--- title: Dry Brushing: Should I Dry Brush My Skin? description: What is dry brushing, and does it make your skin glow? Find out if you should dry brush your skin as part of your skincare routine. canonical: https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/ author: Markham Heid article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-25T12:29:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T08:17:40.512Z article:section: Health og:title: You Asked: Should I Dry Brush My Skin? og:description: What is dry brushing, and does it make your skin glow? Find out if you should dry brush your skin as part of your skincare routine. og:url: https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt92698cbb9eab0d6b/698785213c1639f9424526ae/you-asked-skin-brushing.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: you-asked-skin-brushing og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: You Asked: Should I Dry Brush My Skin? twitter:description: What is dry brushing, and does it make your skin glow? Find out if you should dry brush your skin as part of your skincare routine. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt92698cbb9eab0d6b/698785213c1639f9424526ae/you-asked-skin-brushing.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # You Asked: Should I Dry Brush My Skin? ## Video: Late-Night Highlight: Julianne Moore Reveals Her Secret For Flawless Skin [Watch (HLS stream): Late-Night Highlight: Julianne Moore Reveals Her Secret For Flawless Skin](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/dSQi5kjA.m3u8) (0:57)  _Published 2015-01-22. For your late-night highlight, Julianne Moore revealed her secret for flawless skin. And her simple regimen may surprise you._ by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Mar 25, 2015 12:29 PM UTC  Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME by [Markham Heid](https://time.com/author/markham-heid/) ## Markham Heid Markham Heid is a contributor at TIME. He is the author of The Habit Trap, due out in early 2027. Mar 25, 2015 12:29 PM UTC If you’re wondering what dry brushing is, the practice is exactly what it sounds like: Running a dry, soft-bristle brush over your bare skin. Methodologies vary, but most practitioners and beauty blogs recommend brushing your limbs and torso, always motioning toward your heart. Do this for a few minutes every day, they say, and you’ll increase blood flow and circulation, which will help your body and lymphatic system clear away toxins. Dry brushing is also thought to reduce cellulite and exfoliate, leaving your skin softer, more toned and better hydrated. Unfortunately, there’s not much research to back up these health claims. “I know dry brushing is popular, but the actual benefits are unclear,” says Dr. Tina Alster, director of the Washington Institute of Dermatologic Laser Surgery and a clinical professor at Georgetown University. Alster says that rubbing the skin—with a brush, your hand or anything else—will increase blood flow and circulation, giving your skin a flushed, youthful and “slightly swollen” appearance. (The same thing happens if you pinch your cheeks.) But your skin will return to normal very quickly after you’ve stopped brushing it, Alster says. There’s no evidence this temporary surge in blood flow will help your body remove waste or toxins, she adds. Dry brushing _will_ clear away dead skin cells. But exfoliating isn’t necessary for those in their teens and twenties. “When you’re young, your skin’s outermost layer will automatically turn over without any mechanical help,” Alster explains. Beginning in your thirties and increasing as you age, Alster says your skin’s cells can grow “stickier,” which can lead to accumulation and a dull appearance. “Exfoliation can help remove those stuck-together cells,” she says. “But you want to do it very gently and infrequently, or you may do more harm than good.” Brushing too frequently or vigorously—or using a brush with rough bristles—could cause “micro-cuts” in your skin that may lead to infection, Alster says. Exfoliating more than once a week could also break down your skin’s protective barriers, leaving your hide less hydrated and prone to irritation, says Dr. Marc Glashofer, a New York-based dermatologist and member of the American Academy of Dermatology. For that reason, Glashofer says people with eczema or dry skin should avoid dry brushing altogether. Glashofer mentions a common skin condition called _keratosis pilaris_ (KP), which consists of many small rough bumps that tend to show up on the backs of arms and thighs. Dry brushing these areas could theoretically be beneficial, he says, but there’s no evidence yet. And when it comes to reducing cellulite, both Glashofer and Alster say there’s nothing to back up such claims. “If brushing the skin twice per day would eliminate cellulite, you would have heard a lot more about it and there’d be some scientific proof,” Glashofer says. Of course, not everything that benefits your body is easily captured by medical research. From meditation to massage, many practices once dismissed by clinicians have recently been linked to meaningful psychological and physical benefits. It’s possible dry brushing may one day fall into this category, but that day hasn’t arrived yet. “If you like dry brushing and your skin looks good, that’s fine,” Alster says. “But would I encourage it as a dermatologist? Definitely not.” _Read next:_ [_25 Delectable Detox Smoothies_](http://time.com/2806991/25-delectable-detox-smoothies/?iid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/"},"headline":"You Asked: Should I Dry Brush My Skin?","datePublished":"2015-03-25T12:29:54.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T08:17:40.512Z","description":"There may be benefits, but reducing cellulite isn’t one of them.","url":"https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/","keywords":["toxins","skincare"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt92698cbb9eab0d6b/698785213c1639f9424526ae/you-asked-skin-brushing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Markham Heid","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/markham-heid/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt92698cbb9eab0d6b/698785213c1639f9424526ae/you-asked-skin-brushing.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"you-asked-skin-brushing","caption":"","creditText":"Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/toxins/","name":"toxins"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3756761/dry-brushing-skin/","name":"You Asked: Should I Dry Brush My Skin?"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Late-Night Highlight: Julianne Moore Reveals Her Secret For Flawless Skin","description":"For your late-night highlight, Julianne Moore revealed her secret for flawless skin. 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