, sleeping habits, and stress levels. Before you know it, your skin will be feeling happier, healthier, and overall more balanced, just the way it should be. Step 2: Add a supplement! (targeted solution) After your skin has calmed down, you’re ready for step 2: adding supplements to your routine. This is the time for you to listen to what your skin craves and only add products that target your skin’s true needs. So if your skin is loving just cleansing and moisturizing, then there’s no need to add another step! Please be strategic about this— make sure to add one product at time, and slowly build the frequency and potency of the active ingredient as your skin can handle it. Rushing or overdoing this process will just bring you back to square one! Some supplementary skincare product suggestions based on your skin cravings: Dehydrated Skin- Humectants such as Hyaluronic Acid, Glycerin, Sodium PCA, Squalane Oil, or any other oil to compensate Congested and Dull Skin- Occasional AHA exfoliation such as our Kale-lalu-yAHA Oily, Acne Prone Skin- Niacinamide, zinc Weakened Skin Barrier- Ceramides, Cholesterol, fatty acids such as facial oils For overall skin's health- Antioxidants like Vitamin E or Vitamin C* * Go for Vitamin C derivatives such as Magnesium Ascorbic phosphate or Sodium Ascorbic Phosphate instead of pure forms such as L-Ascorbic Acid or Ascorbic Acid that may irritate the skin further! Step 3: Commit! Throughout the #SkincareDietChallenge, you and your skincare products should act as if you’re in a committed relationship — so no cheating! Trust the process and the products that you’ve whittled your routine down to because seeing results takes time. Give your skin the time it needs to adjust and embrace this healing process. So, have you tried the #SkincareDietChallenge before? If so, please share your story in the comments so that you could empower others how it helped heal your skin💚

AYEEEE! So we covered all the major types of acne in our previous post. Now, you may be thinking, “OKAY, GIMME THE SOLUTION NOW!” Don’t worry, we got your back. We’re gonna talk about how we can care for acne prone skin, and how the battle is 85% in your mind! (IKR? Mind over matter applies on your skin too) {Analogy break} Acne prone skin is like that kid who is a super picky eater. There are many things it will not like, and will throw a tantrum if you feed it something it doesn’t. Sometimes if you feed them at the wrong time, they will still give you trouble. So how do we keep this kid happy while making sure it gets the nutrients it needs? Solution 1. DITCH YOUR ACNE TREATMENT We know what you’re thinking. And we can already hear all the dermatologists yelling at us. But let’s confront ourselves, if you’ve been using benzoyl peroxide for 5 years and you STILL get acne, there is something that’s fundamentally wrong. Ever experienced going down the antibiotics route and when you finally thought you cleared acne, as soon as you got off the meds, it all came back? All of these conventional acne treatments are only masking the problem while damaging the skin in a long term by weakening your skin barrier. So, what do we do? Solution 2. DON’T BE AFRAID TO MOISTURIZE “WHAT? Are you trying to get my pores, even more clogged, girl!?” We know. But have you heard of the term ‘oily but dehydrated skin’? Yes, apparently and unfortunately that’s a thing now which basically means that your moisture barrier (skin barrier) ain’t functioning. Many of you will shy away from properly hydrating and moisturizing your skin thinking it will make the skin “even more oily”. And you’re probably addicted to that ‘squeaky clean’ feeling post-cleansing and you’re addicted to overstripping the skin. But then your skin underneath may feel like a desert, huh? Go read this post to keep everything intact. “What happens if I rebuild my moisture barrier? And how does that affect your acne?” The moisture barrier is basically a bodyguard for your skin. And you need this more than anyone because your skin is already inflamed and this bodyguard will protect your skin from external pollutants, irritants, and foreign stuff that could potentially trigger more inflammation. Did I also tell you this bodyguard also helps your skin hydrated for longer, too? :) “But I’m still scared to apply a moisturizer…” Choosing the right one is important for sure but having acne prone skin doesn’t mean that you have to only use oil-free moisturizers. Some oils can actually be beneficial for you balancing out your oil production. And a lot of studies show that people with acne prone skin are deficient