00:00:00
you want to talk about an underrated
00:00:04
skincare ingredient basolic acid let's
00:00:06
get into it in this video do a deep dive
00:00:08
into the benefits of this magical
00:00:10
ingredient what the heck is as like acid
00:00:12
azelic acid is a compound that's
00:00:15
naturally present on your skin and in
00:00:16
the foods that you eat there's a little
00:00:17
yeast that lives on everyone's skin
00:00:20
hello called malassezia I didn't mix
00:00:22
azelic acid azelic acid it is a
00:00:25
tyrosinates inhibitor tyrosinase is the
00:00:26
enzyme in our skin responsible for
00:00:28
pigment production it can go into
00:00:30
overdrive as a result of inflammation
00:00:33
irritation excessive sun exposure and
00:00:34
ingredients that put the brakes on that
00:00:37
can help fade dark spots acelaic acid is
00:00:40
anti-inflammatory it's also
00:00:42
antibacterial and can lower the amount
00:00:44
of bacteria within the pore that
00:00:47
contribute to acne azelic acid can help
00:00:49
inhibit Division and differentiation of
00:00:52
keratinocytes all of that is a bunch of
00:00:54
jargon to say it can help cut down on
00:00:56
clogging of your pores it can help cut
00:00:58
down on the formation of blackheads and
00:01:01
whiteheads and it's a mild exfoliant so
00:01:03
it can smooth the surface of the skin so
00:01:05
where might one find this magical
00:01:07
ingredient here in the U.S we have
00:01:09
prescription azoic acid which goes by
00:01:13
the brand names azalex and phenicia but
00:01:15
you can also find it in a variety of
00:01:17
over-the-counter cosmetic products now I
00:01:18
know a lot of you guys who live in other
00:01:20
countries you're able to get the
00:01:22
prescription strength stuff over the
00:01:24
counter without a prescription oxalic
00:01:27
acid is a treatment for acne rosacea
00:01:30
melasma hyperpigmentation and it's even
00:01:32
shown promise for treating perioral
00:01:34
dermatitis comment below and if you've
00:01:36
ever had that it's also called
00:01:38
periorificial dermatitis if you have
00:01:40
acne it can help cut down on the number
00:01:43
of inflamed acne spots because of its
00:01:45
comedolytic properties reduce the
00:01:48
formation of comedones blackheads and
00:01:49
whiteheads because it's antibacterial
00:01:51
and lowers the burden of the acne
00:01:54
causing bacteria acute bacterium acnes
00:01:56
it's anti-inflammatory and inflammatory
00:01:59
mediators are a big driver in acne
00:02:01
formation in my mind one of the key
00:02:03
advantages of azelic acid for acne is
00:02:05
that not only is it a good acne
00:02:08
treatment but it also is an inhibitor of
00:02:10
tyrosinase as I said earlier and that
00:02:13
means it's going to help cut down on
00:02:16
post acne dark spots this is especially
00:02:18
valuable for people who have a deeper
00:02:20
skin tone that's prone to Healing with
00:02:23
hyperpigmentation so you're getting two
00:02:25
benefits for the price of one now I
00:02:28
mentioned azelic acid is anti-microbial
00:02:31
it's antibacterial But A major advantage
00:02:34
in my mind of azelic acid over the other
00:02:36
treatments that we often gravitate
00:02:38
towards to Target that bacteria is that
00:02:40
that bacteria will not develop
00:02:43
resistance to azelic acid a lot of
00:02:45
patients who use azelic acid for their
00:02:47
acne they actually report that their
00:02:50
skin feels less greasy now there doesn't
00:02:51
appear to be any mechanism to explain
00:02:54
this azelic acid doesn't necessarily
00:02:57
impact the production of oil but people
00:02:59
do find that to be the case around one
00:03:01
to two months into using it another
00:03:04
advantage of azelaic acid for really any
00:03:06
condition but here we're talking about
00:03:08
acne is that it can be used alongside
00:03:10
other treatments it can be used with
00:03:12
benzoyl peroxide it can be used with
00:03:15
retinoids salicylic acid Alpha hydroxy
00:03:18
acids you name it you can use it
00:03:20
alongside azelic acid it can be used
00:03:23
alongside pretty much any ingredient
00:03:25
provided you tolerate the combination
00:03:28
how good is it though for acne it's
00:03:30
pretty good I wouldn't say it is as good
00:03:32
as many of our other treatments but
00:03:34
again it can be used alongside many of
00:03:36
our other treatments it is much better
00:03:38
than Placebo meaning nothing some
00:03:41
studies suggest that it is as good as
00:03:44
0.05 percent tretinoin five percent
00:03:47
benzoyl peroxide two percent
00:03:49
erythromycin and even oral antibiotics
00:03:52
but studies don't always reproduce real
00:03:55
world issues and they only look for a
00:03:58
limited time so all that to say it's
00:04:01
effective but I wouldn't expect it to be
