So many women just rush it when it comes to using multiple skincare products, using one and immediately another on top of it. This is primarily because of social media trends or some women saying they don’t have time to wait.
But it has serious consequences. If you don’t wait before applying another product, you’re causing harm to your skin. For example, if you’re using sunscreen and use another moisturizer on top of it immediately even when your skin hasn’t yet absorbed it, the sunscreen loses its effectiveness because when your product hasn’t even applied properly and absorbed into the skin, it’s like a waste of money.
On top of that, it can also cause some reactions. This guide is gonna try to simplify the process of properly applying your skincare products to avoid any consequences and waste of money.
What Exactly Happens To Your Skin During Those Waiting Periods?
A lot of process happens behind the scenes when you apply your skincare product, the moment your apply your skincare product, it penetrates through the outermost layer of your skin which is called “stratum corneum” and it takes time for your skin for properly apply the product and starts it’s effectiveness.
The products also change your skin’s PH level and it tries to rebalance it. Basically, think of it like a lot of changes happening into your skin the moment you apply your skincare product and it depends on the product on how long it will take for your skin to get normal and ready for your next product to be applied.
The waiting time totally depends on your routine, and the product you’re using. The general rule is to wait for about 1 to 2 minutes if your skin doesn’t feel wet and tacky, if it does, you must wait more.
Which Ingredient Combinations Require Waiting?
Here are some of the skincare product ingredients and their recommended waiting time before applying another product.
Vitamin C and Retinol
If you intend to use these two products into your skincare routine, never use them together. These two have different skin PH requirements, combining them can make each other less effective and can even cause irritation.
But if still, you have to use them together, then use them with a substantial gap. Vitamin C works best in the morning to protect against sun’s irritation and retinol works best at night due to its effectiveness of working best when you sleep and retinol is sensitive to the sun.
AHA/BHA Acids
After applying AHA/BHA acid exfoliants, must wait at least half hour or 20 minutes, AHA and BHA both help lower the levels of PH. Using moisturizer immediately will make it useless because it can directly raise the PH levels and the exfoliant will lose its effectiveness. Also, don’t use AHA/BHA acid exfoliation products with the ones with retinol or vitamin C.
Niacinamide And Vitamin C
These two were earlier not recommended by experts because of irritation but now research shows they are fine to be used together and can even offer some benefits. But if you can, waiting 10 to 15 minutes is good.
Sunscreen
Now, sunscreen needs little waiting like 1 to 5 minutes to absorb properly but the longer you wait the better, just to be cautious.
Does The Waiting Time Change Based On Your Skin Type?
Now, another thing to be careful of is your skin type, it dramatically depends on the person to person and different characteristics of their skin on how much to wait before applying other skincare products.
For Those With Oily Skins
The good news for people with oily skin is their skin is pretty good at handling the skincare products, the excessive sebum production creates a kind of barrier and absorbs those ingredients faster and need only a little wait of 1 to 5 minutes before each skincare product application.
For Those With Dry Skins
Dry skins on the other hand are restrained and are like the sponges that are left dry for too long, they take a longer time to absorb the products. You should wait around 10 to 15 minutes for the product to be absorbed properly.
People with dry, irritated and other types of sensitive skin should be more cautious because their skins are delicate and need to be more patient because these skin types need more time to absorb and process the ingredients. So wait around 15 to 30 minutes before applying another product. Remember, there’s a risk of further irritation if you constantly apply more skincare products.
Aged Skins
The more the skin ages, the production of skin’s cell becomes slower and therefore, you must wait from 20 to 30 minutes in the application of skincare products to avoid any irritation and reactions. If you are looking for beauty products especially for your skin type, Beauty Amora is an Australian brand with a ton of beauty products from many brands for everyone, they’re giving 20% off Beauty Amora discount code that you can apply on any skincare product you’ll buy!
Climate Affects On Your Skin
For those living in humid climates, their skin is generally more moisturized and therefore the skincare products absorb quickly but dry climates or winter can strip moistures from your skin and it’ll take more time for the products to be absorbed.
Wrap Up
If you’re facing different systems or are unsure about your skin type, contact your dermatologist as they can give you better recommendations. But people with oily skins need to wait only a little especially if the skincare product has less molecules but sensitive and dry skin folks should be more careful and wait more before applying another layer or skincare product.