in linoleic acid (one of the fatty acids) but we’ll talk about this in another time. In the meantime, you can refer to Liah’s video on how to choose the right oil for you. Gel moisturizers could be a great option. Look for the one that’s packed with humectants (glycerin, urea, hyaluronic acid) and antioxidants. And, please don’t go down to the rabbit hole of ‘comedogenic rating’ as our friend who also happens to be a chemistry genius, LabMuffinBeautyScience uncovered, “non-comedogenic” is not a regulated term and there are many flaws in the rating system. Look for a short ingredient list with beneficial components that you know your skin likes. As always with acne prone skin, **LESS IS MORE** Solution 3. KEEP IT SIMPLE AS 1, 2, 3. CLEANSE - MOISTURIZE - PROTECT (SPF) Start simple. Go on a #SkincareDietChallenge and give your vitamin C serum to your mom. This strategy is to give your skin a break and lower the chance of irritating or sensitizing your skin from skincare products because your skin is fragile now. Pay attention to your skin and adjust your skincare game around it. Close to the time of your period, the hormones in your body can cause higher water retention, creating pressure against the skin and pores. During this time, the oil your skin produces is thicker than usual, which can lead to…….CLOGGED PORES. So just keep your skincare as simple as possible. In the dryer/colder months, it is important that you supplement more of what it needs so that you can help maintain a healthy moisture barrier. Many do this by mixing in a few drops of acne skin-friendly oil into their gel moisturizers, or going for an emollient moisturizer that works for them. We’re also working on a kick-ass formula to solve this need! (wink) SOLUTION 4. BE GENTLE Let’s not piss off this picky eater. Trust us, there hasn’t been a single case of acne in the world that was solved by washing the skin more and more. Many also use harsh topicals to treat acne simply because they wish to hit them hard and be done with acne forever. It simply doesn’t work that way. Temporary and hard-hitting solutions may seem to work at first, but to keep acne away for good, you have to respect your skin and help it heal. Otherwise, it creates a vicious cycle of overdoing actives and damaging your skin barrier, which can cause more acne, leading you to use more actives. (link skin barrier post) SOLUTION 5. MIND OVER MATTERBattling acne is 85% in the mind and there is NO magic fix out there. Nurture the mental strength to accept that removing acne takes time, and that you are playing the long game. More stress raise the cortisol levels in your body which creates more inflammation and triggers more oil production anyways. So might as well, come to a peace with it. We know how tempting it is to grab your benzoyl peroxide or other this-stuff-cured-my-acne-overnight products. Adding an active ingredient will just overwhelm the workload of your skin, leading to more inflammation at this point. Because if it was that easy, everyone would be acne-free. Remember that we are all in this together. Look to each other for support, and remember that your skin doesn’t determine your self-worth and there isn’t such a thing as ‘flawless skin’. Was this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below! - by Cece & Liah

Do you have little itchy bumps that never seem to go away? Do they tend to get worse in hot and humid weather? If this sounds familiar, this one’s for you! As we continue our Acne Series, we finally break down what those little bumps actually are. Commonly referred to as “fungal acne,” Malassezia Folliculitis isn’t acne at all and requires an entirely different approach than regular acne. Well if  it’s not acne, then what is it?? Malassezia Folliculitis (MF), is caused by the overgrowth of yeast on our skin. These oil-loving fungi are commonly found in normal human skin, however there are several factors that can lead to their overgrowth like hot and humid conditions, oily/greasy skin, as well as immunosuppression. This then leads to an infection of the hair follicle which causes our skin’s immune system to come into its defense leading to inflammation. What makes it different? The Culprit Fungal acne is caused by an overgrowth of fungi, while regular "acne" is caused by bacteria. They  might look the same on the outside, but they couldn't bef more different.  