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How long to leave benzoyl peroxide and glycolic acid on?

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(@timelton45)

Posted : 06/17/2017 5:56 pm

Hi,

I've been using the regimen for about a month.
I heard from an article about benzoyl peroxide on mayoclinic:

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You should not wash the areas of the skin treated with benzoyl peroxide for at least 1 hour after application.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/benzoyl-peroxide-topical-route/proper-use/drg-20062425

I don't like wearing this stuff to sleep, I feel it disrupts my sleep. I was thinking of leaving it on 2 hours before I took a shower (I think benzoyl peroxide has it's maximum effect in 1 hour?) Is this true or not, I couldn't find any studies on this, and most regimens I've seen for acne seem to want you to wear it all day, I don't understand how that would have more of an effect though.

DeLovely liked
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(@delovely)

Posted : 06/23/2017 10:46 am

Dan has done all the research about BP and how it works. He recommends leaving on continuously and reapplying every 10-12 hours to keep up with acne bacteria which propogate quickly and easily get out of hand, which is why skipping treatments can affect results. Some who play sports and need to shower in the middle of their day can still be successful if they rinse off the treatment and wait till nighttime to reapply, but still do best to leave on at least 4-6 hours or it could affect results.

If you want to do your evening regimen earlier and then rinse off before bed, that's your choice. Just be aware that it could affect your results. Dan also doesn't recommend repeating the cleanser step more than twice a day or this could affect results by causing unnecessary irritation.

Hope this is helpful! :)

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MemberMember
2
(@timelton45)

Posted : 06/23/2017 3:31 pm

Thank you so much for the response! :D

I was wondering though, doesn't benzoyl peroxide activate within 15 minutes, it oxygenates the P. Acne bacteria (oxide in peroxide), then it basically becomes a dead ingredient (non active). I'm not sure if benzoyl peroxide is slow activating.

Or does the end ingredient stay in the pore, and continuously kill off bacteria (man I need to open my chemistry books). I've heard of slower activating benzoyl peroxides which allow you to put on less benzoyl peroxide (less irritation), and it continuously activates over a longer period of time, or maybe it's a gimmick.

I was planning on doing some controlled experiments on this, but if there's a scientific answer, that would help my acne understanding!

DeLovely liked
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MemberMember
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(@delovely)

Posted : 06/24/2017 9:38 pm

BP creates an oxygenated environment in which p.acnes cannot survive and this will last quite awhile before becoming dead/inactive. So it's really best to leave on at least 4-6 hours before rinsing off, although in the interest of avoiding unnecessary face touching and irritation, Dan recommends just leaving everything on until the next application.

Feel free to experiment with your own skin absolutely to see if you can get away with leaving the treatment on for shorter amounts of time, but I'd recommend waiting until you're clear before switching things up.

If you do any experimenting, do share your results with the community! :)

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