Cleansing, Extraction, and Hydration Explained

Anyone who wants clearer and brighter skin has a range of options, from various individualized treatments to the unified Hydrafacial™. Wisconsin’s Radiance Skin Therapy explains that three key steps—cleansing, extraction, and hydration—work together well to address a range of cosmetic issues, as well as to provide a general healthy radiance.

How do these three steps work? Do they need to be in a particular order? Read on to learn more about the trio of beneficial skincare strategies.

Cleansing

A surprising amount of unwanted stuff can build up on your face each day. Aside from the dirt and grime that accumulate out of the environment, there are also natural oils, dried sweat, leftover cosmetics, dead skin cells, and more. Removing some of this can be as simple as gently washing your face each night with your own two hands. Certain devices, like Hydrafacial™, accomplish this step as they are being moved over the skin.

By removing dead cells and oils that can “gum up” pores, cleansing helps to minimize future acne breakouts and keeps the skin looking clear.

Extracting

Every pore on the skin opens to a follicle below, which is like a tiny pocket that holds a hair and oil gland. These pockets can get filled with debris and bacteria, as they are also a conduit for moving impurities out of the body. If they become stopped up with a mixture of sebum (oil) and dead skin, bacteria trapped inside can multiply, leading to inflammation. The resulting bumps bulging on the surface are known as pimples and pustules.

Pulling the material out of these pores keeps them clear to function properly and lowers the risk of developing inflammation. A follicle left alone to become severely inflamed, or a follicle damaged by someone trying to pop or pick at a pimple can rupture, leading the development of scar-causing nodules and cysts. For this reason, it is important to choose a provider to help with the extraction step—especially if there’s a cleansing element noted before, as with Hydrafacial™. The device uses a gentle type of vacuum suction to pull material out.

Hydrating

Our skin holds onto moisture well, especially if the skin is abundant in hyaluronic acid. Everything from drinking lots of water to maintaining a healthy diet to maximizing sleep while minimizing stress can help. There are also products ideal for locking in moisture, which are ideal for post-cleansing application. Moisturizers and hydrating creams may be applied as part of an at-home regimen. In-office applications are also available, as Hydrafacial™ gives the skin a personalized hydrating boost.

This trio of skincare strategies can give the skin an overall more radiant look, as well as help to reduce fine lines and spots, tame generalized redness, improve elasticity and firmness, and make pores appear smaller.

The face is the most common area for cleansing, extracting, and hydrating, but the neck and décolleté are also prime locations for treatment. Other application areas include the back, the thighs, the arms, and even the buttocks.

Beyond the “Big Three”

Hydrafacial™ treatments can be complemented with customized boosters that target everything from pigmentation irregularities to oily and congested skin to wrinkles. Infusion moves the active ingredients into the skin, which has been made extra receptive via opening the pores.

The results from cleansing, extracting, and hydrating vary in terms of duration, but can be expected to last for weeks. Of course, the skin produces new oil, skin cell turnover continues, and time marches on. Some patients choose to get a treatment about once a month in order to maintain the brightening results.

Want to learn more about cleansing, extracting, or and hydrating, all on their own or combined into a Hydrafacial™? Contact Radiance Skin Therapy and Laser Center by calling 608.240.0088 or sending a message online.