Hi Andres -

I use salicylic acid in the morning after I get out of the shower. What I use is in the form almost like a toner. It doesn't leave any residue, so it's fine to wear under moisturizer and makeup. The salicylic acid helps with clogged pores. I use the AHA (glycolic) 12% at night. It's really not something you would want to put product over. You can wear it over your BP. Dan's AHA is even thicker. I think you'll read most people don't wear it during the day.

I think both products are effective for their purpose. If I had to only choose one, I'd choose AHA.

I do not know much about lactic acid or the concentrations for it. The esthetician I buy my products through has vast knowledge about the different acne products, how much a person should use, etc. You can contact her through her website if you want, which is the Lumiplexion, or her Facebook page.

What exactly IS the difference in purpose of AHA and BHA? From what I understand, BHA would be better to use to clear the skin, exfoliate, unclog pores, and can be used in the morning with BP. AHA on the other hand should be used by itself at night, and it more for smoothing out skin and giving it more of a gleam/shine, while evening out things. Basically, the icing on the cake.

Is this accurate, Ripon?

What exactly IS the difference in purpose of AHA and BHA? From what I understand, BHA would be better to use to clear the skin, exfoliate, unclog pores, and can be used in the morning with BP.

I agree with this..

AHA on the other hand should be used by itself at night, and it more for smoothing out skin and giving it more of a gleam/shine, while evening out things. Basically, the icing on the cake.

Is this accurate, Ripon?

Yes, but from what I have read you could use them in the morning as well, provided you dont mix other stuff with them...but it becomes even more important to use sunscreen.

Im no expert but I dont like when people ask question and they are left hanging...hopefully someone can chip in.

I've been using BHA for two months now. from what I know BHA (salicylic) is better at exfoliating at the pore level, unclogging pores etc.. I havent used AHA but I'm planning to add it to my regimen soon , AHA (glycolic) is more for sun damaged skin and works more on the surface of the skin.

AHA (glycolic) is more for sun damaged skin and works more on the surface of the skin.

if its mildly sun damaged....how does it differ from like acne damaged..if you know what i mean...

this is one fo those things that i have never been sure about...not sure if my skin texture / tone is sun damage due to using retin-a without any sunscreen for over one year....or if its post acne related....(i still have acne....just trying to give a desription), so like pigmented reddish (slighlty different from the redness you get from say using bp)...its very obvious/visible under some lighting...not so much under other (unless u get close).

Our skin definitley becomes sensitive to the sun when using some kind of medication. retin-a, bha etc... definitely wear sunscreen. As for the redness, are you still using the retin- a? using peels can make you look red and using retinol and AHA together in my opinion is a bit too much and may further irritate your skin and make it more red. If the redness is from scars then AHA can help fade them overtime.

i stop using retin-a for about 6 motnhs....i had a pretty bad break out over past summer so I changed my routine...basically from just retin-a to epiduo and tetracycline (been aware of sunscreen since this point), after being on that for a while things were "okay" but certainyl not as good as before when i was on retin-a (before the bad breakout) so decided to try other things, andd finally realised that i should switch back, and build around retin-a, so now i also do bha lotion in the morning. (I was thinking on eventually doing a aha 30-min after the bha) but still considering it....I do know i have to add something else.

anyway, i have to say that i was not really that self-consious about my skin before when i was doing just the retin-a.....i remember i would still get pimples every now and then but overall I felt good (they would be gone without leaving much of a mark in about a week).

Now I feel I have become very self-consious which is why i am not sure if my skin..redness/pigmentation is something i basically gain recently due to all the acne i been dealing with lately, or if its something that dates back from when using for the first time retin-a and not using sunscreen.....I feel like its a combination of both, but anyway....like I said...not sure if its sun-damaged...since im not sure, i find it hard to do something to deal with it.

thanks for your response...and sorry for being so lengthy myself...

so you dont recommend me doing an aha......how about adding some bp 30 min after the bha ?.

Theoretically, BHA (sal acid) is better for clogged (deeper) skin and AHA (glycolic acid) is more about peeling off the fine layer on top to help refine the skin. I do believe the salicylic acid in the form of toner-like is much more effective than say in a face wash. As I mentioned above, the sal acid goes on and absorbs completely. There is no problem putting sunscreen, moisturizer and makeup over it.

With the glycolic, however, whether Dan's or the Lumiplexion brand I use, it does not completely absorb. You would not want to use it during the day. Maybe if you mix it with the moisturizer it would absorb better. However, I will repeat what I've said before, mixing your AHA with the moisturizer is going to lessen the effectiveness of the product. You're not going to get the same results.

in my case, i really had acne prone skin since puberty (or even before that) and now I'm almost 30, a couple of pimples here and there which i dont mind cause i was used to it and thought of it as normal and something i won't ever get rid of.

Fast forward Nov. 2012, Out of pure genius, I decided to use a mositurizer with sunscreen on my face as I started to join a local dragonboat team.

It was the worst decision ever, after two weeks into it, i started breaking out evrywhere, forehead, chin and my neck. I was so depressed that I just stayed home and became anti social (emo, lol)I was desperate so i tried PC BHA line, after 5 months im clear, still have some on my neck that starting to come out and dry up but my face is clear, its never been this clear and smooth. i want to explore AHA as well cos i get alot of sun so it might help with the sun damage. And always use the sunscreen, and make sure its the kind that won't make you breakout.

You could say BHA is better for clearing acne/unclogging pores, while AHA is better for clearing the damage left by the acne (redness, hyperpigmentation).

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allright guys, thanks for all of your input

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