What is Derma Rolling and Why Should You Try It? | The Derma Roller System

Skincare fads appear every so often and I always have an urge to try most of them. One of them that really interested me was derma rolling – because the expected benefits were skin healing, scar reduction, pore reduction and fixing skin pigmentation. But first, it’s best to understand exactly what you’re getting into – so I researched a LOT. Here’s everything I found out about the process.

What is a Derma Roller?

A derma roller is a skin care tool which resembles a facial roller except instead of a smooth or massage head, it had multiple small needles. These needles are called microneedles and come in multiple different lengths from 0.2mm to 1.0mm. Each length is more appropriate for different tasks or areas of the body.  

Initially microneedling was a treatment through dermatologists, but recently it’s been easier to get at home derma rollers to DIY. You should not use a derma roller if you have an active skin infection, active acne, keloid scarring or an unstable skin type. If you’re worried, talk to your dermatologist.

What is a Derma Roller Used For?

Derma rolling or microneedling is used for:

• Rejuvenating skin
• Treating acne scaring and other scaring
• Reducing fine lines and wrinkles
• Reducing skin pigmentation
• Pore reduction

How Do You Use a Derma Roller?

Before you do anything else, you should ensure that your derma roller is clean, and your hands and face are also clean. As you’re using needles, you don’t want to spread bacteria onto your skin as this could lead to breakouts or worse.

If you’re using a derma roller for your face you should always be gentle with your pressure. Work in a systematic way by treating your face as five sections and note that you should avoid the sensitive eye area.

• top right of forehead and cheek
• top left of forehead and cheek
• right under eye and lower cheek
• left under eye and lower cheek
• around the mouth

There’s some differing ways of using a derma roller, but the one I found used most was to hold the skin taught and be systematic. For each section you need to:

• Roll once up and down
• Roll once side to side
• Roll once diagonally.

This should cover your entire face and you will once finished have used a cross-hatching style system to have reached as much of your skin as possible. After using a derma roller, it is recommended that you use a serum which hydrates but also targets the skin issues you are trying to fix.

How Often Should You Use a Derma Roller?

How often is an important question as you don’t want to be injuring your skin too often. Depending on the needle size often helps you to understand timings, although you should listen to your skin and always wait for it to heal completely.

• 0.2-0.25mm derma roller may be used daily or every other day. This size helps for better daily skincare as it aids with absorption, but it does not help with collagen production.
• 0.5mm derma roller may be used once every 3 weeks.
• 0.75mm derma roller may be used once every 4 weeks.
• 1.0mm derma roller may be used once every 5 weeks).
• 1.5mm derma roller may be used once every 6 weeks.
• 2.0-2.5mm derma roller may be used once every 8 weeks.

Do Derma Rollers Really Work?

When using a derma roller, you are using the needles to actually injure your skin. These ‘micro-injuries’ sends signals to your brain which tries to increase collagen and elastin production to help compensate and heal the skin. This added production can improve complexion and make your skin feel plumper.

Derma rolling penetrating the skin also helps with scaring and discolouration as the skin tries to re-form when healing. Plus, if you use a serum afterwards it helps with absorption of ingredients which can aid multiple skin issues. You do have to remember that this isn’t a quick fix treatment and it may take multiple uses and time to see results.

What are the Side Effects of a Derma Roller?

The main risk of using a derma roller is that it could irritate your skin. Whilst bleeding is unlikely, microinjuries aren’t without risk. You could get side effects such as:

• Swelling
• Skin discomfort
• Infection (most likely if you’re not cleaning the tool correctly)
• Redness
• Bruising
• Skin dryness or flakiness.

Where to Buy a Derma Roller?