Baking Soda for Skincare?

​Ok soooooo why is everyone putting Baking Soda on their face? 

This is going to be straight to the point, it's gonna be real, it's gonna be blunt, and some might see it as harsh. So stop reading now, if you're easily offended or don't want to know my thoughts on this situation.

Baking Soda....really? Baking Soda? The reason I'm discussing this is there are tons of DIY recipes, and videos telling you how to use this on your face and "how much it does for your pores". Then I went to Wal-Mart, and seen that "baking soda cleansers" are now a thing.....what? **I'd like to point out that the box above has no pictures showing someone using it on their skin.....just saying.**

Ok lets get to the point. This all boils down to the fact that pure baking soda is far too freaking harsh to use on the face. Which is why the skincare community of long respected professionals, facialists, etc are appalled at the fact that people are using this  on the skin.  Some people say it's a miracle worker for an exfoliator,  for pores, and acne. Here's the deal guys. It all has to do with the pH. From where I stand anyway. The ph scale goes from 0-14, so 7 is neutral. Our skin sit's between 4.5-5.5 on it's own. Our skin has it's own "acid mantle" though and turns out the skin can actually balance itself back out on its own (like a toner would) according to research. Anything below 7 is going to be more acidic and everything above is going to be more alkaline. So Baking Soda is a 9 and just for reference Ammonia is 11 and nail polish remover is a type of household Ammonia, Borax (the  cleaning product) is a pH of 10, Chlorine Bleach is pH of 11-13.  Baking Soda becomes even more alkaline with water. 

Alkaline products basically disrupt the skin's barrier, making you more prone to bacteria. A alkaline "scrub" is going to cause your skin to get dehydrated and makes it harder for the skin to keep bacteria controlled. Mainly because it messes with the skins natural pH and messes with the "acid mantle".  Even using it once will damage the skin, to continue to use it will just damage it further. Then if you were to tone with a very acidic toner (with a super low pH) you're risking burning and actual scarring. All of this though can cause skin irritation, sun sensitivity, hyper-pigmentation and so on. 

So there's that. Don't put it on your skin. This is not directed toward anything other than putting it on your skin. If you don't believe me then research it yourself. I mean really research it. Look for blogs, company blogs, articles, ask credited professionals in the skin care field, and so on. Or simply google "is baking soda bad for the skin". You should find a lot of credible sources that say the same things more or less. Also, in saying all of this, pay attention to what you're buying in stores. Research the products if you can, or if you can't in store or before going, research it before you use them that way you can return it if you see that it's not gonna work for you.