Everything You Need To Know About Yellow Peel : Product Used: Rejsol Yellow Peel with 20% Retinol

My Experience With Yellow Peel on Body-Skin

Okay so here goes another blogpost on peeling. People who know me, are aware that I’m obsessed with skincare especially with chemical peels. To do these, as a personal choice, I usually don’t go to seek a dermatologist’s advice because I consider myself quite an expert in this field but for any of you reading this, I’d strongly suggest you to consider medical intervention because without that, there’s even greater chance of messing up. This article is NOT A SUBSTITUTE of expert consultation; its just my personal logbook of experience with something I love experimenting with.

Please do understand that me experimenting with chemical peels is a very personal choice (mostly because biotechnology & bioinformatics have been my subjects of two masters degrees I’ve pursued) & I DO NOT SUGGEST YOU TO EXPERIMENT WITH CHEMICAL PEELS ALL BY YOURSELF AT HOME WITHOUT SEEKING MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL’s HELP & thus I shall not be held liable for any mess up at your side if such a case occurs (please read the Disclaimer: https://thebeautyblogoflove.blogspot.com/p/disclaimer.html  ).

Here I’m simply sharing my experience.

When I bought yellow peel, I didn’t have any experience with less stronger peels before. I’ve been using TCA 30-35% all my life but didn’t lay my hands on any light peels partly because I’m one of those girls who are never satisfied with a peel if no significant snakeskin like peeling is seen. For the same reason I always preferred sticking to my good old’ TCA 35%. But with stronger peels, there came greater risks like post inflammatory hyperpigmentation (scars seen on the new skin after peeling). TCA is a medium depth peel while with conc. like 35% its more of a deep peel. As expected, the skin would peel like a of a snake, thick & visible peeling gives me great satisfaction.

However, its also given me hard times, due to my habit of picking the skin & also great impatience, I’d end up with scars. So I thought I better give lighter peels a try; so I chose Yellow peel to start with. Now Yellow peel may not feel like a light peel if you’re doing it on your face where it may still show significant peeling like that of a medium depth peel because we all know that our facial skin is way thinner than our body skin. But because my peeling adventures are mostly concentrated on my body & not face, I cannot expect to see great peeling effect on thick body skin especially on legs. The skin on my legs have been terribly damaged because of my school dress which kept my legs exposed to the sun for long hours (although Its recovered its lost glow about 99% after years of peeling & microdermabrasion sittings), I still love to try any new peel on my legs first just as I did it this time with Yellow Peel.

Yellow Peel Bottle

Now yellow peel is usually a combination of different peeling agents of which, Retinol is the principle & the common peeling agent among yellow peels from all brands. Mine is from Rejsol which contains 20% retinol, 10% Kojic acid, 30% Glycolic acid & 20% Lactic Acid. One thing that makes yellow peel more powerful than a common retinol peel is that yellow peel contains a higher percentage of retinol than any typical retinol peel. along with retinol, unlike in retinol peels, yellow peels contain an array of other peeling agents such as glycolic acid, kojic acid etc.




Having kojic acid in your yellow peel gives you a greater command in dealing with stubborn scars & suntan because it is a commercially available potent depigmenting agent. Also there are other variants of yellow peel available in the market with one or more depigmenting agents like Phytic Acid & Azelaic Acid as well. Glycolic acid with conc. like 30% works just like glycolic acid peel at this conc.




So this peel is a better option than any of its ‘base component-only peel’ like its better than retinol peel (most retinol peels available in the market are about 2% retinol while in this varian of yellow peel, you get 20% wow!!!), or glycolic acid peel (here you get the goodness of retinol & kojic acid along with even higher conc. of glycolic acid like 30%) or even Lactic acid peel (you get 20% here). So yellow peel is a great option for those looking for better results from a light peel because it’s a combination of different agents, looking after different skin concerns.

Now why is this peel called yellow? 

simply because the colour of the peeling agent is yellow. Since I’ve always used TCA, it came as a shock to me when I tried pouring it on the cap of the bottle first assuming it’s a thin liquid (my usual trick to avoid product wastage) & felt like a complete idiot to see that its way thicker than the usual peeling liquid & its bright yellow in colour, more like mango.

Yellow peel is indeed bright yellow

Experience: Now as usual, I applied that semi-liquid yellow peel with a brush on the affected skin. There’s a catch. Yellow peels can be of two types: one that’s indicated for neutralizing & another one that’s ‘leave on’. Mine is from the brand ‘Rejsol’ & when I bought it, it came with an instruction leaflet which gives you generalized chemical peel information, & it doesn’t even mention whether the peel is to be neutralized or is a ‘leave on’ product. So I assumed it to be neutralized (simply because this type is more common).

Now those yellow peel which need to be neutralized are applied on the affected area & is kept undisturbed for more or less 30 seconds (for face) & from 3-7 minutes for body/thicker skin. as in my product, the type is not mentioned, & it came with a neutralizer; I assumed it’s a peel to be neutralized. But my case is slightly different because I’ve always used TCA on my body that too in concentrations 30-35% which is quite high & gives you a medium to deep peeling results; so I assume my body skin is quite habituated to strong acidic agents & thus a light peel like this wouldn’t work for me unless its kept for real long time. So I decided to convert this ‘neutralize-after-a-few-minutes-peel’ to a ‘leave on’ peel. Thus I thought I’d keep this peel overnight because leave on peels are to be kept on the affected area for 6-8 hours.

