If you’re like most people, you probably haven’t given much thought to the topic of pH levels since high school science class. But one thing your teacher may not have covered in sophomore chemistry is the fact that the epidermis has its very own pH level—and if its delicate balance is disturbed, skin problems can pop up.
The simplest way to promote healthier skin is to support the skin’s natural processes—and at the same time, steer clear of products or practices that get in their way. This rule rings especially true for maintaining the pH level of your skin.
We’re diving into how to balance your skin’s pH level so you can support the delicate harmony your body works hard to uphold. Enjoying the benefits of skin that has a stabilized pH level starts with learning what helps and hurts its balance.
What is Skin pH?
If you’re unfamiliar with the term “pH,” here’s a brief rundown on the basics:
- pH stands for “potential of hydrogen.” A pH scale measures substances on a scale of 0 to 14. A pH value of 7 is neutral. Anything below 7 is acidic, while anything above 7 is considered basic—also known as alkaline.
Don’t worry—we promise we won’t turn this blog into a science textbook. All you really need to know is that, when it comes to our skin, a healthy level of acidity is a good thing.
You might assume that we want our skin to rest at a perfect neutral score on the pH scale, but in reality, we actually want to stay in the lower half of this range.
Why? Because acidity helps our skin combat damaging environmental factors such as microbes and free radicals that can negatively impact the way our skin looks and feels.
Everybody (and every body) is unique—so the exact level of acidity present on one’s skin will vary slightly from person to person.
But generally, research shows that a pH level below 5 is ideal, because it helps the good bacteria that make up the skin’s natural microflora stick around longer so they can do their job better.
If the pH balance of your skin strays too far away from this standard in either direction, it can become unbalanced. When this happens, you may experience:
- An increase in acne breakouts due to the growth of harmful bacteria
- Dryness that results from abnormal acid levels stripping your natural oils away
- Heightened sensitivity to environmental factors
Nobody would willingly subject their skin to the slew of uncomfortable outcomes that can stem from a skin pH level imbalance. To avoid experiencing these skin conditions firsthand, stay aware of the factors that can positively (and negatively) impact your skin’s pH and overall skin health.
Factors Affecting Skin pH
As you can tell by now, supporting the pH balance of your skin is kind of a big deal.
But what can you actually do to help keep this delicate balance intact? Supporting your skin's pH starts with understanding the factors that can either disrupt or repair its harmony.
The three main factors that you need to consider are:
- Environmental stressors – For better or worse, our skin is exposed to the outside world 24/7. If the surface of your skin comes into contact with harsh cosmetics, detergents, or certain kinds of medications, your skin pH may be thrown off by the unwelcome visitor.
- Dietary choices – The old saying, “You are what you eat” definitely rings true when it comes to your skin. Research shows that the foods you consume can have a measurable impact on the acidity of your skin’s pH level—with one study suggesting that foods like seeds, nuts, and fruits may contribute to improved skin pH.
- Skincare products – The body has countless natural processes in place to help all our organs, including the skin, stay healthy, balanced, and functional. When selecting skincare products, choose formulas designed to work with those natural processes—not hinder them. To help you choose the right skincare products that are safe for everyday use, checkout our pore-clogging ingredients checker.
In the next section, we’ll dive deeper into the specifics of choosing skincare products that will set your pH level up for success.
5 Ways to Balance the pH Level of Your Skin
Optimizing your environment and diet to promote a healthy skin pH level is a great place to start, but when it comes to these two factors, there is only so much you can control.
The factor that you have by far the most freedom and flexibility to manipulate is the skincare solutions you choose to apply to your face. To make sure that your daily personal care routine is optimized for a balanced pH level, follow these five simple steps.
1. Choose Skin Care Products Wisely
Did you know that soaps designed for your body often have higher pH levels than cleansers designed for use on the face? It’s true—so if you’ve been using the same products to clean all over, you may be inadvertently throwing your skin’s pH off balance.
So, instead of approaching your personal care products with a one-size-fits-all mentality, think about taking care of your face like you’d take care of a luxury car.
Filling your tank up with fuel helps the existing machinery of your vehicle do its job better. But you wouldn’t risk harming this delicate investment by just pouring any old fuel in. In fact, putting cheap fuel in a car that requires premium gas is a quick way to cause serious harm that will take a lot of time and money to repair.
Your facial skin is precious—so pamper it with the gentle products it needs to survive and thrive. A gentle cleanser for the face will get the job done without being so harsh that it throws off your natural pH level.
2. Moisturize Regularly
Research suggests that emollients (or moisturizing treatments applied to the skin) help to stabilize skin pH in its natural balanced state, supporting the maintenance of a healthy level of acidity.
By keeping your face hydrated with non-comedogenic moisturizers, you can help it sustain an extra protective barrier that will shield your skin from irritants in the outside world.
3. Use Gentle Cleansers
Cleansing the day’s dirt away is important—but if you overdo it with a harsh product, you can end up washing away far more than just dirt and grime.
Harsh cleansers can strip away the natural oil, also known as sebum, that your skin produces to keep itself lubricated, hydrated, and protected. This can lead to damaged, dried-out skin—or skin that works overtime to pump out extra oil, causing a whole different slew of problems.
