- The Peel Connection in Beverly Hills, California, offers a variety of chemical-peel services, including one for your
feet . - The major benefits for the
foot peel are that it removes dead-skin buildup and calluses and hydrates the feet. - One peel will cost you $145, but
Insider received a discounted media rate to try the treatment and report on the results.
Caroline Aghajanian: A little while ago I did a
Now, I try to regularly
OK, I'm not gonna lie, I was super nervous going into this. It's a big day. The moment. [sighs] But Nidah from The Peel Connection has been doing chemical peels for over 10 years, so I knew I was in good hands. What am I supposed to expect on my feet? Like, what does a chemical peel for your feet do?
Nidah Barber-Raymond: People would come to get a chemical peel for their feet because there's a lot of dead-skin-cell buildups. It's just natural to be stuck in shoes and socks and those dead skin cells would be building up. The major benefits would be, obviously, deep exfoliation. With my peel, it is a two-step, so it'd actually be hydrating. We would do a hydrating step to bring out the natural moisturizing factor in the feet, which is basically pulling moisture from the dermis, and on the other end, it would be exfoliating the dead skin cells off. Calluses interfere with moisturizing the feet and proper health of the feet, because if you have all this dead-skin-cell buildup that's hardened, obviously, no matter what you apply, it's not going to get absorbed. So it's really important that you do get a chemical foot peel because it will definitely dissolve the calluses.
Caroline: Nidah recommends a chemical foot peel about three times a year. One peel session will cost you $145.
Nidah: Definitely some dryness here. So, right here, if you can see the whiteness, and there's some cracking on the side, see the sole right here, then on the sides here. Yep, you're definitely needing a foot peel.
Caroline: The first step is the moisturizing agent, which stays on your feet for about three minutes. Feels nice and warm. It's kind of, like, relaxing me a little more. Ooh, that feels so good! The warm, wet towel is my favorite part of a facial, and now it's my favorite part of a foot peel, too. After the moisturizing agent is wiped off, it's time for the peel.
Nidah: So, the chemicals in the peel are salicylic acid, lactic acid, and malic acid. Salicylic is extremely exfoliating in nature, but it's also anti-inflammatory. And then there's lactic acid, which is derived from milk and sugar, so it's very hydrating, but it's also exfoliating. It's an AHA. Malic acid is also an AHA. It's derived from apples, and it's actually very moisturizing for the skin as well and exfoliating.
Caroline: The main difference is, with a face peel, the minute they put on the peel, like, my face burned. Like, it was painful, and that was, like, all the acids. This one, like, I don't feel anything. It's just like some type of liquid just going on and swiping on my feet.
The brush actually feels really nice. It's a feather. It's a feather on your foot. Someone tickling your foot with a feather. That's what it feels like. OK, you know what? Just imagine a facial brush, the way it feels on your face, on your foot. Or, like, you know when you step on a really good carpet? [laughing] No? Why don't we go in between the toes?
Nidah: It can be too exfoliating.
Caroline: Oh.
Nidah: Yeah.
Caroline: Yeah, that would hurt. Oh, gosh, imagine when my big toe starts peeling. [gags] It's fine, it's fine, it's fine. The last step is to dry the feet for about 10 minutes.
Nidah: They've taken.
Caroline: They've taken it in?
Nidah: Yes.
Caroline: My feet have absorbed the peel.
Nidah: It's so sticky.
Caroline: It's sticky.
Nidah: Yeah.
Caroline: The immediate aftercare process is pretty simple. Basically, I had to wear open-toe shoes, I couldn't wash my feet for the first 24 hours, and I couldn't work out for the first 48 hours. My feet felt pretty tacky the rest of the day, and I can see some of the product drying around my toes, but thankfully no burning, itching, or discomfort.
At the end of day three, I started seeing peeling in random spots. It got really bad on the fourth day. I came back from the gym, and oh, boy, did my feet peel. I think that going to the gym or showering and soaking your feet will generally make it peel faster.
The drastic peeling continued from day five to about day eight. Thankfully, the freshly peeled feet didn't hurt, and I didn't feel any stinging when I walked. It looks pretty gross, but it was an overall painless peeling process.
By day 11, all of the dead skin from the bottom of my feet had completely peeled off. Thankfully, the storm had passed. The area that still had some peeling to do was the sides of my feet. I was thankfully glad to have my feet back.
[laughs] So, it's been about three weeks since I had the chemical foot peel, and this is what my feet look like today. Do my feet feel and look exfoliated and moisturized? I would say yes and yes. When the dead skin was first starting to peel off and the new skin was showing, that new skin did still feel moisturized, and I didn't feel any irritation or any pain walking on my new baby feet. As for the hard-callus buildup, I think that's something that's starting to come back a lot sooner than I expected. So, my biggest piece of advice is to keep gently exfoliating those areas so you have the most long-lasting results.
Overall, if regular pedicures and regular exfoliation isn't working for your feet, I would say try the chemical foot peel maybe once a year, and then keep up with the maintenance from there.
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