Some of you are blessed with soft, smooth skin on your body that’s just naturally radiant. And others I know are like me, without proper attention and care, can experience bumps, breakouts, and/or skin sensitivity. Common texture issues on the body include keratosis pilaris, congestion/body breakouts, sensitized skin, and dry/flaking skin. What are the causes of these texture issues, and how can we fix them? That’s what I’m covering today!

This blog post is for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical conditions. I'm sharing my knowledge and experience as a professional esthetician to help you better understand skin texture and how to care for it.

Your fragranced body wash is probably harming your skin

Let’s get this out of the way first: fragrance and perfume/parfume in your skincare items are damaging your skin and body. These ingredients are umbrella terms for an unknown number of other ingredients that make up a man-made smell. So not only do we not know exactly what these fragrances are made of, we also have proof that these chemically made compounds cause skin sensitivity, texture issues, rashes, and long-term barrier damage. Fragrance and perfume in your body care items are most likely contributing to your skin issues with skin texture or small breakouts.

scrub me secret: I don’t want to leave out the detail that fragrance and perfume in skincare, air fresheners, and other household items are known hormone disrupters. Some chemical compounds found in fragrance can mimic or block hormones, potentially disrupting the endocrine system. These hormone disruptors may interfere with natural hormone function.

Keratosis Pilaris

What is KP?

Keratosis pilaris, sometimes called "chicken skin," happens when your skin produces extra keratin that clogs hair follicles, leading to those little rough bumps you’ll often see on your upper arms, thighs, or butt. It's a super common and harmless condition that some think is genetic.

What causes keratosis pilaris?

Weather like dry and cold air often makes the texture extra rough and noticeable. Over-cleansing or using soaps with harsh, oil-stripping ingredients can also exacerbate keratosis pilaris texture. While research hasn’t been able to pinpoint exactly what the root cause of KP is, those are things that are known to make the issue worse or flare up. In my years of working in skincare, seeing different types of skin, and studying skin, I have a hunch that heavily fragranced body washes and hot showers/baths are a cause of keratosis pilaris. But that’s just my guess 😉

How to remedy keratosis pilaris

🔸Use fragrance-free body products or ones made with essential oils instead of “fragrance or perfume”

🔸Use a body soap with ingredients that nourish your skin. Like plant oils, goat’s milk, or other natural fats

🔸Shower or bathe in lukewarm water instead of hot water

🔸 Don’t over-exfoliate or over-scrub your skin. Exfoliation 1-2x a week is ideal - You can use a physical scrub like scrub me dry brush gloves, or the patchouli buff bar, for example. Or you can apply an AHA mask that softens skin by eating up dead cells

🔸Use a shea butter moisturizer or hydrating body lotion daily

🧡 As a bonus, you could go get an exfoliating body treatment from a professional. At scrub me skin care studio, the body polish treatment includes a full body exfoliation plus shea butter moisturization

scrub me secret: if you’re doing all of the above and still struggling to control your KP, Josh Rosebrook makes a skincare product that is a hydrating body lotion that contains AHAs that create gentle cell turnover and soften skin. This could be a nice addition to your body care routine. Use it every other day.

skin rash and irritation is commonly red and irritated looking

Skin Rash / Irritation

What does a skin rash or irritated skin look/feel like?

A skin rash often appears as red, itchy, or bumpy patches on the body, and is usually a sign that your skin barrier is feeling overwhelmed by something, maybe an irritant, allergen, or weather change. Sensitive skin is extra reactive skin that is more likely to flare up in response to fragrances, certain products, rough fabrics, hot water, or even stress. It can become red, itchy, and/or have small bumps. Skin rashes are typically short-lived, while sensitive skin can be an ongoing thing.

What causes rashes and irritation?

These types of inflmmation skin conditions have many possible causes. Common causes of skin rashes include reactions to certain plant and animal allergens, bug bites, reactions to products, specific cardio exercise activities, and stress. Irritated skin has similar but different causes, including reactions to certain soaps, perfumes, or skincare products, over-exfoliation, rough clothing, and showering in hot water.

