Is daily okay?
Glycolic acid should not be used daily in the armpit area.
The skin in the armpit area is as delicate as in the eyelid area.
Glycolic acid is irritating to the skin.
It can be more irritating in the armpit area because of how thin the skin is in that area.
So daily use means lots of irritation in the armpit area.
Irritation on the skin will result in pigmentation (darkness in armpits).
Can I use leave-on glycolic acid skincare products?
Leave-on glycolic acid skincare products are potent in the armpit area.
Besides being delicate, the skin in the armpit area also has folds.
So, if you use a leave-on glycolic acid product in the armpit area and go about your day, the folds will rub against the acid and create heat. Heat will make glycolic acid more potent (heat on acid makes acid more powerful).
Leave-on glycolic is potent on delicate armpit skin.
Irritation can lead to pigmentation (darkness in the armpit area).
What Glycolic acid products should be used on armpits?
Glycolic acid washes are better in the armpit area.
The product does its job, and then you wash it away.
Make sure that the percentage of glycolic acid is not high. 7% or less is okay, and 5% or less is better.
If you have sensitive skin, the lower the glycolic acid percentage, the better. Irritation leads to more pigmentation in darker-skin-toned people than in others, so lower glycolic acid percentages are safer if you have a darker skin tone.
What does glycolic acid do for the skin?
Glycolic acid is an exfoliant.
An exfoliant removes the old cells from the visible layer of the skin. These old cells should have fallen off themselves and made way for the younger cells.
The old cells that don’t fall off give skin a dull complexion.
An exfoliant, like glycolic acid, will give these old cells a nudge and force them to fall off. By doing this, an exfoliant brightens the skin.
Does glycolic acid whiten armpits?
If you are using glycolic acid in the armpit area, hoping it will eliminate the darkness in the armpit area, don’t.
Glycolic acid doesn’t work for underarm whitening.
It brightens the skin. It doesn’t whiten.
Brightening the skin makes the darkness slightly less prominent and smoothens the armpit area.
Will I miss out on benefits if I don’t use glycolic acid in my armpits?
If you have darker skin tone, sensitive skin, or armpit darkness, are unsure about glycolic acid, and would prefer to skip this for the armpit area, please do.
Glycolic acid washes are not the only exfoliating products for armpits. There are other less irritating ones for armpits.
How often should the washes be used in the armpit area?
If you want to use glycolic acid washes in the armpit area, you can use them once every 7 to 10 days or even once a fortnight.
You can alternate it with other exfoliating washes.
After using an exfoliating wash, apply some calming ingredients to the armpit area—this will reduce the irritation and soothe the skin.
Can I use glycolic acid as a deodorant?
Don’t use glycolic acid as a deodorant in the armpit area. It will result in dark armpits.