00:04:03
the only thing that you need another
00:04:06
major advantage of azelic acid is that
00:04:09
it is safe in pregnancy and during
00:04:11
breastfeeding some acne treatments are
00:04:13
not provided you tolerate it you can use
00:04:16
it as long as you want to you don't have
00:04:18
to take a break from it it is safe to
00:04:21
use long term let's not forget about
00:04:24
rosacea rosacea a lot of you guys have
00:04:26
and many of you also have its cousin
00:04:30
perioral dermatitis azelic acid is well
00:04:32
tolerated by people with rosacea overall
00:04:34
although it can be a little irritating
00:04:36
and it can reduce the burden of those
00:04:39
inflamed red bumps that happen in
00:04:41
rosacea and those inflamed red bumps
00:04:43
that are painful and uncomfortable in
00:04:46
periorficial dermatitis moving on though
00:04:49
to hyperpigmentation and melasma one of
00:04:52
the advantages of azolic acid is that it
00:04:54
doesn't affect the normal neighboring
00:04:57
skin now if you have freckles or moles
00:04:59
azelic acid is not going to tackle those
00:05:01
it is effective however for improving
00:05:03
hyperpigmentation that has been brought
00:05:05
out by chemical irritation physical
00:05:08
irritation or post-inflammatory
00:05:09
hyperpigmentation meaning you had
00:05:12
something like a pimple a bug bite and
00:05:14
it healed with a dark mark azelic acid
00:05:16
can help improve that and it's shown
00:05:18
promise for being effective in the
00:05:20
treatment of melasma although melasma is
00:05:23
a very complicated condition it often
00:05:25
requires multiple different treatments
00:05:27
it's not a one and done thing it's
00:05:30
almost think of it think of melasma as a
00:05:32
chronic skin condition and azelic acid
00:05:34
certainly can help but as a standalone
00:05:36
it's probably not enough and of course
00:05:38
whenever we're talking about any type of
00:05:40
hyperpigmentation or melasma you
00:05:42
definitely need to be protecting your
00:05:44
skin from the Sun in order to get the
00:05:46
best results because those UV rays they
00:05:49
are a major driver for hyperpigmentation
00:05:51
so that all sounds fantastic what are
00:05:54
the downsides of using azelaic acid well
00:05:56
you can have some local side effects it
00:05:57
can be drying especially in the
00:05:58
beginning it can be irritating
00:06:00
especially in the beginning you can have
00:06:03
symptoms of burning stinging itch
00:06:06
redness when applying it it's meant to
00:06:07
be applied twice a day but because of
00:06:09
the potential for these adverse effects
00:06:11
oftentimes it's is recommended to apply
00:06:13
it once a day for the first one to two
00:06:15
weeks of using it and then gradually
00:06:18
increase to twice daily as tolerated the
00:06:20
side effects of dryness irritation
00:06:23
sensitivity burning stinging itch tend
00:06:26
to subside after around four weeks if
00:06:28
not earlier and not everybody has these
00:06:30
side effects the dryness and irritation
00:06:33
that people do develop with azelic acid
00:06:36
if they develop it pales in comparison
00:06:38
to the retinization process that we talk
00:06:40
about with topical retinoids so if
00:06:42
you've used a retinoid in the past it
00:06:44
didn't get along with it you're kind of
00:06:46
scared of that peeling that doesn't
00:06:49
really happen with azolic acid I often
00:06:51
get the question does azelic acid cause
00:06:53
purging what the heck is purging purging
00:06:56
is wherein when you first start an
00:06:58
ingredient that increases cell turnover
00:07:00
it can bring out acne underneath the
00:07:02
surface of the skin or it's thought to
00:07:04
sometimes we see that with topical
00:07:07
retinoids in theory azelic acid could do
00:07:11
that but uh no it really doesn't happen
00:07:14
it's very mild it's a very gentle
00:07:16
exfoliant and for this reason think
00:07:18
about it it's well it's pretty well
00:07:19
tolerated and used and shown to be
00:07:22
effective and is effective for one of
00:07:23
the most sensitive skin conditions
00:07:26
rosacea who should not use azelic acid
00:07:28
well the prescription strengths of
00:07:30
azelic acid they're three different
00:07:33
types there's a 20 azelic acid cream a
00:07:38
15 azelic acid gel and a 15 azoleic acid
00:07:40
foam if you are allergic to propylene
00:07:43
glycol then you cannot use these they
00:07:45
all have propylene glycolin which helps
00:07:47
with penetration stability it's also
00:07:50
humectant has hydrating properties
00:07:53
[Music]
00:07:55
for the most part it's pretty well
00:07:57
tolerated so I mentioned that you can
00:07:59
get azelic acid by prescription at least
00:08:01
here in the states or you can buy it
00:08:03
