What Is Skin Fasting and Should You Try It?

Intermittent fasting is the diet trend of the moment, but when it comes to your skin care routine, there's a new trend bubbling up called skin fasting. Skin fasting is a Japanese beauty hack where you go one or two days without applying any products to your skin to allow it to detox and breathe.

"The Japanese have studied the skin's regeneration on a monthly basis and have proved that "skin-fasting" improves your skin's condition and detoxify skin impurities," says Koko Hayashi, creator of Mirai Clinical Body Care. Hayashi argues that because there are not enough natural oils on your skin due to overuse of artificial products, it leads to drier skin.

But wouldn't applying copious amounts of moisturizer and sunscreen every day be good for your skin? Dr. Nava Greenfield of Schweiger Dermatology Group in Brooklyn, New York says it depends on your skin type.

"If you have oily skin, without a wash to de-grease, you may end up breaking out. If you have very dry skin (and that is not always correlated with your body's hydration/volume status), then you may cause more dryness and itching or an eczema breakout as a result," Greenfield says. If you have normal skin without any predispositions to any skin conditions or diseases, then skin fasting may actually be beneficial as it stops exposure to chemicals and preservatives that may be causing some harm (like irritation or allergic reactions) to your skin, she says.

Greenfield warns that there are possible drawbacks from trying this trend. "Many skin types need nutrients. Just like our body needs food and water, our skin also needs [moisture] and some nutrients to stay healthy. Sun protection, especially on the face, is an important daily routine that will be stopped during the fast and... could expose you to sunburn more easily," she says.

Basically, if you've got average skin that isn't prone to breakouts or any other kind of skin reaction, then go ahead and try skin fasting, but don't overdo it.

If you're still concerned about those artificial chemicals, here are some natural products you can use on your face instead of going for a full skin fasting.

image via Imaxtree