When it comes to skin care, a lot of men can benefit from receiving some more guidance.

For many of us, the extent of the grooming lessons we received growing up covered shaving and nothing else. To be clear, receiving some shaving tips is important, but it’s also not enough if you want your skin to continue looking its best as you age.

You have to put in more work to maintain your clear and smooth skin.

Among the things men can do to preserve the quality of their skin is to exfoliate. If this activity is completely foreign to you, then please continue to learn more about how exfoliating can benefit you and how you should do it.

Can Exfoliating Work for Men?

Exfoliation is a beauty regimen that can benefit both men and women because at its core, it is all about effectively rejuvenating your skin. The exfoliation process involves essentially removing the dead skin cells that are occupying the upper layers of your skin.

By removing those dead skin cells, you are bringing out the healthier ones residing below.

Women have long understood the benefits of exfoliating because it gives them that healthy glow they’re looking for, but considering how the process works, it should obviously help men out as well.

The issue here is that the exfoliating products that work for women may not exactly function as well for men. As noted by How Stuff Works, the differences between a man and a woman’s skin mean that you can’t just pick up the most popular products and expect them to deliver the results you’re looking for.

Those differences don’t necessarily mean that should avoid exfoliating, but they do highlight the need for guys to be more discerning with the skincare products they purchase.

Which Exfoliating Products Should Men Get?

Now that we’ve established that the skincare products that work for women will not always provide the expected results for men, what should men actually look for?

Ideally, you can talk to a dermatologist and receive some recommendations.

Failing that, most men should benefit from using a facial scrub soap that features a gritty texture, according to Birch Box. Ingredients that provide the required level of grittiness include fruit seeds and sea salt.

You should also try to look for exfoliating products that are a bit more acidic. The products need that extra acidity to work through the oils on your face and effectively scrub away the dead cells. To be more specific, salicylic acid is a great ingredient to find in an exfoliating product for men.

Once again, the type of skin you have may necessitate the usage of different skincare products. Generally speaking though, if you find products with the characteristics mentioned previously, they should work brilliantly on your skin.

How often Should Men Exfoliate?

Recommendations vary when it comes to how often men should exfoliate. Some will say that exfoliating every other day is good while others will suggest that doing so once a week should be fine.

The best advice for you here is to see how exfoliation works on your skin. Try exfoliating every other day first and if you notice your skin looking a bit redder, scale back to once or twice a week.

Notably, on the days when you aren’t exfoliating, you should still use a facial cleaner. That habit will also help keep your skin healthier longer.