I noticed there are two formulations what is the difference between them please *apart from the obvious one is a serum the other a cream* & which is best for dry sensitive skin prone to occasional breakouts if I may ask.

The serums are best for oily skin areas and the creams for drier skin.

Thank you for that ,my skin is mainly dry sensitive skin but slightly oily forehead-nose & chin ?, does this class me as combination even though I get dry enough to get flaky skin every single day even when buffing off the dead skin a lot, personally I prefer serums but , than again it is what is best for my skin I am concerned about.

Dear Miffny,

LacSal cream and serum are both “good and healthy” for the skin, although I’m not sure about Germaben and Natrosol yet. Other than the general guidelines used and accepted by cosmetic scientists and dermatology, what is best for you skin, needs, and standards has to be tested by you.

Your skin type is classified loosely based on how your oil production is naturally and relatively consistently when your skin barrier isn’t subjected to or influenced by any topical products.

Are you aware that the oily production, sensitivities, and skin reactions you described may not be your actual skin type but can be conditions or skin reactions from product use and chemical and pH interactions among topical products, including the “inert,” “natural,” “clean,” “herbal,” or “organic” ingredients, because these are industry or marketing terms and these ingredients are nevertheless chemicals in that they can have positive and negative biochemical effects on our skin, internal organs, as well as our hormones. In addition, our skin type may change and “age” slightly by external and internal factors, such as circadian rhythmicity and day/night skin permeability, the seasonal humidity and temperature and sun exposure as well as internal chronological aging (relative hormone levels).

I’ve only tested LacSal Cream (and Exfol Cream and Exfol Serum) so far and neither LacSal Cream nor Exfol Cream seems to have caused any unusual breakouts on my sensitive, normal to oily, acne-prone skin like Exfol Serum did even with excellent visible skin changes. Although I suspect Exfol Serum may be the cause, I cannot be certain Exfol Serum alone was the cause of my unusual skin breakouts (unusual cystic type of acne or in places where I don’t usually get pimples) at this point.

My own experiences of using Exfol and LacSal (or SRCPs, benzoyl peroxide, or high retinols but not retinoic acid) and research have been that I can use mild but effective topicals to affect great skin remodeling results as long as I maintain the health of my skin barrier in that the skin barrier protective oil is maintained and supplemented (fighting oily with oil; fire with fire) and is within a consistent natural and healthy acidic pH range of above and below 5.5 (and may slightly more acidic for men).

When I choose or use a topical, I try to be consistent with certain known facts or related facts and don’t just choose the active for its “proven” or suggested bioavailable efficacy alone but also consider and compare the experimental and suggested formulation (active and inert) and other products I use may have on the integrity of my skin barrier, transepidermal water loss, stratum corneum moisture, and skin surface pH as well as relevant issues for the health of my body (just like maintain the vigor of a healthy plant by meeting its known horticultural needs or from data gathered about other species of plants). Don’t forget the pH scale is a reverse logarithmic calculation of relative hydrogen proton concentration and that a shift in pH from 6 to 7 is a ten-fold decrease in H+ concentration, and a shift from 6 to 8 represents a one-hundred-fold decrease in H+ concentration, and the same applies with increased acidity or the use of acidic topical products. The more frequent or the stronger the chemicals I use or intense the therapy I want, the more protective antioxidant oil I use to protect the integrity of my skin barrier function.

Other than the generally “known” or accepted cosmetic/food ingredients and principles and since we are individually slightly different and can be sensitive or allergic to different serum or cream ingredients and at various relative concentrations of the same ingredients, have different skin care objectives and timelines, or are using other concurrent topical products, there is no real and clear way to know what is best for you without you actually using the products as well as experimenting with them in different ways. Any proven discoveries or rules and scientific principles we establish are just ways to understand the world, and the applicable known rules and laws, including the Einstein’s theories of relativity, can often be incomplete and inconsistent depending on the magnification or relative perspective.

We need and want fast and clear answers, but then we often find these clear simple answers are not always true and can often be inconsistent and deficient, which further drive us to find clearer simple answers. Other than self-defined or chosen problematic ingredients, what exfoliant is best for your skin can only be determined by you from actual product use and comparison.

Thanks JW I am loving the LacSal cream no irritation nor a spot in sight.