4. Avoid Over-Exfoliating
The surface of your skin is like the delicate natural biome of a rainforest. A rainforest cannot thrive without the harmonious interaction of all the plants and animals that call it home—and your skin can’t thrive without the microflora that keeps it healthy.
Your skin will shed dead cells naturally in its own time. Occasional exfoliation can be a helpful way to speed up this process, but avoid going overboard with harsh scrubbing or peeling treatments. Instead, try using our antioxidant-infused scrub cleanser which works by gently removing dead skin cells, dirt, and other impurities from the day.
5. Use Antioxidants
In addition to repelling harmful toxins, one of the main functions of the acidic barrier that protects your skin is to help it absorb beneficial antioxidants, compounds that reduce the production of free radicals.
That’s why applying products that contain antioxidants can be a great way to give your skin pH some extra support. Vitamin C is ideal for this purpose, abundantly found in skincare and a natural skin warrior against internal and external toxins.
Benefits of Balanced Skin pH
Ecosystems that are disrupted have a harder time standing up to threats like natural disasters. You can think of your skin the same way.
If you make it a priority to keep the balance of your pH level intact, your skin will reward you with an enhanced ability to thrive and protect itself from external irritants. But if you neglect your pH level or actively harm it through the use of harsh products or skincare practices, your complexion is likely to suffer in the long run and may develop fine lines, wrinkles, acne breakouts, or other skin concerns.
Prioritize the five steps we outlined above to enjoy these key benefits of a balanced skin pH:
- Enhanced protective barrier function – If your pH level gets too low or too high, good bacteria isn’t able to grow, and as a result, your skin barrier loses the ability to function at its fullest potential. Keep the bad stuff out and the good stuff in by boosting your natural skin barrier with the power of a balanced skin pH.
- Reduced acne and irritations – Studies suggest that significant alteration of one’s skin pH may be a determining element in the causation of acne. By helping your skin maintain a balanced and consistent pH level, you can increase its ability to ward off acne-instigating irritants.
Key Ingredients in SKINSPRAY ALL DAY and Their Benefits
Helping your skin pH uphold its delicate balancing act just became as simple as a spritz.
Our CLEARSTEM SKINSPRAY ALL DAY hypochlorous acid spray is designed to support your ideal natural acidity level through the use of three carefully chosen ingredients:
- Hypochlorous Acid – This gentle, soothing acid helps your skin maintain an optimal pH balance by supporting and speeding up its natural healing properties, repairing damage rapidly, fighting off bacteria, and combating inflammation.
- Magnesium PCA – This powerful essential mineral is a humectant, which means it’s a natural moisturizing agent that aids in promoting skin hydration and vitality. As we went over before, keeping your skin moisturized is a crucial step in supporting your pH balance. Because of its hydrating properties, magnesium for skin is essential to achieving a healthy, glowing complexion.
- Peptides – These chains of amino acids aid in enhancing skin firmness and tightness while also contributing to the skin's structural integrity. Peptides also bolster the skin barrier, helping it serve as a formidable line of defense against toxins that could threaten your skin’s pH balance.
Get Healthy Skin With CLEARSTEM
When you feel balanced in life, no small obstacle can disrupt your day—and your skin functions the same way. When you support the natural balance of your skin, you set yourself up to enjoy a healthy, vibrant, and clear complexion that can hold its own against environmental intruders.
At CLEARSTEM, we believe that every single skin type is deserving of a little extra pampering. That’s why we’re committed to producing skincare solutions that are made with only the safest ingredients of the very highest quality.
Of course, we’ve applied this unmatched standard of excellence to our new SKINSPRAY ALL DAY—a solution formulated to refresh your complexion without compromising your skin’s pH balance. Ready to hydrate your skin overnight and achieve a youthful glow? Give it a spritz to deliver instant support to your skin.
Sources:
Healthline. About Skin pH and Why It Matters. https://www.healthline.com/health/whats-so-important-about-skin-ph
National Library of Medicine. Natural skin surface pH is on average below 5, which is beneficial for its resident flora. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18489300/
Cleveland Clinic. What Is Your Skin’s pH and Why Does It Matter? https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-is-skin-ph
National Library of Medicine. The pH of the skin surface and its impact on the barrier function. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16864974/
National Library of Medicine. Dietary Patterns Associated with Sebum Content, Skin Hydration and pH, and Their Sex-Dependent Differences in Healthy Korean Adults. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6471406/
National Library of Medicine. Intrinsic and Extrinsic Factors Affecting Skin Surface pH. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30130773/
Dermatology Consultants of Frisco. Tips For Balancing Your Skin's PH. https://mydermconsult.com/blog/tips-for-balancing-your-skins-ph/
Harvard Health Publishing. Why is topical vitamin C important for skin health? https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/why-is-topical-vitamin-c-important-for-skin-health-202111102635
National Library of Medicine. Skin Surface pH in Acne Vulgaris: Insights from an Observational Study and Review of the Literature. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5605222/
Cleveland Clinic. What Is Hypochlorous Acid? And Why Should You Use It? https://health.clevelandclinic.org/hypochlorous-acid-skin-care
Cosmetic Ingredient Review. Safety Assessment of PCA and Its Salts as Used in Cosmetics. https://www.cir-safety.org/sites/default/files/pca.pdf
Healthline. Peptides and Your Skin Care Routine. https://www.healthline.com/health/peptides-for-skin#benefits