Acne = Bacteria -> Acne Malassezia = Fungi -> Malassezia Folliculitis (MF)/Fungal "acne"  The Lesion  Size: MF lesions bumps are generally smaller and are of the same size (monomorphic) while regular acne can are less predictable and range from 1-3 mm papules/pustules Signs: It can feel itchy and especially exacerbated after sweating/increased skin temperature Location: MF mainly concentrates around the T-zone, forehead, hairline, back, and chest where you have the highest oil gland activity Their similarities Both Malassezia and P. Acne love oil. Overproduction of sebum is one of the major causes of acne, that’s why it is very common for MF and Acne Vulgaris (regular acne) to coexist in the same area at the same time. MF is commonly misdiagnosed as Acne Vulgaris. It is common for even the most trained dermatologists to miss the diagnosis of MF. When they coexist with Acne Vulgaris, it can be hard to distinguish them just by looking at it since the regular acne can “cover up” the typical MF lesion characteristics. It is extremely important to differentiate MF since regular acne treatment such as Benzoyl Peroxide or oral antibiotics (prescribed by your doctors) can cause your fungal infection to worsen. So, how do you know if you have MF/ Fungal acne? The best way to check if you have it is by going to a dermatologist and request for a fungal infection check. They will scrape/extract a part of the lesion and look at it under the microscope The acne medication you’ve been using for a long time doesn’t work or progressively makes it worse Testing how your skin responds to topical treatments, which we will discuss further below How to treat MF MF is caused by fungi, which means it should be treated by antifungal medication. Ketoconazole 2% This antifungal agent can be easily found in drugstore anti-dandruff shampoo (such as Nizoral, Ketoconazole 1%). You can use it by applying the shampoo on your damp face (yes, you read it right) - just like a wash-off mask, leave it on for around 5 minutes before rinsing it off. You can use it every night or once every two nights for 2-4 weeks and see how can change your skin    Zinc Pyrithione 1% or Selenium Sulphide 2.5% Another antifungal agent you can also find in anti-dandruff shampoo (such as Head & shoulder) and can be applied just like ketoconazole (see above) Sulfur This treatment can be both effective for fungal AND bacterial acne! You can apply this as a sulfur wash or as a sulfur spot treatment. Once the episode is over, these treatments can be used for maintenance to prevent future outbreaks. Skincare tips for MF There are some ingredients in your skincare products that might indirectly feed and exacerbate MF. Remember to #pressreset on your skincare game when you’re having MF. There are quite a few notable ingredients that should be avoided: Oils and fatty acids (Example: Lauric, Palmitic, stearic, oleic, linoleic acid, etc) Fermented ingredients (Example: Galactomyces) Skincare ingredients that are great and have anti-fungal properties: Honey/Propolis extract Green tea extract Salicylic Acid (BHA) Extra tips: Do not over-moisturize your face especially during hot and humid weather. Fungi LOVE humidity, applying multi-step hydrating products can support their growth. Lifestyle tips for MF Here we list some extra tips that you can do to help alleviate MF: Cool down your skin temperature Increased skin temperature increases inflammation and sebum production which indirectly leads to Malassezia overgrowth. Heat is sometimes inevitable, but try to avoid steaming hot saunas and sunbathing. You can also use cold rollers to cool down your skin temperature Wipe off your sweat! Don’t forget to wipe or rinse off your sweat right after exercise Change out of your sweaty clothes This is especially important if you’ve been dealing with MF around your chest and back. Those damp sweaty shirts and sports bras become their favorite place to live Source: here

Welcome back to our acne series! If you haven’t caught our first post demystifying what acne is once and for all, be sure to check it out! This week we’re going over how to tackle our acne from above AND below. For the longest time, we’ve been given a lot of generic acne advice, like “wash your pillowcase”, “avoid dairy,” etc. While there’s some wisdom to it, many of us don’t really understand why these solutions work or might not work for acne. The lack of this understanding makes it hard to pick and follow a certain regimen. To get to the bottom of this, let’s go through each type of inflammation in more detail and see what can be done to combat them.   1) Your pores are clogged, and it doesn’t get better There are three things that might be causing this type of reaction: Your skin is not renewing and/or detaching properly Cause: Baby cells start at the bottom