What harm does alcohol do to the skin

Alcohol is a common solvent in our daily life. It is a colorless and transparent liquid, widely used in medical treatment for anti-inflammatory, sterilization and tightening pores. In addition, some cosmetic masks also contain certain alcohol ingredients. The properties of alcohol are relatively mild, but you should also understand that if you have allergic skin, using some cosmetics or facial masks containing alcohol can easily cause adverse irritation to your skin.

What harm does alcohol do to the skin

Alcohol may be one of the allergens that cause skin allergies, but there are many allergenic ingredients, including oils, emulsifiers, fragrances and preservatives. Everyone's skin type and physique are different. If you don't have allergic skin, you generally don't need to worry too much about the damage of alcohol to the skin. If you have allergic skin or dry skin, the moisture and heat brought by the rapid evaporation of alcohol will cause discomfort to very dry skin and sensitive skin, so it is best to avoid it for allergic skin.

In addition, there is a difference between alcohol in liquid and alcohol in lotions and creams. The alcohol in lotions and toners penetrates faster and may cause irritation to the skin. The alcohol in lotions or creams is much less irritating.

Alcohol has certain benefits for the skin

We admit that alcohol has certain benefits for the skin. First of all, it can reduce inflammation and kill bacteria. If you have acne on your skin, disinfect it frequently with 70% alcohol and the acne will disappear quickly. Secondly, alcohol can also remove excess oil and dirt in the pores, thereby tightening the pores.

However, alcohol has two fatal weaknesses that prevent us from using it on a long-term and large scale. First, alcohol is highly volatile, and as it evaporates it takes away moisture from the skin, making it dry. Secondly, high-concentration alcohol has a strong decomposition ability. While breaking down facial oils, it also destroys the skin's own water film, making the skin fragile and sensitive. Therefore, alcohol-containing lotions are not bad, but they should never be used on large areas for a long time. Oily combination skin should use it once to twice a week; sensitive and dry skin should try not to use alcohol-containing lotions.

5 ways to tell if your lotion contains alcohol

Now, you must be wondering how to identify whether there is alcohol in lotion. Below, the editor will teach you 5 methods to identify whether the lotion contains alcohol.

1. Look: Check whether the ingredients of the lotion contain alcohol, ethanol, etc.

2. Smell: Pour a little lotion into the palm of your hand and smell whether there is any smell of alcohol. Alcohol has a pungent taste and evaporates quickly, and with the heat from your palms, you can definitely smell it.

3. Shake: Shake the lotion in the trial bottle vigorously until foam appears. If the bubbles produced are fine, rich and long-lasting, it means that it does not contain alcohol. If the bubbles are large and disappear quickly, it means that it contains alcohol. (Note: This is not suitable for full bottles of lotion.)

4. Try: Pour a little lotion onto a cotton pad and wipe the palm of your hand. If it feels cool, it contains alcohol.

5. Light: Pour a spoonful of lotion into the spoon and use a lighter to light it. The part that can be ignited is the alcohol content. The bigger the fire, the more alcohol there is.