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Exfoliation is the process of removing dirt, dead skin cells and body secretions from the surface of your skin. Exfoliating your legs once or twice a week helps prevent ingrown hairs, acne and blemishes. It keeps your skin smooth and healthy, too. If your legs have large pores, you need something that will clear out built-up deposits of sebum -- a natural waxy secretion -- that lurk around in your follicles. One crucial tip: if it hurts when you scrub, you're trying too hard. Scrub with a gentler touch, or switch to a gentler product.
Fresh Brown Sugar Body Polish
Sugar makes a great exfoliant -- it's gentler than salt, yet still provides a vigorous scrub to help clear out pores and leave skin soft and refreshed. This all-natural scrub won InStyle magazine's Best Beauty Buy prize for 2011. It "smells good enough to eat" and contains no artificial fragrance. Plus, a trio of almond, apricot and jojoba oils helps moisturize your skin after the sugary scrubdown.
Deep Steep Grapefruit Bergamot Sugar Scrub
This sugar scrub claims to deeply cleanse pores and scrub away impurities, but iVillage.com's tester loved it for its ability to moisturize as well as exfoliate. She was even able to forgo her daily after-shower moisturizing routine, thanks to the vitamin E, shea butter and coconut oil in this scrub.
Origins Incredible Spreadable Smoothing Ginger Body Scrub
This sugar-based body scrub won "Allure" magazine's Best of Beauty award in 2003, 2004 and 2011. It enlivens your skin with the fresh scent of citrus and ginger.
Olay Body Wash (Plus Spa Exfoliating Ribbons)
This product, winner of a 2010 "InStyle" magazine's Best Beauty Buy award, is a cleanser and exfoliator in one, which means that you can use it every day rather than just once a week, as with most exfoliators. The exfoliant action is provided by both sea salt and synthetic microbeads. It also contains a dose of seaweed extract to nourish your skin.
Bath & Body Works' True Blue Spa Salt Scrub
If you're looking for a salt-based scrub, Bath & Body Works' True Blue Spa Salt Scrub is the go-to product. A two-time "Allure" magazine Reader's Choice Best of Beauty winner, this scrub backs up its exfoliant action with hydrating glycerin plus algae extract to nourish skin and calm irritation.
