Acne.Tips

Along with professional acne treatments and a quality home-care regimen, these are some things you can do to help control your acne. Though acne can never be cured, following these guidelines will give you the best chance for achieving clear skin.

• Get enough rest and reduce stress. Stress stimulates the adrenal gland which promotes oil production, leading to clogged pores.

• Don’t pick. Instead, rub ice on pimples for two minutes, twice a day.  Try to catch them when they are first forming (as soon as you feel a “hot spot” ).  Picking a blemish can cause a sore and redness that may take up to six months to heal.  An expert extraction only results in overnight redness.  A great website is available to help you overcome the habit of picking.  Check out www.StopPickingOnMe.com.

• Limit intake of foods (including sports drinks/bars) containing iodine (aka salt/iodide). These include iodized salt, seafood, fish, seaweed, fast foods and dairy products (cows lick iodized salt licks). You don’t have to eliminate all these, but cutting back may be a good idea. Excess iodine excreted through the oil glands irritates pores and causes acne flare-ups. Chocolate and greasy foods (unless they contain salt) do not aggravate acne.

• Avoid vitamin, mineral and food supplements containing iodides (a/k/a potassium iodide). Some supplements also add kelp or seaweed which should be avoided. Vitamins that are iodide-free are GNC Women’s Ultra Mega without iron & iodine as well as Dermavites (found online).

• Stay away from “high androgen” foods. These are found in peanuts, peanut oil, peanut butter, corn oil, wheat germ, shellfish, organ meats, sweetbreads, beef and liver. These contain hormones that exacerbate acne. Again, these foods need not be completely eliminated, but less is probably best.

• Soymilk with carrageenan (an additive derived from red algae used as a thickening agent) aggravates acne.

• Some swimming pool disinfectants contain iodides and chlorine which can cause skin problems for frequent swimmers. Washing your face and applying a very thin layer of Vaseline prior to entering the pool may help protect you. Remember to cleanse your face to remove Vaseline after swimming.

• According to a number of clinical trials, zinc monomethionine has been shown useful in treating acne, and is as effective as antibiotics in reducing inflamed acne. Research also suggests that acne sufferers benefit from higher doses of Omega 3 Fish Oil.  High quality supplements from Threshold are available at Solutions Acne & Skin Care.

• Use fragrance-free detergents and do not use fabric softeners in the washer or fabric softener sheets in the dryer, especially on pillowcases. Fabric softeners leave a waxy residue that can clog pores. Anti-static dryer balls are chemical and allergy free, and reusable.

• Low-estrogen birth control pills and/or progesterone hormone replacement can be particularly aggravating for the acne prone individual.  Consult your physician regarding the type of birth control/hormone replacement therapy you’re taking and whether a change to a different formulation would be beneficial to clearing your skin.

• Do not use cosmetics, skin care, or hair care products that contain pore-clogging ingredients. These ingredients cause microcomedones to form in certain individuals resulting in various lesions ranging from clogged pores and blackheads to inflammatory pustules. Check all your products at home for pore-clogging ingredients and toss away any offenders. Always check the ingredient deck of any new products you are considering. Read “Pore Cloggers”.

• Even Benzoyl Peroxide medications found over the counter may contain isopropyl myristate and laureth-4 or oils that inhibit the active ingredient of benzoyl peroxide. Watch out for “oil-free” products. They may contain synthetic oils (fatty acids), D&C red dyes and detergents that can aggravate acne.

• Limit sun exposure and use a broad-spectrum sunscreen every day of the year. Although sun exposure causes desirable scaling and drying, it also damages the follicle, causes hyper-pigmentation, skin cancer and premature aging.