my AHA is really working to help fade my redmarks and stuff .. but now I'm getting more into BHA because my pores are still very clogged ... so I'm going to start with BHA and see.. but I still like what AHA does for my outer skin .. your not supposed to use both at the same time, right ? I would use 1 on one day and 1 on the other, but I'm afraid the BHA won't work if I don't use it everyday... but I want to use my AHA sometime to help with the red (and the smoothness too)... will BHA exfoiliate my outer skin as well as inside the pores.. or is AHA the only real option for the red marks and stuff .. boy this is so confusing to me
Hey Jim-
i'm using both at once, twice a day, for a couple days now. So far, so good. i'm more or less following "The Acne Cure", a book that cost about $21 at my local bookstore. i tend to have sensitive skin, and the BHA/AHA combo hasn't irritated me. i'm a little pink for a few minutes, and that's it. i also think the AHA i'm using isn't a terribly high concentration, and since i'm using both, i've shunned my cleanser. i dampen my face with warm water, and massage the BHA gel in. After a few minutes or so, i rinse it off, and then apply the AHA (glycolic acid in my case) and leave that on. See how they both work for you- i really think the worst that can happen is you'll find your skin is irritated one day, in which case you could just alternate BHA and AHA, AM & PM or something.
i should mention- when i do the rinsing off, i give my face a good 20 splashes of water to get it clean. Otherwise i rely on the BHA to do the cleaning. i tested my face with a toner, and the cotton pad came away clean. HTH
Oh yeah, I use both every day. Infact there are plenty of formulations out there that mix the 2 and even contain other acne fighting acids like azeliac and lactic acid. You can definately do it, but sometimes you may have to watch the % of each acid or you may have to alternate. It just depends on your skin.
Aqua Glycolic Face Cream (Only at night when I'm dry)
Neutrogena Healthy Skin Face Lotion for
SENSITIVE SKIN (daytime, fragrance free, buffered AHA)
Burt's Bees Garden Tomato Toner (as needed) natrual AHA
- It's been about a month or so and all 3 have made my skin much softer/smoother and faded red marks !
BHA
Waiting For Paula's Choice 1 % BHA Lotion to arrive ...
- In the meantime, I have been using Clearasil Acne Moisturizer (2 % BHA) for a week or so to get my skin going with the BHA ... only a SMALL amount though on the places that need it ... I selected this brand to try b/c Paula herself says this is a good one to use and it actually will exfoliate in the pores (what I need) b/c of the pH ... hope to get better results from Paula's Choice
one or the other .. I'm so confused 
