I've been reading and following Acne.org quite a bit, as well as the acne community as a whole, and I wanted to chime in with something that you may or may not already know. Proactiv's 3rd step is not a moisturizer.
The funny thing about Proactiv's 3-step system is that it shouldn't even be considered a 3-step system. Look, I'm all for Proactiv, Acne.org, and Equate; They all contain 2.5% benzoyl peroxide. What both Proactiv and Equate are lacking is the all important moisturizer.
If you're reading this, and you're new to the acne community, you have to understand that anything containing a drying agent, in this case, benzoyl peroxide, cannot be a moisturizer.
The steps to follow, if you're using Proactiv...
- Cleanse
- Tone (feel free to skip this step)
- Treat
- Moisturize (I recommend a drop or two of jojoba oil)
I guess this has just been something that has really bothered me over the years, because most people think they only need the first 3 steps of Proactiv to treat their acne... But for most people, they're going to get really dry, flaky, red, and irritated skin if they don't properly moisturize their skin.
What's even worse is the 3rd step of Equate, right on the front of the bottle, says "Moisturize." Oops.
I know that I kind of rambled on, but this has been something that's really been bothering me.
I agree with you on this. Proactiv is a 3 step system and so is Dan's regimen (both using 2.5% BP) so I think people may think they are the same, or similar. But the only thing in common is the BP treatment. Their systems also contain BP in the cleanser which makes it much more drying. And you definitely have to add the moisturizer.
LOL You know when I was teenager every time I would get a Proactive kit I would chuck the repairing lotion because I mistook it as a moisturizer which I thought I didn't need . No wonder it never worked at the time. They really need to change the name of their product to "repairing treatment" because most people associate the word "lotion" with moisturizer (body lotion ect.).