But there’s a problem. Most leave-on peels are thus formulated that it can be kept overnight without any problem like a cream/gel based agent that gets absorbed quickly. Even the ‘Rejsol’ brand I’m currently using has a ‘leave-on’ version. But as I didn’t get positive reviews on it, contrary to this, I decided I’d buy this one. However, so if I wanted this ‘neutralizing’ peel to act as a ‘leave on’ product, I’d have to keep it on overnight (keeping it overnight is the best bet since, you’ll have to keep it on for 6-8 hours with without letting the treated area get exposed to water). But to my disappointment, the consistency of this is quite the opposite which makes it impossible for it to either dry on skin or get absorbed like a gel. Its thick, sticky & stays on your skin like a sticky oil no matter for how long you keep it on, in short it won’t get absorbed. So I took the middle-way; which is neither neutralizing it nor completely keeping it on. This is how I did it:

Look at the composition list, I bet you'll find it interesting

Yellow Peel Instructions (Step by Step, applicable only on body skin): 

·         I wiped the area (ofcourse bodyskin) with 70% isopropanol or rubbing alcohol & waited for it to vapourize for 2-3 minutes.

·         Then, I simply applied the thick peeling agent & waited for 15 minutes & then using a soft cotton cloth (NOT COTTON BALLS as it’ll soak up the whole thing) I wiped the excess product off.

·         Then, to compensate for the loss of product (I had to wipe it off because it won’t get absorbed either & in turn it’ll be all over my dress), I applied 0.1% adapalene cream on it. Now this 0.1% adapalene (Adaferin Gel) is the highest conc. of retinoid I found in the Indian market, that too, it was a cream for topical application, so it will eventually get absorbed. I understand completely, that 0.1% adapalene is nothing compared to 20% retinol in my yellow peel but since I didn’t get any higher conc. of topical retinoid, I had no choice but to use it.

·         Now, since I was using it on my bodyskin which is way thicker than face & that too, my bodyskin is superbly habituated to high concentrations of TCA peel, this process did NOT cause any irritation, not even mildest discomfort. But that does not mean, you can safely use it following my footsteps because everyone’s skin is different (my skin is almost TCA-proof, so its very hardy) & all these instructions are only valid for body skin & NOT FOR FACE. Please do not try to imitate. If you really want to do it, consult a dermatologist.

·         Now, I didn’t see any change on my skin after doing this, not atleast for 2-3 days. As per the instruction leaflet that came with it, I didn’t touch even the mildest soap for 2-3 days & thereafter I’d use a mild soap & some olive oil; no scrubbing is allowed. If the skin that’s treated is somewhere that’s exposed to the sun, sunscreen becomes a must, with reapplication every 2-3 hours, even indoors.

·         Now if you’re one of those people who aren’t satisfied unless they see snake-skin like peeling effect, yellow peel is NOT FOR YOU. But always remember, even if you don’t see pieces of skin coming out, there’s always some microscopic peeling going on. So even if it works at a microscopic level, it still works. But for face (again, please consult a dermatologist), it may show some macroscopic peeling like tiny pieces of skin coming out.

Only the fingers are brushed with yellow peel: looks almost undetectable

·         After 5 days, I started seeing some changes. I looked at it closely under bright light & the treated skin did look a little different than the surrounding untreated area, a bit thicker & tiny skin folds were highlighted. I rubbed the area gently using my fingertip & a power-like substance was coming out. The effect was even more if I used wet finger tips to rub the area rather than rubbing it dry. This powder like thing must be dead skin cells & indeed now, after 10 days, the skin looks brighter.

·         I always recommend doing a patch test before actually applying it. If during or after the test, any sign of heavy inflammation is observed, you better not do it at all. The red flag is usually if the redness/erythema spread across line upto which you applied the peel, there may be allergic reaction. Mild redness on the treated area or mild itching is normal, actually its usually okay if it doesn’t challenge your tolerance level. a massive case of erythema & itching is never okay. If such things happen, immediately apply a mild topical corticosteroid (such as a hydrocortisone cream) on the treated area & discontinue use.

Now another question poses: Who should yellow peel suit the best?
 

Its not that simple to answer. in general almost everyone even to those with dry skin types can use yellow peel safely because it contains both acids (atleast in the product I’m using) that are gold standard for use in the treatment of dry skin: Glycolic acid & lactic acid (although off label, mostly because lactic acid is milder & causes less irritation because dry skin are less protected than the oilier cousins due to less sebum production by it & it is vulnerable to environmental damage). Glycolic acid is ideal for those who, although don’t have inherent dry skin but having a stubborn dry skin on sun exposed areas due to extreme sun damage & retinol acts as a penetration enhancer (anything that helps other ingredients to penetrate deep within the skin, ideally past the epidermis).

Now, This yellow peel is also great for those suffering from stubborn hyperpigmentation due to sun damage or post inflammatory hyperpigmentation (scars) mostly because yellow peel contains one or more of the following depigmenting agents in a considerable concentration:

·         Kojic acid

·         Azelaic Acid

·         Phytic Acid etc.

Please understand that this is my personal experience which is shared for informational purpose only & I DO NOT endorse any brand or formulae mentioned here neither I advise or encourage anyone to do this at home without a medical professional’s supervision following this blogpost. This is no alternative of expert supervision.

Please refer to the disclaimer for further information: https://thebeautyblogoflove.blogspot.com/p/disclaimer.html

I would ask you to consult a dermatologist if you are interested in chemical peeling, be it any kind.

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Love,

Koyel M.