Why Honest Beauty's New Serum Includes Not One, But 5 Exfoliating Acids

Exfoliation is an essential step in any skin routine. After all, the rest of your products can't really get to work if there's a layer of dead skin cells in the way (not to mention the impact clogged pores can have on your glow). That said, exfoliating your skin can be a process, between finding one that's effective yet gentle and working it into your routine at the right frequency. Unless, of course, you've got Honest Beauty's new Beauty Sleep Resurfacing Serum on your shelf — because this five-in-one exfoliating serum works hard while you sleep. Waking up with glowy, dewy skin with minimal effort? Yeah, that sounds pretty good.

For Honest Beauty's latest launch, the brand knew it wanted to create something that would support complexions to be undeniably glowy and healthy. "We wanted to introduce a product to our portfolio that was gentle, yet effective in delivering results for our customer to have glowier skin after just 7 sleeps," Don Frey, Chief Innovation Officer, The Honest Company tells The Zoe Report via email. That meant making an innovative exfoliator that soothes as it smooths.

So, the beauty brand helmed by Jessica Alba created a smart blend of alpha-hydroxy acids (chemical exfoliants known for effectively sweeping away excess skin cells) that are expertly combined for optimal complexion-resurfacing results.

Honest Beauty's Beauty Sleep Resurfacing Serum, $27.99 and now available on the brand's site and Target, includes a combination of commonly used AHAs glycolic acid and lactic acid, plus lesser-known citric, malic, and tartaric acid. This blend brings the serum's total acid concentration to about 2.3 percent, according to Frey, which allows for effective exfoliation without increasing sensitivity.

"While glycolic and other acids are great ingredients for targeting a ton of skin concerns, at high levels they may cause irritation and may be too harsh for those with sensitive skin," Frey explains, "By diversifying the acid composition of our formula, we were able to harness the unique benefits of each acid included to boost the efficacy of the serum while minimizing the risk of irritation."

On top of the thoughtful blend of AHAs (plus a burst of hyaluronic acid to hydrate and plump), the ingredients have also been optimized in a special delivery system called a lamellar gel network. "This means that it is slowly released into the skin and therefore has less potential to cause irritation," Frey says.

The serum's made for nightly use, post-cleansing and before slathering on your go-to moisturizer — apply a pump or two and that's all there is to it, you can hit the sack and snag some zzz's. Just be sure you're using a daily SPF before you head out in the morning, since you'll be sporting freshly resurfaced, baby soft skin.

Give beauty sleep a whole new meaning by grabbing Honest Beauty's new nighttime wonder, below.

Additional reporting by Madge Maril.