how to treat kp?
We’ve got to tell it like it is: there’s no cure for keratosis pilaris. The good news is that KP is treatable and manageable, and there are actually tons of options. Here’s a breakdown.
ingredients
what you need to know
Exfoliating = the simplest and most effective way to treat keratosis pilaris. These two exfoliating acids are excellent at deep-diving into cells and breaking up all the rough, dry skin cells clogging them up.
Here’s another ingredient that’s incredible at breaking down the extra skin developing from KP. A little note: it’s best used at night. So make sure to slather on the retinol right before you catch those Z’s.
While this over the counter ingredient won’t get rid of the signature KP bumps, it will help to treat the redness and inflammation that is a signature of KPR. Just keep in mind that hydrocortisone isn’t something you can use all the time. Save it for that special occasion when you want that redness gone, stat.
If at-home exfoliation doesn’t do the trick, a visit with an esthetician or a dermatologist for a microdermabrasion treatment could be a great option. Microderm is sort of like a sanding machine. It runs along the surface of your skin to break down any extra build up, creating a soft, smooth surface.
Thanks to some recent studies, IPL (short for intense pulsed light) is now a proven way to treat KP. It’s like launching a targeted missile into your KP. A more scientific explanation? It’s a non-laser light that targets deep layers of your skin, destroying the built-up keratin.
There are several types of lasers (resurfacing lasers and fractional carbon dioxide lasers are two of them) that doctors and scientists have been able to prove treat the rough, bumpy skin of KP patients. These types of lasers target the hair follicle within your pore, which is (you guessed it) where all that extra keratin is hanging out.