Salicylic Acid
Salicylic acid has been used medicinally for a while by individuals around the world. The health benefits of the underbark of the white willow shrub include pain relief and fever reduction. In modern times, the salix (Latin for “willow”) shares only its root word with salicylic acid. Produced chemically within the confines of a laboratory, salicylic acid is a colorless, crystalline amonohydroxybenzoic (or beta hydroxy) organic acid that works wonders on a variety of skin disorders. Read below for how this product from beauty care chemicals supplier, Bell Chem’s, can assist in maintaining your skin’s beauty.
Salicylic acid is most renown as a keratolytic, or exfoliant, that removes the outer layer of the skin to reveal the softer skin beneath. Often this keratin is present as a wart or plantar wart, psoriasis, ichthyoses, dandruff, a corn, or calluses. Salicylic acid is most prevalent in the treatment of acne, where it penetrates the pore lining to exfoliate the skin, reducing blackhead and whitehead outbreaks.
The anti-inflammatory property of salicylic acid aids helps in alleviating skin tension associated with sunburn.
As a rubefacient (a substance that dilates capillaries at the skin’s surface to increase blood circulation), salicylic acid alleviates acute and chronic pain.
Salicylic acid thickens the epidermis, improves barrier function, increases moisture in the epidermis, and boosts collagen production. It also dissolves the ground substance that adheres neighboring cells, which enables skin cells to be shed more easily.
Many of the properties of aspirin mirror those of salicylic acid since aspirin’s less common name is acetylsalicylic acid. Therefore, the anti-irritant properties in aspirin are also present in salicylic acid. Its acidic character also causes it to be anti-bacterial.
With its many uses, salicylic acid is a necessary addition for both medical and pharmaceutical industries. Contact Bell Chem at (407) 339-BELL (2355) to speak with one of our beauty care chemical consultants concerning beauty aids or any other chemical in stock, or read our previous blogs for further information.