Products for strawberry legs and dark underarms?

[AnneSteph]

Hello I have very bad dark skin discoloration under my arms and around my bra strap area as well as bad "strawberry skin" legs. Any product recommendations? 

[CattyT3]

For darkened skin due to friction, a great thing is to use toners or essences that have skin brightening ingredients before locking it in with a moisturizer.
I have been getting my oily skinned partner's skin in shape and getting him to use a snail mucin toner-essences (Peach Slices or COSRX are my favs) has helped darkened skin due to irritation as well.
We both use vitamin C and salicylic washes as quick body masks as well before showering it off to help with tackling uneven skin texture and tone too.
Also if you want to try it, retinol body creams are a great way to go for the hyperpigmentation and helping out with the strawberry skin - just generally retinol will help with skin turnover and works well with other skin brightening actives too.
I personally cannot use any physical scrubs on my body as my skin breaks out due to irritation, but handles high concentrations of glycolic acid and lactic acid blends in body creams that are designed to tackle keratosis pilaris as well.

> for all my body care I use Naturium body washes and, and just finishing up face cleansers that don't suit my face as a body wash/ mask - like Derma E face washes and First Aid Beauty Pure Skin Face Cleanser #.REN Clean Skincare Atlantic Kelp and Magnesium Anti-Fatigue Body Wash - 100% Recycled Plastic 10.2 oz/ 300 mL doesn't feel drying and I'm enjoying using my sample up.
I use gentle AHA/PHA/BHA toners on my body from Korean/ Japanese skincare, and any serums I can't use on my face if they are too fragranced or harsh. I have heard people enjoy using Paula's Choice Six Months of Glow Kit on their body too.
I haven't got a specific Retinol cream to recommend as I am finishing one from Amazon I don't like the texture of too much. But I will grab one from either Naturium or Versed since I have heard the best reviews for these 2 and see they are the best value for money. 

So really, the world is your oyster for tackling darkened skin and overall body texture improvement - just make sure you aren't drying your skin out too much with a drying body wash or not locking in the moisture with toner/ serum before moisturizing whatever you choose to do. It helped my KP a lot to just to use toner and then moisturize with a body cream mixed with shea butter almost every day before bed. 

And importantly, just like the face, put sunscreen on and top it up wherever the body skin is exposed as well since using any active will make the skin more vulnerable to photodamage if not protected!

But definitely think about ingredients that are classically used for hyperpigmentation on the face to use as body care usually you can get away with stronger concentrations of actives without irritation too (but always spot test for yourself).

[VexedBanana]

I think a derm would provide better advice on the dark areas; I assume it's because of lifestyle/genetic reasons. As you already know, the internet is not a provider of valid medical advice. If you are able, you should at least see a PCP if it becomes concerning (or mention it at your next checkup).

For the strawberry legs, you can try AmLactin, which is a 12% lactic acid lotion. It's OTC and very affordable. The Skinfix pre-shower scrub is my preferred wash-off treatment, but the First Aid KP Bump Eraser is also very popular. Remember to use sunscreen if you use any of the products described as they all increase photosensitivity. 

I think the labels might imply that you shave (using a razor). Maybe exfoliation and moisturizing would help any bumps caused by shaving/ingrown hairs.

[CattyT3]

I am going to try out the purple bumps be gone Amlactin one soon to see how it works out! 🙂
*I will update in here when I use it enough times to check for results for the curious*

[Skunk12puzzola]

@AnneSteph hi, maybe a dermatologist can advice you better than us! 😊