Benton - Refresh by CICA Body Wash

The soap is intended for the treatment of body acne or keratosis pilaris ("strawberry skin"). The main active ingredient in it is salicylic acid.

First of all, what is salicylic acid?

Salicylic acid is an acid from the beta hydroxy family (BHA). It dissolves in oil, penetrates deep into the pores and cleans them, and helps to shed dead skin. Because of these properties of salicylic acid it is very effective in treating acne, cleaning oily skin and preventing blackheads or whiteheads. It is effective at a very low percentage and in most countries 2% of salicylic acid is the maximum percentage that is allowed to be in the product.

Salicylic acid is effective both in the soap and in the leave-on product. Soap is a gentler way to use salicylic in the routine because soap washes off the face very quickly. Salicylic always helps me to treat keratosis pilaris ("strawberry skin") on my hands.

Besides salicylic, the soap also contains some soothing ingredients that can reduce irritation and redness, such as oats, panthenol, beta glucan, licorice, ceramide, Centella asiatica, green tea, and other plant extracts that can soothe. It is fragrance-free or alcohol but does contain rosemary essential oil at the end of the list. In my opinion, it's really not critical when it comes to soap that has been washed, and even more so for the skin of the body, which is much stronger than the face, but the smell is simply unpleasant.

I have been using it every day for the past two months. Before using it, I stopped the previous salicylic so that the keratosis pilaris got worse (what you don't do for reviews 😂). I clean my hands with it and try to leave it for at least 2 minutes so that the ingredients work. After two weeks I already saw an improvement, now the skin is much smoother and not red. This is about the same result I have had with every soap with salicylic to date.

So you can't say that it doesn't work, it's really excellent, but it has a drawback that is important for me to point out-

If you are looking for a pleasant and fun body soap with a good smell - this is not it. The smell of the rosemary is not pleasant at all, it is such a jelly, sticky and does not foam easily. Let's just say it's not my favorite part of the shower 😂 but it works.

Its price is not the cheapest, it currently costs $30 for 350 ml at YesStyle (before discounts), but on the other hand, it is a large amount and if you look at the price-size ratio compared to Inky List's salicylic soap, for example, there is not that much of a difference. Compared to them, Kamedis' salicylic soap is the cheapest (and the best in my opinion).

So I don't think I will buy it again. It's not bad, but I think there are better options.

The brand is cruelty-free 🐰❤️