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How To Get Rid of Strawberry Legs
The phrase “strawberry legs” may sound cute, but it’s a super common and frustrating skin condition that affects so many people at different times in their lives. If you’ve ever checked yourself out in your shortest skirt or cutest cutoffs only to see bumps and redness running along your legs rather than that sleek, supermodel look you were going for… we feel your pain.
Been there!
But what can you do about strawberry legs? Well, like most skincare concerns, the first step to improving their look is understanding what strawberry legs are! The second is getting to know the common causes so you can pinpoint exactly why your formerly sleek legs are bumpy and irritated. And the third step is addressing the problem and (hopefully) banishing it forever!
What Are Strawberry Legs?
Strawberry legs aren’t so much a specific skin condition as a catch-all term for a range of skin-related issues that can lead to bumps, breakouts and irritation on your legs. We’re not talking about chicken skin or goosebumps, either. Classically, strawberry legs look like strawberries: covered in dark dots.
But other conditions can fall into this category too. If you have red bumps, or even just an overall roughness of texture, although your skin tone is even, that could be strawberry legs. If you suffer from breakouts or find yourself with pockmarks and acne scars after breakouts on your body, that could be called strawberry legs too.
Because strawberry legs don’t describe just one symptom, there are many things behind this frustrating condition. Knowing exactly why your skin is having the issue in question is a key part of getting back to the skin of your dreams.
What Causes Strawberry Legs?
If you want to get rid of your strawberry legs and make sure they don’t come back, you’ll want to get to the root of the cause rather than just addressing the symptoms at the moment. Let’s talk about some of the most common causes of strawberry legs and what you can do to combat them.
1. Your Pores Are Clogged
So many skin conditions come down to this one simple thing! You probably don’t spend a ton of time thinking about the state of your pores, but they can have a huge impact on how your skin looks, and cause a wide range of frustrating problems when they get clogged. That’s why it’s important to pay attention to them.
Your skin contains millions of pores — so imagine how many of those are on your legs! That’s an overwhelming amount of opportunities for your pores to become clogged with everything from dead skin cells to bacteria to impurities that collect on your skin throughout the day. The latter two are a particular concern when it comes to your legs because, unlike your face, which is less likely to come into contact with dirt and irritants, it’s pretty likely you’ll be exposed to dirt, bacteria and other impurities throughout an average day.
When your pores get clogged, two things can happen. For one, this can lead to breakouts. While breakouts on your legs are relatively rare, they’re not impossible, and all of those annoying bumps and zits can make your legs look a bit strawberry-like.
Additionally, the pores on your legs are bigger than the pores on your face. This can make them more visible by default — and even more visible when they’re clogged, creating the illusion of strawberry legs.
What Can You Do About It?
First and foremost, if you have a tried and true method of fighting visible pores or breakouts on your face, it stands to reason you can just use that on your legs to cure your strawberry legs… right? Yes and no.
Yes, because many of the same ingredients that can help decongest problem pores on your face can also be used elsewhere on your body to fight the same issue. But not all products are created equal —and neither is your skin.
The skin of your face is more delicate and thus more sensitive than the skin of your body, which naturally has to be thicker and more durable. So while your go-to facial pore cleanser may be effective for your face, it might not make much of a difference if applied to the less easily influenced skin of your legs (plus, your facial serums are smaller in size and fairly expensive). When it comes to body skincare, you want something strong — but not so strong it damages your moisture barrier.
Our Clear and Even Tone Body Cleansing Bar & Exfoliating Pouch is a product that can help improve the look of strawberry legs and body skin. It contains a powerful blend of ingredients strong enough to break down the impurities clogging your pores without being so strong that it irritates your skin. And if you struggle with facial breakouts, its ingredients will be comfortingly familiar.
This Body Cleansing Bar uses Charcoal, a super-effective absorbent ingredient that removes oil and other dirt from your skin. We don’t know much about detoxing your body, but when it comes to your pores, Charcoal is where it’s at. Sulfur fights acne and absorbs oil powerfully but gently, all while helping to exfoliate your skin and break down the things that lead to breakouts and clogged pores.
Kojic Acid has cleansing properties, so when it comes to clearing away any nasties that are hiding in your pores and irritating your skin, you’re covered.
Salicylic Acid rounds out this body treatment slash chemical exfoliation powerhouse, breaking down the oil in your pores and balancing your skin. This body cleansing bar also comes with an exfoliating pouch to add some physical exfoliation to your routine, which can help smooth the skin’s surface and remove the buildup of dead skin cells, which could be causing everything from bumpy skin to pimples.
2. Body Hair Removal
If you prefer to go au naturel, more power to you! But for those of you who remove the hair on your legs, this could be the cause of your strawberry legs. Whether you’re into waxing or shaving, or you use an epilator — or even if you get professional laser hair removal —removing body hair is a common cause of dark spots, bumps and other issues. This is especially true if you have sensitive skin.
