What is a Whitening Facial?
Reduces Hyperpigmentation with Relaxation
A whitening facial is basically a simple procedure designed to lighten or brighten your complexion by reducing hyperpigmentation and age spots as well as improving uneven skin tone.
The usual procedure includes exfoliation, skin hydration, and treating hyperpigmentation with potent creams, serums, masks as well as LED lights.
Common benefits include:
- Smoother skin texture
- Even skin tone
- Lighten dark spots
- Reduce sun damage
Various Procedures
Before your treatment, your esthetician will decide the most beneficial products and appropriate procedures according to your skin type and severity of your condition.
The common procedures that you will come across are listed below.
Cleansing
Your esthetician will remove your makeup and cleanse your face with a gentle cleanser that is suitable for your skin type.
Exfoliation
During the exfoliation process, your esthetician will gently remove dead skin cells and the outermost skin layer with either a facial scrub, chemical peel or microdermabrasion.
This process is intended to remove rough skin texture and balance your skin tone. It also enables all topical skin care products to penetrate into your skin easily, thus yielding maximum results.
Chemical Peels
There are various chemical peels that are commonly available in a spa. They are salicylic peel, glycolic acid peel, lactic acid peel, and trichloroacetic acid peel.
Side effects such as redness, inflammation and peeling can occur. Depending on the strength of your chemical peel, recovery time is usually 7 to 14 days or more.
Microdermabrasion
Unlike facial scrubs or chemical peels, microdermabrasion reduces hyperpigmentation and sun damage by spraying very fine crystals of aluminum oxide or sodium bicarbonate onto your skin. This process is similar to sandblasting and can last for an hour.
Temporary side effects such as redness and inflammation can occur, and they will usually subside within several days.
For in-depth information, please read What is Microdermabrasion.
Topical treatment
During this session, a customized blend of creams or serums with potent skin lightening agents will be applied to your face. This process is intended to hydrate and lighten your skin, thereby resulting in a softer, plumper and radiant complexion.
Skin lightening and brightening ingredients such as vitamin A and C, Kojic acid, licorice as well as seaweed extract are regularly used.
Facial Mask
An optional facial mask soaked with skin lightening and brightening ingredients will be applied to your face for at least 30 minutes. This will assist in balancing and lightening your skin tone by inhibiting melanin production.
LED Light Therapy
LED light therapy uses light in various colors to treat acne. It is usually at most an hour-long process. Depending on your skin concerns, your esthetician will pick the proper colored light in order to produce the most beneficial results. Four light colors are commonly available in a spa, and they are red, blue, green and yellow.
Red light is basically used for treating fine lines, wrinkles and scars. It has the ability to reduce inflammation, boost the healing process and stimulate collagen/elastin production.
Blue light is probably the most popular for acne treatment. It has the ability to reduce inflammation as well as killing acne-causing bacteria, thus preventing future breakouts.
Green light is mainly used for lightening skin tone and treating fine lines and wrinkles.
Yellow light can offer rejuvenation benefits via its anti-inflammation property, and it is quite popular among people with skin irritation, fine lines, wrinkles, and UV damage.
Mesotherapy treatment
If requested, your esthetican can perform this particular advanced treatment to further improve your results.
During this procedure, a cocktail of potent ingredients is injected into your skin, thus greatly mininizing the production of melanin and reducing the appearance of sun damage, dark spots, and hyperpigmentation. It is not uncommon for a cocktail to contain over 50 ingredietns.
The commonly used ingredients are antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, hyaluronic acid, extracts, peptides, and lightening agents.
How Often to Get a Whitening Facial?
Your treatment cycle depends mainly on your budget, skin sensitivity, skin condition, and your expectations. Ideally, you should have 2 treatments per month, but if you have sensitive skin, then you should have fewer treatments.
Conclusion
A whitening facial can definitely lighten and brighten your skin complexion, but proper protection with sunscreen and home treatments are required to maintain lasting results.