A Doctor's Battle Plan for Keratosis Pilaris by Dr Wajiha AliA Doctor's Battle Plan for Keratosis Pilaris by Dr Wajiha Ali

A Doctor's Battle Plan for Keratosis Pilaris

Dr Wajiha Ali

Dr Wajiha Ali

The Bumps That Won’t Budge: A Doctor’s Battle Plan for Keratosis Pilaris.

By Dr Wajiha Ali.

2 min read
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Just now
Tired of battling “chicken skin” that just won’t budge—Tired of scrubbing those keratin plugs?
As a doctor who’s seen and personally dealt with the emotional toll of keratosis pilaris, The good news you can dramatically improve it.
Keratosis pilaris is a condition where keratin (a protective skin protein) builds up and clogs your hair follicles, leading to tiny, rough bumps. They often appear on the upper arms, thighs, buttocks, or cheeks, and may be red, white, or brown depending on your skin tone.

But why does your skin shed so much keratin that it plugs hair follicles?

In healthy skin, dead skin cells naturally slough off. But in KP, the skin’s turnover is impaired. Instead of shedding, dead skin cells and keratin accumulate and plug hair follicles. This would look something like below:
There is also evidence that chicken skin is linked to transepidermal water loss, So dryer the skin, more the shedding of keratin and more the appearance of tiny, rough bumps.

The Real Battle Plan:

First, You need to remove those already existing keratin buildups on your skin and second you need to reduce that transepidermal water loss, along with dealing with post-KP marks.

It only sounds alot- You’ve got this:

In my practice, Glycolic acid works best at the percentage of (3%-15%). So all you need to do is take a percent of glycolic acid that works best for your skin and gently pour it on your chicken skin at night, you don’t need to wash it off just let it rest there for a night.
The next morning, You have to use gentle moisturizing shower gel to wash your body.
Follow up with good amount of hyaluronic acid moisturizer on your damp skin. Make sure your moisturizer has atleast 2% hyaluronic acid, Best if it is hydrolyzed- It penetrates better.
Additional Tip: Do once a week scrubbing with that Moroccan glove of yours. So that all the keratin which was dissolved by glyolic acid but still hanging on there must be gone.
Important: Glycolic acid- will dissolve the keratin plug- Hyaluronic acid makes skin retain more water so less transepidermal water loss.
While complete resolution may not always be achievable, adherence to the above treatment can yield visible and lasting results.
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Posted May 25, 2025

Dr. Wajiha Ali shares a treatment plan for improving keratosis pilaris symptoms.