Dermaplaning may leave the skin feeling a bit sensitive and dry. Using niacinamide, a barrier-repairing ingredient, can most definitely help to soothe irritated skin. However, this response may be varied depending on your specific skin type. To know who should and shouldn’t use niacinamide after dermaplaning, continue reading below.

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What Is Dermaplaning?

Dermaplaning is a non-invasive procedure that should be done in a professional medical setting. However, it has been increasingly popular to try dermaplaning at home.

It involves the use of a razor-like piece of equipment that is relatively small and oscillates.

Once in contact with the skin, it is moved gently over the surface of the skin to “peel” off the upper layers and reveal new, healthier skin underneath. It is primarily used to treat patients with deep acne scars and pigmentation on the skin.

This can be done safely in a dermatologist’s office or by an experienced licensed medical professional specializing in skin.

However, there are tools available online that can be purchased to complete dermaplaning at home.

The cons? Dermaplaning using non-sterile at-home tools can cause infections. You may also risk cutting yourself, or you may slough off too many layers of skin leaving your face feeling raw and irritated. This makes the skin more susceptible to infections and breakouts.

Dermaplaning can be used in conjunction with other topical and/or oral treatments for skin pigmentation and scarring. It can be used on small areas of the skin or on larger areas as tolerated by the patient.

What Is Niacinamide?

Niacinamide is a type of B vitamin that can be found in many skincare formulations. When applied topically, it provides a multitude of benefits including anti-inflammatory properties, antimicrobial, and barrier-repairing benefits to the skin.

One of the best benefits of using niacinamide involves brightening pigmentation in the skin. It has also been shown to improve redness in the skin, especially inflammation caused by acne and post-inflammatory erythema.

Not only does it protect the skin from free radicals that can cause DNA damage, loss of collagen, and wrinkling, it also reduces transepidermal water loss. It helps to regulate the water balance in the skin. This can be great for restoring moisture in the skin after dermaplaning.

Niacinamide can be a great addition to your skincare routine in the form of a serum or moisturizer. In order to soothe the skin after dermaplaning, it is best to use a cream with nourishing ingredients that also contains niacinamide to soften the skin and soothe redness.

It is important to patch test all skincare products before use. Ensure that your skin does not become more sensitive with niacinamide use. It is a well-tolerated ingredient, but it is important to understand the needs of your own skin.

What Should You Not Do After Dermaplaning?

Here are a few suggestions of things you should skip out on immediately after a dermaplaning treatment:

1. Using hot water on the skin

Hot water, whether from a steamy shower or at your bathroom sink, can wreak havoc on your skin. Not only does it cause the skin to become inflamed simply from being uncomfortably hot, it also increases transepidermal water loss in the skin. This means that contact with hot water increases your skin’s chances of becoming dehydrated by losing its water content. This disrupts the skin’s barrier, impeding it from healing properly. When this occurs, the skin becomes prone to breakouts and infections.

2. Applying drying skincare products.

I know, it sounds weird. Drying skincare? But it’s true. Applying skincare products, such as toners, that contain high amounts of alcohol can completely dry out the skin, prevent healing, damage the skin barrier, cause excess sebum production (to compensate for the excess dryness) and make you more susceptible to flaky, peeling skin that looks dull and is slow to recover.

3. Towel-drying the skin

We get it – perhaps you want to do a quick splash of water on your skin to get rid of excess dead skin cells and other debris after your dermaplaning session. Even if you wash your face long after your dermaplaning session, it is especially important to not use aggressive fabrics on the skin. I stay away from face towels for a number of reasons.

For one, they may harbor bacteria if you use it more than once. This can cause acne breakouts. Secondly, rubbing the skin with towels can aggravate existing acne and irritate your sensitive skin after dermaplaning. Lastly, even if you use a clean face towel and you are careful to pat your face dry rather than tugging at it, the detergent you use to clean your face towels could also irritate your skin and potentially cause contact dermatitis or an allergic reaction, especially when your skin is sensitive after a professional treatment. I always air dry my skin to avoid all of these issues.

Can I Use Acid After Dermaplaning?

This question goes hand-in-hand with the suggestions above. Acids, such as alpha and beta hydroxy acids, can be wonderful additions to your skincare routine when used strategically. Alpha hydroxy acids (AHA) include things like lactic acid and glycolic acid. Beta hydroxy acids (BHA) include salicylic acid.

AHAs tend to exfoliate the surface layer of the skin. The smaller the molecular size of the acid the more it penetrates the skin. It provides hydration and exfoliation.

BHAs can penetrate through sebum/oil and thus, are more suited for those with acne-prone skin. Salicylic acid is a desmolytic agent that cuts through serum and breaks up the “rivets” that hold skin cells together, providing exfoliation and anti-inflammatory activity to stop breakouts, especially whiteheads and blackheads.

Due to the exfoliating action of both of these acids, using them after dermaplaning is a big NO. Dermaplaning already provides physical exfoliation to the skin, sloughing off the dead skin cells. Using an acid afterwards will cause dry, irritated, red, raw, dehydrated skin that will likely take longer to recover and reach its normal hydration levels.

What Should You Put On Your Face After Dermaplaning?

Dermaplaning leaves the skin feeling freshly exfoliated but delicate and sensitive. Since you’ve just removed a few layers from your skin, it’s important to restore the hydration and moisture content in your skin by applying soothing skin care products that will support your skin’s barrier.

These include serums, lotions, creams, and ointments. However, it is extremely important that you are choosing the correct moisturizer by carefully looking at the ingredients list.

Avoid anything with fragrance in it, this will not only irritate the skin, but it provides no benefits to the skin’s barrier or healing of the skin. Fragrance includes ingredients like linalool, perfume, geraniol, and limonene. Avoid essential oils in skin care as well.

Some of the ingredients you should look for include ceramides, hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, cholesterol, fatty acids, shea butter, sunflower seed oil, allantoin, and panthenol.

Why Am I Breaking Out After Dermaplaning?

Using the wrong types of skin care products after dermaplaning, tugging at your skin, or dermaplaning too frequently can all be different reasons as to why you are breaking out after dermaplaning.

As mentioned above, use skincare products that are gentle on the skin, with nourishing ingredients. Look for emollients and hydrating products.

Be careful of tugging at the skin with face towels or other types of fabric, including hats, masks, and clothing.

If you find your skin is having a hard time recovering from dermaplaning, decrease the frequency at which you dermaplane. Also, ensure your skincare routine contains enough moisturizing ingredients to prep your skin for dermaplaning. You don’t want to have a dermaplaning procedure done on dry, damaged skin. This can contribute to breakouts afterwards.

Can I Use Niacinamide After Dermaplaning?