The most common skin problems women face are acne, oily skin, rosacea, blackheads, and whiteheads.

I did almost every beauty regimen advertised to tackle my problems with acne, oily skin, and blackheads - and I did finally succeed.

However, after all the harsh astringent, nose strips, and mask packs a new facial problem came up.

I now have a lot of dead skin - and it just won’t go away!​

Is Dead Skin Only Found On The Face?

Given that skin covers us from head to toe like a perfectly snug onesie - the answer is no.

Dead skin can be everywhere - you name it, it’s there.

However, most people notice that dead skin is mainly on their hands, their feet, elbows and the face.

What Causes This Skin Issue

The human body is such an amazing mechanism what with its ability to naturally heal itself internally and externally.

As the largest organ in our body, the skin is no exception to this amazingness.

Every wound coagulates, every abrasion vanishes, every blemish and acne heals - it does and it should.

Your skin is composed of cells, and like any other cell in the body, these cells have expiration dates.

When your cell dies, another takes it place. So simply put, when your skin rejuvenates, you now have dead skin.

Picture a snake; sooner or later it will shed its skin trading the loose and old for brand-new and shiny scales.

In theory, our skins should do this too. Our bodies shed the old skin in the form of peeling or desquamation.​

We can safely say having dead skin is natural and normal. It’s part of the rejuvenation process.

What’s not normal is having that dead skin accumulate on your face.

And what's worse is that this accumulation will result in greater horrors. You'll either look flaky and scaly or have severe breakouts.

Why Should I Remove Dead Skin From Face?​

Interestingly, “too much of anything is bad” will also apply to your quest of removing dead skin off your face.

There is a reason why you shouldn’t be using that nose strip daily, why exfoliating daily and doing it harshly isn’t recommended. It's simply because you still need that dead skin.

Not all of it, yes, but some of it, especially those that are yet to resurface. The reason is because of a particular space in your dead skin cell.

As we know, our cells are made up of different parts each with particular functions.

The center of our cells is the nucleus. The nucleus is what differs between a dead and a living skin cell. When a cell is dead, its nucleus is dead.

A living cell, with its nucleus intact, means it is full and cannot take any more water and moisture other than what it has in store already.

A dead cell, however, has no nucleus which means it has more space. This space can absorb excess moisture, making your skin look hydrated and supple.

So what if your skin looks hydrated and supple?

It means you are without wrinkles, fine lines, or crepey skin.

Now always remember this; as much as possible only remove the dead skin on the surface of your face.

How To Get Rid Of Dead Skin On Face​

Fortunately for us, there are a lot of ways to remove dead skin from the face.

Some of these procedures will cost you a small fortune, but some can be done in the comforts of your home from ingredients you readily have in your kitchen or the closest supermarket.

You can try the following treatments:

1. Cosmetic Procedures

a. Chemical Peels

A chemical peel is a cosmetic procedure mostly done to treat wrinkles, fine lines, acne, and, yes, dead skin.

It does not require any anesthetic. However, if you feel uncomfortable, you may request for a sedative to ease the discomfort.

Depending on the condition of your skin, you may choose to do a light chemical peel or a medium chemical peel. If your skin calls for it, you can also opt to do a deep chemical peel.​

A light chemical peel also goes by the names AHA (alpha hydroxy acid) chemical peel, glycolic peel, or salicylic acid chemical peel.

With a light peel, the solution is left on the skin for a relatively short time than the other types of peels.

Light chemical peels are best for the people with mild skin imperfections. It can also be a good acne treatment as it helps unclog your pores.

The second type of chemical peel is the medium peel.

To correct acne scars, uneven pigmentation, and smooth out fine lines and wrinkles, this kind of peel will be perfect.

Medium peel or trichloroacetic acid (TCA) peel is done in just fifteen minutes in a series of treatments that are two to three months apart.​

It penetrates deeper than light chemical peels, but the recovery time is faster than deep chemical peels.

Which leads us to the third kind of peel, the phenol peel or deep chemical peel.

This type of peel is only advisable to those with severe sun damaged skin, scars, and coarse wrinkles.

It is the most aggressive peel. It has the longest recovery time, but it is only a one-shot deal which should be done on your whole face.

After one session of the phenol peel, results can be observed for as long as two years.

b. Fractional Resurfacing Laser

How else can you get rid of dead skin on face? You can choose to have a fractional resurfacing laser procedure.

This process is also called a fractional photothermolysis, and it is a fractional for a reason.

With the use of heat, it only targets certain damage zones. The process can produce dot-like areas on skin.

With this procedure, healing time is faster as only a selected area, and not the entire face, is treated. The healthy cells are now responsible for helping in the treatment of the damaged portion.