How to remedy a rash or irritated skin

🔸Be thoughtful about your routines and lifestyle, and reduce the amount of skin irritants listed in the above category

🔸 Use body lotion or balm with CBD in it. Preferably, an unscented item or one with soothing essential oils

🔸 Use a hydrocortisone product on the itchy, rash area

🔸Use a creamy, moisturizing soap or body wash to cleanse your body

🔸 Don’t exfoliate your skin; work on healing and hydration

🔸Shower or bathe in lukewarm or cool water. Extra points for a cold rinse at the end of each shower

scrub me secret: sometimes skin is so irritated or damaged that nothing seems to alleviate your red, bumpy, itchy skin. Manuka honey in its raw form is very healing and soothing for the skin. You can try making a mask by mixing manuka honey with a small amount of water and then applying it to your skin to treat it. This is an option for anyone finding other skincare items unhelpful or uncomfortable to apply.

Overly Dry Skin

What is overly dry, flaking skin?

When your skin is lacking natural oils and water retention, it can become depleted of nutrients and hydration. Then, when cells are turning over, dead skin cells cannot detach from your skin’s surface properly and begin to build up on the surface of your skin. Dry skin can often feel tight, uncomfortable, itchy, and have a rough texture with white flakes that come off easily.

What causes dry, flaking skin?

These types of inflmmation skin conditions have many possible causes. Common causes of skin rashes include reactions to certain plant and animal allergens, bug bites, reactions to products, specific cardio exercise activities, and stress. Irritated skin has similar but different causes, including reactions to certain soaps, perfumes, or skincare products, over-exfoliation, rough clothing, and showering in hot water.

How to remedy dry, flaky skin?

🔸 Start a consistent body exfoliation routine. Don’t overdo it! Gently scrub your skin 2-4x a week or use an exfoliating body wash

🔸 Moisturize your body daily

🔸 Avoid soaps with fragrance, detergents, denatured alcohol, and sulfates

🔸 Use a creamy, moisturizing soap or body wash to cleanse your body

🔸 Avoid hot tubs, hot baths, and hot showers

🔸 Massage your skin to boost circulation and oxygen flow

scrub me secret: Overly dry skin and irritated skin sometimes go hand in hand. If your skin is dry, flaky, itchy, and also red and bumpy, you will want to treat it with anti-inflammatory and hydrating ingredients like aloe, CBD, mushroom extract, manuka honey, rose water, etc.

Body Acne

What is body acne and congestion?

Body acne and congestion happen when pores in areas like the back, legs, chest, arms, etc, get clogged with oil, sweat, and dead skin cells. This buildup creates little bumps that can range from blackheads and whiteheads to full-on pimples. Congestion isn’t always inflamed like acne; it can look like rough, bumpy skin that won’t smooth out. If you are unsure if you have congestion bumps or irritation bumps, you can consult a professional esthetician or dermatologist.

What causes body acne and congestion?

Hormonal and internal fluctuations in the body can be a cause of large, cystic acne. Clusters of breakouts, congested pores, bumpy pimples, and blackheads can be caused by sweaty clothing or workout equipment, like a sweaty yoga mat, not cleansing your skin properly, and dirty sheets. Breakouts can also happen from wearing thick, pore-clogging lotion while excessively sweating. I always suggest working out with no body oil or lotion on, and if you are exercising outside and need to apply SPF, something lightweight is ideal, like BYOMA gel sunscreen or SuperGoop Play Everyday Sunscreen. UPF clothing is also a great way to protect your skin without having to apply thick SPF.

How to remedy body acne and congestion

🔸 Bring a set of clean clothes you can change into directly after a sweaty workout or activity.

🔸 Have an antimicrobial mist that kills bacteria from sweat and environmental debris. You can mist it directly onto your skin to prevent breakouts or help pimples go away. I like Magic Molecule mist the best.

🔸 Use a body wash with salicylic acid or skin-clearing ingredients.

🔸 Use a lightweight lotion with skin-clearing properties (after showering). This will help balance skin and reduce breakouts.

🔸 Use blue LED therapy on places with large breakouts or acne

🧡 Skincare at home not doing the trick? You could book a back facial with an esthetician so they can give you a specialized body treatment with extractions, skin-clearing products, and healing products. You can even ask your esthetician if they could focus on other areas like the back of the legs, arms, or butt.

scrub me secret: Do you love to exercise but don’t want your skin to suffer because of it? I’m with you! This blog post, Skincare for Gym-Goers: 10 Ways to Stay Clear and Glowing, is for you!

scrub-me-secret Blog Posts With Body Product Recommendations ⤵️ 🧼

The information above includes links in the text to certain skincare items and products I talked about. These are more blog posts with body care product recommendations. Have more skincare product or other questions? Ask me in the comments below!

Textured Skin on the Body: Causes, Types, and How to Treat It