Benzoyl peroxide not working anymore? Try this!

Have you been using benzoyl peroxide for a while now and loved the results? And then, all of a sudden, is the benzoyl peroxide not working anymore? I’ve had that problem, too, when I was struggling with my hormonal acne.

At first, I thought I would have to start the search for a product all over again. But then I discovered one tiny change that made my BPO work again.

To be honest, I should’ve known this “trick” from the start. Everyone who read the package insert should’ve – in theory.

But since you are here, reading this now, I figure you might’ve skipped that part as well and your benzoyl peroxide stopped working.

So let’s get to it!

Disclosure: Some of the links below are so-called provision links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I can earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

How does Benzoyl Peroxide work?

Acne.org Treatment (2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide) 8 oz.

There is a multitude of benzoyl peroxide products* out there. BPO face wash, body wash, and creams. I personally have only ever used benzoyl peroxide gel* and it did a fantastic job.

(Get some here*!)

Benzoyl peroxide works topically only. This means, it doesn’t go through your skin and changes anything “down there”. It simply fights acne-causing bacteria on the surface.

How does it do that? It uses oxygen to kill the bacteria. Killing off the bacteria doesn’t make your blemishes disappear instantly. There might still be some inflammation going on.

This is where the second effect of BPO comes into play. BPO can also have a drying and peeling effect. This way blemishes and excess skin go away quicker.

Related: Your complete guide to using Hyaluronic acid in your skin care

PanOxyl Acne Foaming Wash Benzoyl Peroxide 10% Maximum Strength Antimicrobial, 5.5 Oz

CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanser | Acne Treatment Face Wash with 4% Benzoyl Peroxide, Hyaluronic Acid, and Niacinamide | Cream to Foam Formula | Fragrance Free & Non Comedogenic | 5 Oz

Perrigo 2.5% Benzoyl Peroxide Acne Treatment Gel 60gm Tube

How long does it take for benzoyl peroxide to work?

Clearing up acne is a really urgent wish for most sufferers. So, naturally, you’ll want to know: how long does benzoyl peroxide take to work?

BPO works immediately on killing bacteria on your skin. After 12 hours of having it on your face, you will already see a difference in “active” pimples.

Depending on how much BPO you are using and how strong your solution is, the drying and peeling effect can happen just as quick or take a few days.

If you want to know how long it takes to completely clear your skin, that is a different story. Unless the reason for your acne is removed, new blemishes will be forming, even if you use benzoyl peroxide every day.

Related: Hyaluronic acid and acne – What you need to know

Can you become immune to benzoyl peroxide?

The real question when it’s about immunity is “Does benzoyl peroxide stop working?”

No, it doesn’t.

The fact that BPO works only on the skin’s surface also means that you cannot become immune to it. No matter how long and how often you use it, the oxygen will always work on killing acne bacteria.

If your benzoyl peroxide doesn’t work anymore or seems to lose effectiveness, something else is the reason.

Benzoyl peroxide is not working for me at all!

The fact that you cannot become immune to BPO doesn’t mean that your acne can’t get worse though! It is important to understand, that BPO cannot heal you from acne!

It works topically to reduce bacteria, but it cannot cure your acne. Simply because it cannot work on the reason why you have acne in the first place!

So what if benzoyl peroxide doesn’t work?

Always make sure to treat the reasons for your acne first. BPO is for the symptoms.

If you keep using it, but see no results, making you wonder “Why is benzoyl peroxide not working for me?”, you might have to do some other homework first.

I’ve been using BPO for years, but only when I made significant changes to my lifestyle, did I see real improvements on my acne. You can see my top 6 things I did to beat hormonal acne here!

Related: Why spearmint tea for hormonal acne is seriously underrated

Then why is my benzoyl peroxide not working anymore?

So we covered one reason why it might look like your benzoyl peroxide is not working anymore. It might be that your acne simply got worse.

But we will assume, that it didn’t. Everything is still the same. Your lifestyle, your stress level, your hormones.

Still, it seems like your BPO product is losing effectiveness every day.

You know what the super-logical reason for that could be?

Your benzoyl peroxide went bad!

Benzoyl peroxide is very sensitive to both temperature and moisture. Guess where most people keep it? In the bathroom…

The bathroom is the worst place for your benzoyl peroxide products.

Easy solution for benzoyl peroxide not working anymore

So here is the super easy solution for when it looks like your benzoyl peroxide is not working anymore. Simply store it in the fridge!

This way all your benzoyl peroxide products will not go bad. Instead, they keep their active ingredients.

So easy, right? And like I told you, it even says to store it cool and dry in the package insert…

Try this and let me know if it works for you!

(And please, if this was helpful for you, share it! It means a lot to me!)

*These links are so-called provision links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I can earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.