Aldi shoppers' warning over $4 skincare dupe: 'Would never put this on my skin'

An Aldi shopper has inadvertently caused controversy in a Facebook group after uploading a dupe facial scrub reminiscent of the notorious St Ives 'fresh skin' apricot scrub. In case you're not sure what the hell that scrub is, it's basically something that had all teen girls in a chokehold in the '00s, likely ruining our skin barrier even more than whatever hormonal acne was doing at the time.

Now, over at Aldi, a shopper has uploaded a post about a St Ives dupe, a Lacura facial scrub with "apricot and walnut" that is said to help blemishes and unclog pores, currently all for the small price of $3.99 per bottle. As someone who spends $79 on a facial cleanser, bargain, right?

Maybe not.

Aldi fans' warning about cheap facial scrub dupe

Aldi shoppers have taken to the Facebook thread to warn the user about potential damage to the skin barrier, with some saying they'd "never put this" on their skin.

"This is so bad for your skin. I know you didn’t ask for opinions but just in case you’re not aware," one worried person said. "You’re much better off using a gentle cleanser and then a chemical exfoliant like an AHA/BHA."

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"Just a warning that while this stuff might seem to make your skin feel smooth/clean, it actually rips it to bits at a tiny level, making your skin age and become more sensitive over time," another warned. "Even just using a standard washcloth to wipe away your cleaning product will do a better job if you don't want to pay for a gentle acid-based cleanser."

"Only ever use gentle exfoliation on your face, it creates micro tears which speeds up aging and destroys the barrier," another said. "This is what you buy for your mother-in-law you hate," another person joked. "You don’t use this stuff on your skin!"

So do cheap facial scrubs really cause damage?

Casey Fenwick is a Sydney-based skin specialist and the owner of Prestige Skin Revision, a holistic clinic, dedicated to correcting skin concerns.

Casey told Yahoo Lifestyle that low-quality skincare brands and dupes are filled with ingredients that do not belong on the skin.

"In my experience over the last 17 years working with hundreds of faces on all types of skin conditions and concerns I have found the main driver of an impaired skin barrier is related to low quality skincare cosmetic brands," she said. "They are filled with chemicals, filler ingredients, fragrances and simply ingredients that do not belong on the skin."

When it comes to the exfoliating scrubs, Casey had a word of warning. "The use of harsh exfoliations such as these scrubs deteriorates and impairs the skin barrier altering the function of the skin," she said, explaining it leads to conditions like acne, congestion, redness, enlarged pores and rough texture amongst other issues.

"Unfortunately cosmetic brands do not support the health of the skin functions and in my opinion you are better off to use nothing other than a mineral (chemical-free) SPF daily than use low grade ingredient cosmetic product lines."

Yahoo Lifestyle previously spoke to dermatologist Dr Shreya Andric, a dermatologist at Northern Sydney Dermatology and Laser about common skincare mistakes, with Dr Andric saying a big mistake people often make is physical exfoliation.

"Don’t physically exfoliate your skin!," she said. "It causes micro-trauma to the skin so should be avoided. Chemical exfoliants like the alpha and beta hydroxy acids mentioned above are a better alternative."

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