over the counter at weaker strengths so
00:08:05
which one should you go with which one
00:08:08
is better well truthfully the research
00:08:10
on the benefits of azelic acid they're
00:08:12
all done using the prescription strength
00:08:15
forms the 20 and the 15 percent
00:08:17
now that's not to say that the stuff
00:08:19
that you buy over the counter without a
00:08:20
prescription is not going to be
00:08:22
beneficial I just can't say to what
00:08:24
extent it's going to yield the same kind
00:08:26
of benefits that the prescription stuff
00:08:28
has if you have a skin condition rosacea
00:08:32
hyperpigmentation melasma acne perioral
00:08:34
dermatitis you're going to want to talk
00:08:36
to your dermatologist about the best
00:08:39
treatment azelic acid can be discussed
00:08:42
now if you are interested in the
00:08:44
benefits of azelic acid from a cosmetic
00:08:46
standpoint you like the idea of smoother
00:08:50
skin you like the idea of maybe helping
00:08:54
to fade some post acne dark marks you
00:08:57
like the idea of something that's going
00:08:59
to help with blackheads then I would say
00:09:02
the over-the-counter soft is more than
00:09:04
reasonable it I can't say to what extent
00:09:07
however it effectively gets into your
00:09:11
skin the prescription azelic acids so
00:09:14
you've got 20 and you've got 15 percent
00:09:17
roughly 3 three percent of the drug that
00:09:19
is applied to the skin actually gets
00:09:21
absorbed it's a little bit higher for
00:09:23
the gel which makes sense gel Vehicles
00:09:27
tend to have better penetration of the
00:09:29
active in comparison to creams that's
00:09:31
why the gel you can get away with a
00:09:33
lower percentage but to what extent the
00:09:34
stuff that you buy over the counter it's
00:09:37
going to vary a lot one product that I
00:09:39
do have a lot of confidence in because
00:09:41
I've used it personally is the Polish
00:09:44
Choice azelic acid booster as a reminder
00:09:46
YouTube has this new feature if you
00:09:48
click the little bag icon you can see
00:09:51
more details so I'll see if that if the
00:09:53
Polish Choice booster is in their
00:09:55
catalog so you can look at it if you
00:09:58
want anyway the Polish Choice booster it
00:10:02
has azelic acid 10 percent and uh it
00:10:04
also has salicylic acid and licorice
00:10:06
root so good for
00:10:09
hyperpigmentation and good for acne I
00:10:11
feel as though the penetration has to be
00:10:13
reasonable with that but I don't have
00:10:15
any studies to back it up there are a
00:10:17
lot of other azelic acid products on the
00:10:19
market if you find that the polished
00:10:21
Choice product is too irritating maybe a
00:10:23
very sensitive skin especially those of
00:10:26
you with rosacea then try the ordinary's
00:10:29
azelic acid suspension that's another
00:10:32
option my issue though with the
00:10:33
over-the-counter stuff is that we really
00:10:35
just don't know a to what extent those
00:10:38
percentages are actually effective and B
00:10:39
there's going to be a lot of variation
00:10:41
from Brand to brand and formulation to
00:10:43
formulation in terms of the relative
00:10:45
penetration of the active ingredient so
00:10:47
I always question like is the azelic
00:10:49
acid in this product actually getting
00:10:51
into the skin I feel pretty confident
00:10:53
that the polished Choice one is again
00:10:56
it's just a feeling maybe the salicylic
00:10:58
acid in there helps it penetrate better
00:11:00
that's just my opinion my recommendation
00:11:02
I do find it to be a an effective
00:11:05
product but the efficacy observed with
00:11:06
that could also be related to other
00:11:08
ingredients in the product the salicylic
00:11:11
acid and licorice root so how exactly do
00:11:13
you use these they're intended to be
00:11:16
used twice a day now as a reminder
00:11:18
because they can be drying and
00:11:21
irritating it's reasonable to apply them
00:11:22
just once a day for the first few weeks
00:11:25
while your skin gets used to it and
00:11:27
those then those irritating side effects
00:11:29
subside you can increase to twice a day
00:11:32
as tolerated now the 20 cream you're
00:11:34
going to want to First wash the face and
00:11:38
then Pat it dry and apply a pea-sized
00:11:40
amount to the entire phase sparing near
00:11:41
the eyes
00:11:43
after you apply it you're going to want
00:11:45
to wash your hands and you want to make
00:11:46
sure that you don't get any of it in
00:11:49
your eyes or in your mouth because it
00:11:51
can cause eye irritation so that's why
00:11:52
we tell you to wash your hands
00:11:54
afterwards and to not get it around your
00:11:56
eyes you can use it in the morning and
00:11:58
you can use it in the evening after you
00:12:00