layer of your skin and move outwards as they age. The oldest skin cells (most commonly known as dead skin cells) simply detach themselves to make room for new ones. Everyone has a natural rate of shedding their dead skin cells, but in some people the rate of shedding is lower than the rate of renewal which causes your pores to get clogged. Solution: The best way to combat this is to treat your acne with gentle exfoliator such as AHAs (i.e. our Kale-Lalu-yAHA) or retinols/retinoids. These substances increase skin cell turnover and help to reset the tempo of the renewal process. Your pores won’t let the gunk out Cause: Contrary to what you might think, pore size has nothing to do with the pore clogging potential of your skin. However, the type of lipids your body produces does. Your sebum may be really gloopy and solid, so it can’t easily move out of the pore. Whereas if the sebum is very liquidy, it can pour out of even a very small opening. Solutions: There are two things you can do to solve your problem. First, you can try to clear your pores by using salicylic acid or clay products. Remember, these are drying and can cause oil over-compensation from your skin, so use them in moderation, and no picking or squeezing, please! Second, you can try to make your sebum less gloopy by supplying topical linoleic acids such (i.e. from safflower oil or rosehip seed oil), as well as by including healthy fats in your diet. Your body needs these building blocks from your food so that it can build the types of lipids that are good for you. You are producing too much excess oil Cause: There are a million reasons your skin could be over-producing oil: overheated skin, overdried skin, hormone imbalance, stress, excess consumption of dairy (the signals in dairy tell our body through insulin and hormones, to increase sebum production and inflammation). Solutions: The reasons are so vast that this topic deserves its own blog post! Let us know in the comments whether you would like us to tell you more about that, and don’t forget to mention if there are any other common reasons for excess oil production we might’ve missed!   2) Bacteria starts taking advantage of the food supply Cause: Clogged skin cells and excess oil are the favorite foods of acne-causing bacteria. When they invade the clogged pore, the body recognizes it as an infection, and attacks the bacteria. This attack results in inflammation. Solutions: Keeping your skin barrier and acid mantle intact is vital to combating this issue. Your skin barrier will naturally protect your pores from these types of bacteria, so using pH-balanced cleanser like our Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser is important and protecting yourself from within by keeping a healthy body microbiome! You can also avoid this issue by not touching your face too often. There is plenty of harmful bacteria and germs on your hands, so you can decrease the chance of them finding a food supply on your face by not touching it. A more aggressive way to tackle this issue is by using benzoyl peroxide or antibiotics. These remedies kill the acne-causing bacteria, but can also cause disruption and injury to the microbiome and in the long run will not help you prevent future re-occurrences.   3) Your skin and body comes to the defense Cause: We mentioned in our skin-body relationship blog post that there is a huge correlation between systemic (whole body) inflammation and your skin’s local inflammation. If your body is on alert mode from being inflamed in the gut or other places, it can overreact when faced with the bacteria in your pores. It will start sending immune cells (defenders of the body) to that area of the face because it feels threatened and feels the need to protect it. That is the redness and also the yellow or white pus that you see. Solutions: Maintaining low levels of inflammation through a good diet and low stress levels and a healthy lifestyle helps the body stay calm when challenged. In modern society, most people are obsessed with everything clean, sterile and sanitized, which is actually causing many people’s immune systems to be hyperreactive since they are not exposed to enough microflora. This is a complicated issue and is best trained at a young age, but you can always start improving the situation now by not over-washing or over-sterilizing your hands, as well as not over-sterilizing your surroundings through harsh cleaning products.     Got any other burning questions about acne? Ask them in the comments below! Our acne series will continue next week, so stay tuned for more tips and tricks!

