Why is baking soda making my face break out & what can I use instead?

1. No idea why baking soda is making you break out but it irritates my skin to no end. I can't use it on my face or hair.

2. Oatmeal! Mix a little bit of oatmeal with water and use that to cleanse your face. Do not cook the oatmeal. It is a really nice natural cleanser that doesn't strip your skin which is a good thing. Stripping your skin is why people get such oily skin most of the time. Rubbing alcohol and witch hazel are terrible for your skin over time. It just kills all the natural oil which you need for healthy, radiant skin. Dermatologists recommend oatmeal for sensitive skin.

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Washing Face With Baking Soda

Facial skin is supposed to maintain an acidic ph. Baking soda is very alkaline, the opposite of acidic. It is not recommended that you use a baking soda scrub more than once per week. While your body can naturally recover after a baking soda wash, ie it goes from alkaline back down to acidic, your constant washing means your skin is frequently unable to defend against acne causing bacteria. Does this make sense? Your skin needs to maintain an acidic ph in order to prevent acne causing bacteria to thrive. Baking soda washes should, at the very least, be balanced with something acidic either mixed with it, or afterward. Some people mix lemon juice with their baking soda. Others might just use a toner afterward. If you're only washing with the baking soda/water mix ONCE per week, then you probably won't need to do anything special like this, unless you wanted to.

I know it seems crazy to put oil on your already oily acne prone skin. Olive oil has been used for many years as a cleanser and works wonders as home acne treatment. For best results pour a small amount of olive oil onto your hands and massage deeply into the skin. Allow the oil to sit for at least 3 minutes, then place a steamy towel over the face. The steam will help pull impurities out of your pores. After the towel cools use it to wipe away the remaining oil.

Baking soda is another home remedy for acne that frequently pops up in magazines and internet searches. It is very affordable. It deodorizes and cleans well. However, it is excellent for cleaning household items, not the skin on your face. I wish people would stop recommending baking soda because it really is harsh on your skin.

The common way to use baking soda as an acne treatment is to make a scrub. You can either mix a spoonful of baking soda (not baking powder) with water or add some to your cleanser. Other people like to use baking soda as a mask or spot treatment to help draw out any pimples.

People start to think, "Why bother spending money on scrubs and spot treatments when baking soda is so cheap?!"

Well, yes, baking soda is cheap and does make a very fine scrub, but it's so fine and the particles are so minuscule and jagged that it actually causes microscopic tears in your skin. Baking soda is also very alkaline, around a pH of 8, so when you're using baking soda as a scrub or mask, you're not only giving your skin microscopic tears, you're also ruining your skin's natural acid mantle (which is around a pH of 5).

I tried baking soda as a scrub and immediately after I washed it off, I have to admit I was very impressed. My skin felt super smooth and I was ecstatic because I thought I would never have to spend another penny on a store-bought scrub ever again! Oh, how I was wrong.

Baking soda turned out to be incredibly irritating. Even though my skin felt very smooth after washing with it, it stung like the dickens whenever I tried to put on moisturizer afterwards. At first I thought maybe the moisturizer had some acid or treatment ingredient in there, but even plain ol' Cetaphil, aloe vera gel, and eventually water stung my skin!

I had to give up baking soda because it was turning my face into a sensitive, red, dry, and very pimply mess. Baking soda looks very innocent, but I definitely would not recommend using such a harsh ingredient on your skin for acne (face), even if it is really cheap.

HOPE THIS HELPS IN ANYWAY POSSIBLE SORRY I COULDN'T PUT THIS IN A ''NUTSHELL" BUT IT WAS THE ONLY I COULD EXPLAIN IT

1. Baking soda is used to scrub toilets and as a cleaning agent, it's way too rough for anyones face.

2. St. Ives makes a nice exfoliating pad product really cheap, that may be a better option. The lactic acid in it is gentle and derived from sour milk. (Yuck i know but it's good and a gentle way to cleanse/exfoliate.) Also Cerave makes some awesome face cleansers. All natural isn't always best as you've found out. Face masks with honey prevent acne (RAW honey), and you can add in fruits like strawberries for bonus anti oxidants.

You'll probably come across as lemon juice being good for your face, avoid that too. Way too acidic and it's a "natural" bleaching type product that's also used for cleaning household stuff.

Try using jojoba oil as a moisturizer. It inhibits the growth of bacteria so it can help clear up your face, and its not really an oil at all, its the most similar to your skin's natural oils. Much better than any other moisturizer. I've used it for years, and it actually helps my skin stay clear and not get oily looking. As far as baking soda goes, don't overdo it - if you do you can irritate your skin and make your acne even worse.

Hi,

I am a dermatologist by profession and within a careeer of 10 years I have seen lots of acne problems. According to me Red and white pimples are the worst and painful. Acneprone skin is very sensitive, even if you touch it once the redness will increase with itching. According to me there is no magical way to heal your pimples over night as this is the puffed part of your skin due to the bacteria.

In simple words try to improve your diet and have lots of water that helps in healingg process. Un-necessary oily food should be avoided to get a healthy spotless skin.

APPLE CIDER VINEGAR!!! seriously.. try it. my skin wasn't terrible, but it was annoying (ruddy texture, patches of little bumps, dry but oily, etc) ACV changed my life. Every night and sometimes in the am, I use 1 part ACG to 2-3 parts water with cotton pads (kind of like a toner). it also removes makeup, so sometimes i wash my face before and sometimes i don't. while it doesn't have the greatest smell, it exfoliates dry areas, removes any dead skin, tones down redness, and helps immensely with acne (since it has antimicrobial properties). after the ACV i use Aura Cacia's 'Rose Absolute' (all natural rose oil with jojoba oil - got it from my local health food store). neither are very expensive, and they have literally changed the life of my face. after all of the years of dermatologist visits and fancy products (there have been many) it is finally as smooth as a baby's bottom! good luck! :)

Baking soda is a little bit roughi. I'll just use the normal cleanser.