apply it it has dried you can put other
00:12:02
stuff on top of it you can put sunscreen
00:12:05
on over it you can put makeup on over it
00:12:07
and if you are using other stuff like
00:12:09
tretinoin you can use that either before
00:12:13
or after applying the 15 finatia gel is
00:12:16
very similar process clean face pat dry
00:12:18
apply a pea-sized amount sparing around
00:12:20
the eyes wash your hands afterwards use
00:12:23
it morning and evening as tolerated and
00:12:26
you're free to put stuff on over it now
00:12:28
a note about the foam that phenicia foam
00:12:31
you want to make sure you shake the can
00:12:32
first
00:12:34
and another note about the Phoenician
00:12:36
foam the propellants in it are flammable
00:12:38
so do not use it and you're an open
00:12:41
flame because it could explode so using
00:12:43
it one to two times a day is fine here's
00:12:45
the thing you can use it more frequently
00:12:47
than that if you're motivated to in fact
00:12:49
those of you who have acne applying it
00:12:51
three to four times a day if you're
00:12:53
highly motivated may actually help with
00:12:56
penetration into the acne bumps again if
00:12:58
you tolerate it it can be irritating can
00:13:00
be drying and sting and be uncomfortable
00:13:02
if that's the case then don't go too
00:13:04
hard it's always going to vary from
00:13:06
person to person in terms of how people
00:13:09
tolerate things but yeah that's a
00:13:11
rundown of azelaic acid as a reminder
00:13:13
safe to use in pregnancy safe to use
00:13:15
with breastfeeding it's an effective
00:13:17
treatment for acne and that IT addresses
00:13:19
the bacterial component the inflammatory
00:13:22
component the comido formation double
00:13:25
duty with acne because it also helps
00:13:27
ward off post acne dark marks
00:13:30
it's a treatment for melasma and
00:13:32
hyperpigmentation post-inflammatory
00:13:34
hyperpigmentation it's effective for
00:13:38
rosacea and it's effective for perioral
00:13:40
dermatitis and you're free to use it
00:13:43
with other products any other ingredient
00:13:45
you can use alongside azelic acid it
00:13:48
doesn't it doesn't inactivate things now
00:13:50
I'll get some questions about it as an
00:13:52
exfoliant because it does it does help
00:13:55
to smooth the skin surface so it is a
00:13:59
very mild exfoliant be careful if you do
00:14:01
want to use it alongside other
00:14:04
exfoliants it may that combination may
00:14:06
end up being just more likely to cause
00:14:08
irritation for you but it's not to say
00:14:10
that you can't use it alongside things
00:14:13
like salicylic acid or lactic acid or
00:14:15
glycolic acid it just might be more
00:14:17
irritating you might want to go a little
00:14:19
bit more slowly with adding those things
00:14:21
into your routine in my humble opinion
00:14:25
for whatever it's worth azalex the 20
00:14:28
cream or phenacea the 15 percent gel
00:14:30
need to become available as
00:14:32
over-the-counter medications here in the
00:14:36
U.S because I really see no reason why
00:14:39
these should not be over-the-counter
00:14:41
medications I don't see why you should
00:14:44
need a prescription to use these we have
00:14:46
many other over-the-counter medications
00:14:49
that are potentially more likely to have
00:14:52
adverse effects than azelic acid it's
00:14:55
very versatile it has multiple benefits
00:14:59
it's unlikely to cause harm when used as
00:15:02
directed but yeah I just find that like
00:15:04
getting phenaceous all over the counter
00:15:05
I feel like they could sell it similar
00:15:08
to how they sell adapalene relatively
00:15:10
affordable evidence-based treatment that
00:15:12
would be accessible to a lot of people
00:15:14
then the drug stores could have generic
00:15:15
versions
00:15:19
yeah it would be great it would really
00:15:21
be helpful let me know in the comments
00:15:23
have you ever used the prescription
00:15:25
strength azolic acid or do you use the
00:15:28
over-the-counter cosmetic acidic acids
00:15:30
there are a lot of them these days let
00:15:32
me know if this is an ingredient that
00:15:34
you have incorporated into your routine
00:15:35
or we're considering I really hope this
00:15:38
video was helpful to you guys on the end
00:15:40
slide I'm going to link my recent video
00:15:44
on the newer acne medication when Levy
00:15:45
so check that out if you're somebody who
00:15:47
has acne and you want to learn more
00:15:49
about that treatment but that's what I
00:15:51
have to say today about azelic acid if
00:15:53
you guys enjoyed this video give it a
00:15:55
thumbs up share it with your friends and
00:15:57
as always don't forget sunscreen And
00:15:58
subscribe I'll talk to you guys tomorrow
00:16:01
bye
00:16:05
foreign
00:16:21
[Music]