Starting this week we’re doing a deep dive into the world of acne. I’m sure you’ve heard that there are different types of acne, but every week it seems like scientists find another culprit for the cause and it’s impossible to keep track! All while this is happening, the beauty and skincare industry also tell you about the million things you are doing wrong to your skin. Who are we supposed to believe?? Navigating the world of acne is as daunting as it is complex. We don’t have all the answers, but we can equip you with a survival guide so that you’re not alone in your journey! Before you can start to tackle acne, you have to truly understand what it is. The thing with acne is, there’s always advice coming from every direction: scientists, parents, doctors, beauty bloggers, skincare marketing, etc. and while there are bits of truth here and there, it’s mostly masked by a lot of noise and misdirection. Sometimes we even find ourselves following advice without really knowing why. So let’s start with the basics, what is acne? The definition of acne is inflammation of the sebaceous gland and/or hair follicle, and the skin around it. There is often a misconception that the respective types of acne (comedonal, hormonal, etc.) are radically different from each other, but that may not necessarily be true. While there are a million different factors that lead to the actual pimple, whatever the cause, the final manifestation is simple - a clogged pore resulting in inflammation. Here are the classifications for acne: 1. Non-inflammatory acne These include blackheads and whiteheads. They’re so-called non-inflammatory because the skin around the clogged pore is not usually inflamed, red or raised. The dead skin cells and oil simply can’t get out of the little pore. A) Whiteheads aka closed comedones In whiteheads, the trapped skin cells and oil cannot escape because the top of the pore is closed. This gives the appearance of a white dot, and the dot itself (but not the skin around it) can be slightly raised as it tries to push its way out. B) Blackheads aka open comedones In blackheads, the clogged pore has an opening at the top, so when the air comes in and oxidizes the trapped oils it has a black/dark appearance. 2. Inflammatory acne The trapped dead skin cells and oil mentioned above are actually the favorite food of some strains (the acne-causing strains) of the bacteria P. acnes. When these bacteria go into the pore and start to eat and live and reproduce there, the surrounding skin becomes inflamed, causing inflammatory acne, which include papules, pustules, nodules and cysts, commonly grouped by the layman’s term “pimple”, which we tend to think of as different from black and whiteheads. A) Pustules This is the typical pimple that most of us are familiar with. When your clogged pore has endured too much inflammation, either from excess trapped sebum and skin cells or from bacteria infestation, the walls of the pore may break down, and the surrounding skin will become red and inflamed. This whole area will become raised and pushed against the surface, resulting in a red circle with a white or yellow center that feels a bit squishy. The white/yellow liquid is pus, which consists of your immune cells that show up to fight the infection. B) Papules In papules, a similar situation happens as the above, but the inflammation is either a bit smaller or a bit deeper in the skin. It’s not as raised or close to the surface, however the skin is still inflamed, so it results in a pinkish red firm bump with no white center (also known as a headless pimple). C) Nodules In nodules, the inflammation starts even deeper in the skin, and with time or further irritation, it can grow to a considerable size. These are the deep, big, red, painful bumps with no head. D) Cysts Cysts are similar to nodules but are either closer to the surface, or have endured so much inflammation that the swelling of immune cells brought it close to the surface. In these big, red, painful bumps, you can see a white/yellow center. Source: http://www.ayushveda.com/dietfitness/different-types-of-acne/ As you can see, even though there are a lot of appearances of acne, they all have a common factor: a clogged pore. Therefore, no matter the cause of your kind of acne, in the end we’re just trying to prevent our pores from clogging. It’s that simple. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. For example: You may have previously thought that the acne you would get from a comedogenic product is different from the acne you would get from a hormone imbalance, i.e. you’d get black and whiteheads from a comedogenic product, but hormonal acne usually show up as cysts. The truth is, if a comedogenic product clogs your pore, bacteria travels into it, and the inflammation is not managed, a cyst can very well appear. Hormones can influence how much oil is produced and how gloopy it is, but depending on where it gets trapped, papules and pustules are just as likely to happen as cysts. Yes, it’s important to make good diet and lifestyle choices, but it’s more important to know why. These choices help you regulate your oil production and risk of inflammation in an effort to lower the chances of 1) getting a clogged pore and 2) having a clogged pore inflame into a pimple. But you can also prevent acne from the outside by keeping your pores clear - not by picking/squeezing of course! Make sure you have a functioning cell-turnover with regular gentle exfoliation that keeps your barrier intact. Now that you have a fundamental understanding of acne, next week we will delve into some causes and advice we always hear about acne, and how they complete the picture.