In addition to causing general irritation, removing hair in a way that doesn’t jive with your skin type or without taking the proper precautions can cause folliculitis. Folliculitis is the irritation and sometimes infection of a hair follicle. On your legs, this can commonly be caused by issues with hair growth due to your hair removal method.
What Can You Do About It?
First of all, if you get laser therapy to remove your hair, that’s some serious dermatology — so make sure you’re dealing with a trusted professional to avoid any irritation.
If you remove your hair at home with a razor, shaving with the direction of hair growth can help make the process less abrasive. It’s also important to use shaving cream, especially if you have dry skin, as not doing so can lead to ingrown hairs, which can cause the appearance of strawberry legs. Make sure you’re swapping out your old, dull razor regularly for something sharper, which can make a huge difference to your skin because it helps you avoid razor burn.
Additionally, use moisturizing shaving cream and make sure to moisturize with lotion after shaving to help decrease the chances of strawberry skin showing up.
Similarly, ensure you’re doing the proper aftercare if you wax! You just want to cut down on irritation to help even the look of your skin.
If you think your strawberry legs are caused by ingrown hairs, folliculitis or razor burn, you can also make an easy addition to your skincare routine to help address the issues. Our BrighterDays™ Dark Spot 8% AHA Polish is packed with everything you need to exfoliate and treat these unflattering bumps, relieving your strawberry legs quickly.
It uses AHAs like Glycolic Acid and Lactic Acid to help remove dull surface skin cells, unclog your pores and ease irritation caused by things like ingrown hairs. can help brighten the look your skin and overall give your legs a clearer lease on life!
3. Skin Conditions
There are a couple of skin conditions that can cause strawberry legs. One of the more common ones is Keratosis Pilaris (KP). While it’s mostly harmless, it does cause rough, dry patches on your skin as well as tiny bumps — these symptoms can commonly appear on your thighs!
If you know you have or think you may have this condition, you should speak to your doctor or dermatologist. While there are some over-the-counter treatments you can turn to for relief, a trusted professional is always a good first stop when you think a skincare concern is a chronic condition.
What Can You Do About It?
For now, let’s focus on how to vanquish those frustrating bumps and potential patches of redness.
Our Even Tone Smoothing Body Treatment is a great way to banish body blemishes for good! It’s a lightweight, non-greasy, non-sticky formula full of potent ingredients that can help improve the look of dark spots, redness, blemishes and skin texture issues. We especially love it for helping with Keratosis Pilaris, so if that’s the source of your strawberry legs, this is your match!
With exfoliating Glycolic Acid to help remove dead skin cells and combat blemishes and Kojic Acid to double down on the chemical exfoliation plus hyperpigmentation, you can’t go wrong. Superstar antioxidant Retinol helps to neutralize damaging free radicals, all while it enhances the look of your skin tone and texture and even helping improve the look of breakouts.
Niacinamide rounds out this KP all-star team by helping to support your skin’s hydration levels. It can also combat discoloration, textural issues and redness.
4. Your Skin Is Dry AF
While dry skin likely isn’t the only reason why you have strawberry legs, it can be a huge factor because it can exacerbate existing issues with your skin. Super dry skin can make breakouts worse, mess with your skin’s texture and make it more likely that you’ll end up with clogged pores and bacterial issues because it can negatively affect your moisture barrier.
Our Clear Skin Clarifying Back & Body Spray can help improve the appearance of texture and blemishes on your legs by exfoliating dead skin cells away and minimizing clogged pores. If you’re ready for skin that feels (and looks) smooth, we have you covered.
What Can You Do About It?
Moisturize, baby!
If the skin of your legs is constantly dehydrated, your moisture barrier may be weakened. This means you’re less protected against impurities, making it harder for your legs to retain the proper amount of moisture going forward.
Dry skin can also make you more prone to shaving-related problems like folliculitis and ingrown hair. Dry skin can wreak havoc on your complexion and heavily contribute to the appearance of strawberry legs.
In Conclusion
Strawberry legs are a common struggle with a wide range of causes. Luckily, no matter what’s causing this frustrating condition, there are ways you can address it! Whether you can figure out the cause of your strawberry legs on your own to determine which home remedies may work best, or you’d rather speak to a dermatologist about your treatment options, strawberry legs don’t have to be permanent.
While individual products can help with your strawberry legs, a well-rounded skincare routine is the best way to keep your legs looking their best.
Our Even Tone Head to Toe Body Collection features three go-to’s formulated to help balance, brighten and improve your complexion from head to toe. So if you’re looking one-stop stop shop for banishing your strawberry legs, look no further. Soon you’ll be back to the smooth, sleek, leggy goddess we all aspire to be!
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