My Skin Barrier Journey: Reintroducing Niacinamide

 


Hello my beauties!!!

So for the past week I've been adding The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% back into my routine. I stopped using it at the end of December because when I tried adding the Purito Centella Unscented Serum, which has 3% niacinamide, into my PM routine I found that my skin became very red and irritated. It also got oilier which told me that I was using too much niacinamide and it was sensitising my skin. This really upset me because I've always loved it as an ingredient for helping to regulate sebum production and fade acne scars. However, I decided to listen to my skin and give it a break from niacinamide, including both TO Niacinamide and the Purito Centella Unscented Serum. After I stopped using it I noticed that the irritation went away but I became more oily as I wasn't getting the oil control benefits. However, I powered through and after 4 weeks I decided that it was time to reintroduce it to my routine...


Day 1 (PM): I applied the serum to slightly damp skin and although my cheeks flushed abit, there was was no physical irritation or tingling. I left it for a few minutes to see how my skin reacted but it looked exactly the same so I applied the Cerave Moisturising Lotion. However my face was still flushed so I put some Cicaplast Baume on my cheeks- and my skin started tingling! After 15 minutes my skin still looked pink but there were no red spots of irritation.

Day 2 (PM): The second time there was no major irritation other than a slight flush of the cheeks and a few red spots. I then applied the Cerave Moisturising Lotion and luckily there was no tingling this time... phew!

Day 3 (PM): I think I applied too much as I used to only use two drops for my face and instead I used three (one on each cheek and my forehead). My cheeks did flush but they calmed down abit after 5 minutes.

Day 4 (PM): I applied two drops to my cheeks and spread it over my face and neck- the perfect amount! This time my face didn't flush and I only got a few, barely noticeable, red spots. After 5 miutes my skin felt soft and supple. I feel like my skin is finally adjusting to niacinamide!

Day 5 (PM): I experienced no irritation or redness and applied two drops to my face and one to my neck. It absorbed within a minute and after 5 minutes there were zero signs of irritation on my skin. My skin is a lot less oily than it was before and I've also stopped using the Cicaplast as I think it was clogging my pores.


Conclusion: 

Since I reintroduced TO Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% my skin has been a lot less oily during the day and evening. I'm really glad that I was able to incorporate it back into my routine as I've always found it effective at clearing my breakouts, regulating sebum and fading acne scars. I think it helped that I used it on alternate days to begin with, as it had been awhile since I'd used such a high concentration. However I now feel confident in using it every evening. I used to use it in my morning routine, however since swapping my vitamin C serum to the AM I decided to try using niacinamide in the evening instead. So far it seems to be responding well to my skin and my oil levels have reduced significantly. As for its other benefits I think those will become more noticeable over the next couple of weeks.

Once TO Niacinamide serum has run out I'm going to try the Purito Centella Unscented Serum again as it only has 3% niacinamide, so I can layer it with my other active plus get the benefits of centella asiatica and peptides. I'm hoping that 3% is still effective for regulating sebum production but if not I can always add another product with niacinamide, such as the Scinic First Treatment Essence. I really hope my skin likes the Purito serum as I ordered a second bottle haha. I will do a skincare diary for the Purito Centella Unscented Serum and let you know how I get on! Now that all my actives have been reintroduced I'm going to stick to my current routine for a month just to make sure my skin is properly adjusted and to get into a consistent routine of using actives again. I'll then think about swapping my current products for some unfinished products that I need to use up. Then once they're finished I can think about trying some of the new and unused products in my skincare drawer... exciting stuff ;)

Look out for a post on my Updated Skincare Routine, coming your way next week! 

Who Cares, We Care, Skincare :)

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