About Lactic Acid
The Lactic is great for improving skin hydration. The Lactic also helps with age management, by refining the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. It stimulates new collagen and elastin in deeper layers of the skin. Skin will become thicker, tighter, and firmer. It helps to even skin tone, and lighten pigmentation problems.
The Lactic acid is a natural humectant which occurs naturally in the skin, and because of this it is able to pull moisture from the air and hold it in the skin. The Lactic acid is less irritating and more moisturizing than the Glycolic, and the Lactic can be used at a slightly higher concentration than the Glycolic, because it is not as irritating.
Derived from milk, milder than glycolic acid, and typically better for working on hyperpigmentation problems. Our formulation contains licorice extract, an effective skin lightening additive. Appropriate for dry skin or oily skin. An alpha hydroxy, this peel penetrates the epidermis-only.
The Unique Power of Lactic Acid
Our Lactic peels are best for fading pigmentation and pulling moisture into the skin. The Lactic acid is a natural humectant that occurs naturally in the skin, which means it is able to pull moisture from the air and hold it in the skin.
If you have never used a chemical peel before, the Lactic/50 is what I would recommend starting with. When you first start, apply it to a test area for 1 minute and then rinse off. Wait 24 hours, and if no problems exist, you can apply the peel. We recommend applying once a week at first, and adjust according to your individual skin sensitivity.
Peel Strengths
We do offer a stronger Lactic/70 peel, but it can be potentially more irritating to the skin, as it is very strong. I suggest first changing the application depth of your peel by changing the contact time, instead of going with a stronger acid. This will allow you to adjust your treatment more gradually, as opposed to potentially traumatizing your skin by suddenly increasing the acid concentration.
If you do decide to upgrade from Lactic/50 to Lactic/70, make sure you are confident your skin is not overly sensitive. Start with a light application and short application time, and adjust accordingly.
L and D Isomers of Lactic Acid
Skin Laboratory’s lactic acid peel is comprised of more than 95% “L” Lactic isomer. L-Lactic acid was more effective than the D isomer in increasing the levels of stratum corneum ceramides (300% increase vs. 100% increase). Lotions containing L-lactic acid resulted in the greatest increase (48% increase) followed by D,L-lactic acid (25% increase), D-lactic acid had no effect on stratum corneum ceramide levels.
Not a Problem for Oily Skin
Yes, the Lactic Acid can be used on oily skin. Lactic works well for treating dry skin, but does not cause a problem with oily skin. If you are looking specifically to treat oily skin, then we recommend the Salicylic/20 chemical peel.
Tips for Using Lactic on Hands
Sometimes wrinkles on the hands are a sign of hard work. We use our hands from morning to night, and all of this use will cause a few wrinkles. Also excess sun exposure will greatly increase the tendency to wrinkle. The Lactic acid peel is indeed generally considered the best peel to help dry and wrinkled skin. Lactic acid has several things that make it the best in fighting dry skin.
First, the Lactic acid is a natural humectant which occurs naturally in the skin, and because of this it is able to pull moisture from the air and hold it in the skin. The lactic acid is less irritating and more moisturizing than the glycolic, and the lactic can be used at a slightly higher concentration than the glycolic, because it is not as irritating.
Second, the lactic acid has a larger molecule. This helps the Lactic acid to work more on the surface of the skin. Because of this it does not stimulate collagen growth as much as the glycolic. The glycolic fights wrinkles by going beneath the skin and stimulating collagen growth. The lactic acid works more on the surface of the skin pulling moisture inside the cells and plumping them up. Both work to help wrinkles, but they work in different ways.
Finally, Lactic acid was originally derived from mammalian milk, and is part of the human physiology. This seems to make it a little better tolerated than the glycolic acid, so it can be used in slightly higher concentration.
You still want to be careful applying on the hands. Start slowly and do not leave on for very long at first. Try for just 1 minute because you do not want to irritate the skin, especially around the knuckles, because this skin moves a lot throughout the day.
So just remember go slow. It will take 5-6 treatments to notice the best results, but most people start to notice a change immediately.
Treating Rosacea
The lactic acid is beneficial to rosacea, but we want to avoid any trigger events that will cause irritation.
If your skin is very sensitive I would recommend diluting the product with water at first, half water, half Lactic/50… and keep the contact time short. The lactic acid is beneficial to rosacea, but we want to avoid any trigger events that will cause irritation.
Start slow. Your skin should not visible peel, but will exfoliate for 24-36 hours after the peel treatment. As I am sure you know each case of rosacea is unique, so make sure to perform the treatments, duration and frequency in line with your skins sensitivity and tolerance.
Ongoing Use of a Lactic Peel
Treating pigmentation is a very gradual process, and its important to use sunscreen. Pigmentation is normally formed (especially in darker skin) when the sun reacts with the skin after a trauma to the skin. With regular use the skin becomes better able to tolerate the Lactic acid, and it does not irritate as much, this is a good thing. The skin exfoliation is still occurring, but because there are not as many layers of skin, you will not notice it as much.
