Chemical Peel - Can They Cause Hyperpigmentation

Most people using peels for the first time think they would see remarkable changes on their skin on the first attempt. However, even though you can see some changes, significant changes will take some time to come. With superficial peels, it might take about 3 to 6 peels before you can see any significant result with each peel being done at a gap of at least 7 to 10 days.

Not all chemical peels act like instant face packs and may have some down time or recovery time associated with them. Only superficial or light peels work like this. Medium peels or deep peels may require a couple of days to about a week off from work. The various peel types remove varying amounts of skin. Deeper peels tend to have a longer effect and thus will need more time off as the skin heals.

Not all forms of skin peels are applicable to all skin types. An experienced cosmetic professional along with your dermatologist will suggest the best possible chemical peel for your skin type and color. Generally, it has been noticed that if a wrong peel is used on someone s skin, it tends to cause hyperpigmentation. With this problem, brown spots or blotches develop on the skin especially when exposed to the sunlight.

Although this can sound very intimidating, peels are actually formulated in a manner to help dissolve the top layer of the skin to ensure that newer layers at the bottom get exposed which have lesser blemishes, ensuring that the skin looks tighter. Some of the chemicals used for this purpose are salicylic acid, glycolic acid, and lactic acid among others. The ingredients or chemicals used also depend on the type of the peel being used and the skin-type being treated.