01
At high doses, urea acts as a chemical exfoliant for thickened skin.
view on pubmed ↗← BACK TO VEDA
SKINCARE
• BACKED
Urea Cream for Dry Feet
RESEARCH
- Higher-concentration urea (>10%) safely softens thickened skin on feet through keratolytic action.
COMMUNITY
- Works well on feet at 15-30% strength; lower concentrations (5%) hydrate face without exfoliating.
⚠
SAFETYCan irritate sensitive skin like eczema or rosacea; patch test first.
WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS
ALL 15 ON PUBMED ↗02
Urea improves skin barrier and hydration by restoring natural skin components.
view on pubmed ↗03
Multiple formulations (creams, lotions, ointments) available at different strengths worldwide.
view on pubmed ↗04
Topical urea improved severe skin thickening in a rare genetic disorder.
view on pubmed ↗WHAT PEOPLE SAY
READ THREADS ON REDDIT ↗COMMUNITY SENTIMENT
78% positive
“Urea at 10% becomes a mild keratolytic. At 5%, which is the most common concentration in skincare for the face, it is a humectant and does not exfoliate. Eucerin makes a 5% urea moisturizer for the face. I’m not sure why you used the 10%. You should clarify this in your post. People are getting the impression that urea in general is problematic for the face. And it is not.”
U/UNFAIR_FINGER5531 ↗“It is more irritating to my skin than raw dogging tretinoin, and I have both eczema and rosacea. Some people are just really sensitive to it in any concentration.”
U/JACKLOGANOLIVER ↗“I love my urea face cream, its the most hydrating cream I ever had! Urea is a great humectant at 5%. The higher the percentage the more keratolytic it gets. 5% is good for the face, 10% for body and hands and 15%/20%/30% for feet.”
U/TAMSUNSUN ↗COMMENTS
Add context that might help others — skin type, conditions like PCOS, what you'd tried before. The more specific, the more useful.
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