Can we talk about the actual pH of lemon juice?

I was reading a study from the International Journal of Cosmetic Science last night and saw that fresh lemon juice has a pH around 2.0. That's way more acidic than I realized, and it really drove home why those DIY lemon juice toners are such a bad idea for skin. It made me double-check all my own product formulations. Has anyone else had a client come in with damage from a home remedy like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

ray_foster671mo ago

Right, that pH of 2.0 is no joke. I had a client last year who was using straight lemon juice and honey for "brightening" and her skin barrier was totally fried. Took months of super gentle ceramide creams to get it back to normal.

the_ray1mo ago

Months to get back to normal? That seems like a stretch. Skin fixes itself pretty fast if you just stop the bad stuff. A fried barrier sounds dramatic for some lemon juice. Maybe she was doing other harsh things too. People have been using home stuff like that forever without total disaster.

wendygarcia20d ago

Ugh, this is the whole "natural means safe" trap, isn't it? People see a food and just assume it's fine for their skin, forgetting that chemistry is a real thing. It's like thinking because you can drink vinegar, you should splash it in your eyes. That super low pH from lemon juice just dissolves your skin's protection over time. Why do we trust random online tips over basic science?