It is suitable for skin rejuvenation particularly in the treatment of sun-damage skin, wrinkles, fine lines, and hyperpigmentation.​

c. Microdermabrasion

Microdermabrasion is a cosmetic procedure that I think you might have heard of or seen already.

This procedure is done with the help of a diamondtome wand - a handheld device that will exfoliate your skin and will sometimes even vacuum it for you.

In this procedure, dead skin cells are exfoliated through the diamondtome wand that will buff and polish your skin using fine crystals or a diamond tip.

What’s more is that you have the option to do microdermabrasion with your trusted dermatologist, or choose to buy the device and do it yourself at home.

If you do choose the former, your dermatologist will let you know what intervals you should come in for these procedures.

It is common to have at least a month or two interval when having a microdermabrasion.

For a microdermabrasion done at home, it is advised to do it at least thrice a week, or for some, it can even be daily.

How often you do microdermabrasion will be up to your skin type and condition.

2. Natural Ways You Can Try

a. Oatmeal Scrubs

I love oatmeal, and I thought I couldn't love it more than I already do, but to know it can help my skin as well? I've fallen for it all over again.

Not only does oatmeal can help you get rid of blackheads quickly, it works like magic for dealing with your dead skin issues.

Oatmeal has saponins that can help remove dead skin cells and other impurities.

Also, the natural grainy feel of oatmeal is good in exfoliating the dead skin on your face.

To make an oatmeal scrub, you will need the following:

Mix these ingredients together to make a paste.

Put the paste on your skin and massage in a circular motion.

You may do this scrub once or twice a week, not only on your face but your entire body.

b. Sugar and Olive Oil

Another kitchen staple that will answer your question of how to get dead skin off your face is sugar and olive oil.

Sugar is good for your skin because it locks in moisture (humectant), aids in faster rejuvenation (sugar has glycolic acid), and the granules are generally good as an exfoliant.​

Olive oil, meanwhile, is a good moisturizer, so you won’t be stripping your skin of its moisture when using this scrub.

In choosing what kind of sugar to use, I recommend brown sugar over granulated sugar.

Brown sugar is softer and more friendly to sensitive skin.

For this scrub, just mix a half cup of brown sugar, 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil, honey or lemon juice. You may do this scrub once or twice a week.

c. Fruit Scrubs

Yes, you may also use fruits as scrubs. You can use an orange, for example.

Orange is rich in vitamin C which helps rejuvenate your skin. All you will need is to use the dried, ground peel combined with plain yogurt.

Apply the paste to your neck and face and leave it on for 15 to 20 minutes before rubbing it in a circular motion.

Do this once a week to say goodbye to excess dead skin.

d. Honey and Salt Scrubs

This scrub is perfect if you are like me with an oily skin and excess dead skin combo.

For this scrub, mix honey and salt (particularly sea salt). If you have patchouli oil, you may add it to the paste.​

Put it on your face and neck and massage for about 15 minutes.

e. Green Tea Scrubs

If you are an avid tea drinker, you now have a new purpose for all those used tea bags.

The texture of green tea is that of a good exfoliator. Additionally, green tea enhances your skin’s complexion and elasticity for supple looking skin.​

Just use the contents of about 1 to 2 bags of green tea. Mix it with honey (2-3 tablespoons), and you may also opt to add a tablespoon of baking soda.

Apply on the face and leave on for 10 minutes before massaging and rinsing off.

3. Changing Your Lifestyle

How will this help me to get rid of dead skin on my face? Maybe you don’t have to do anything drastic, but rather change a little in your routine.

a. Moisturize​

I can never emphasize how essential moisturizers are.

My face looked scaly and ready to crack after I eliminated all the oil and acne on my face.​

After every exfoliation or treatment, even the act of just washing your face, you need to apply the moisturizer that suits your skin type best. Your skin will definitely thank you for it.

b. Harsh abrasives​

It is not bad to exfoliate your skin and body. You may even use a loofah, exfoliator brush, or the great pumice.

This is not a habit you need to stop but do not exfoliate to the point that it hurts.

Your skin stinging and reddening is a sure sign that you are overdoing it. You may have removed the dead skin cells, but you may also remove moisture.​

c. Steam bath or Saunas

Before exfoliating, it is advised to open up your pores first through steam.

If you have access to a sauna, go and have a hot bath! Overall, going to a sauna will earn you a lot of health benefits.​

Not only does it open up your pores to lessen the clogging, but it helps flush toxins, relax tense muscles, burn calories, and generally it feels good.

Remember that when you feel good, you will also look good.​

The Bottom Line

There you have it – a complete guide on how to clear dead skin on the face.

Your face literally faces a lot of skin conditions that can make you self-conscious. The good thing is that these treatments can help you easily address all of these concerns.

And the most important thing you should take into consideration is that you must understand your skin, your skin type, and its condition.

This understanding will help you take better care of your skin.​