When a dermatologist offers advice—whether it be about products they love, how to deal with pimples, or what not to do to your skin—you better believe I sit up and listen. So when Dr. Shereene Idriss, aka “The Pillowtalk Dermatologist,” aka my favorite follow on Instagram, revealed the one place I should never, ever (ever, ever) use my loofah, well, let’s just say that particular tool will now forever be relegated to the skin below my neck.
“I would never ever use a loofah on my face!” she told me after I slid into her DMs. Why? “Because it’s abrasive, like a physical scrub, and I wouldn’t want it to irritate or potentially scar, especially if I’m prone to breakouts.” In general, derms tend to advise against using harsh physical exfoliants on your face (and really, really don’t want you to use anything with walnuts in it for the sake of your dead skin sloughing), and many agree that chemical exfoliants like glycolic acid are the better option.
And one more (very upsetting) thing about loofahs? The fact that they can be hotbeds for bacteria doesn’t exactly help their legitimacy as facial cleansing devices. “People use it after washing their bottoms, and, who knows what you’re transferring… just saying,” says Dr. Idriss. Um, yeah—that’s going to be a hard pass from me, TYVM.
A few other derm words of wisdom when it comes to your shower routine: For the sake of your skin, keep showers as short as possible (under 15 minutes) and no hotter than 86 degrees. And consider this your permission to skip a full-body shower every once in a while, as long as you’re keeping those especially smelly areas feeling fresh and clean.
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