Does Lactic Acid Lighten Your Skin?

Aside from exfoliating, lactic acid is a humectant that pulls water into the skin to hydrate it, making it arguably one of the most important ingredients in skincare.

Since it’s an exfoliant, lactic acid lightens the skin by loosening the bonds between dead cells. This makes old, pigmented cells easier to remove from the skin’s surface, which in turn reveals a brighter complexion.

An Experimental Dermatology research concluded that lactic acid suppresses melanin formation by directly inhibiting tyrosinase activity. In layman’s terms, lactic acid hinders dark spots by stopping melanin production.