Every beauty treatment has its drawbacks, but they're often not as publicized as they should be. If you're of color and you've found yourself having to dig far too deep to discern whether a skincare treatment is right for your skin type or not, you're far from alone: It's information that often isn't included in discussions about procedures, and many people end up having to do their own research. To save you that valuable time, we spoke with licensed esthetician and skincare expert Kerry Benjamin to help us figure out what skin treatments are ideal for Black people and others of color, and which should be avoided.

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Kerry Benjamin is an L.A.-based esthetician. She is the founder of StackedSkincare and the StackedSkincare spa in Santa Monica, CA.

Lasers

“Lasers can be very dangerous and often cause permanent damage for darker skin tones,” Benjamin says. “Putting heat on skin that already has a propensity to pigment will likely only worsen the problem; I've seen this way too many times with my clients.” That said, darker skin tones, including type four, five, and six skin can safely have laser hair removal with an ND-Yag laser.1 Not every laser is for every skin type.

“You need to treat dark skin with caution, or you can cause serious permanent damage,” Benjamin says. “Microdermabrasion, medium-depth chemical peels, dermaplaning, and microneedling are all super safe and effective at treating acne, pigment issues, and scarring.” It may take more than six months of treatments, but when you’re dealing with the delicate skin on your face, “slow and steady wins the race” is a pretty good philosophy to adopt. And even though these procedures may not be as intense as laser treatments, you can combine multiple treatments for better results (without creating pigmentation risks). But, use caution if you have a darker skin type, or if you're prone to hyperpigmentation with medium depth chemical peels (superficial are safer!).2

At home, Benjamin recommends broadband SPF 30 or higher, retinol, and products with exfoliating and skin-brightening ingredients like lactic acid, kojic acid, azelaic acid, arbutin, and licorice extract, all of which will help with skin texture and tone irregularities. “For hyperpigmentation and acne scarring, the Collagen Rejuvenating Kit is ideal,” Benjamin says. It includes an epidermal growth factor activating serum, a mineral peel with exfoliating willow bark extract and nourishing seaweed extract, and a collagen-boosting at-home microroller. “The combination of these treatments will stimulate collagen, speed up wound healing and cell turnover, and break down scar tissue to brighten and smooth out the tone and texture of the skin.” There is one caution: “People with active pustular or cystic acne should not use a microneedle. Once the acne is gone, it is safe to microneedle at home to remove any post-inflammatory pigmentation or scarring left behind from the acne.”