Acne Prevention
What's the best way to get rid of acne? Prevent the pimples from forming
up in the first place! Articles below provide information and tips that
will help you in preventing acne.
Acne prevention often becomes essential during our teenage years. It can
cause great distress and embarrassment at an age when young people are
very concerned about how they look. Almost no teenager – and many an
adult on drugs like lithium – is spared a prolonged period of acne
problems. Pubescent girls need to pay greater attention to acne
prevention because of the hormonal upsurges associated with the onset of
menstruation.
Increased hormonal activity is the root cause of acne occurrence. This
in turn causes excess oil production in the skin’s sebaceous glands. It
is a sad fact that the areas most affected by acne are those that are
almost constantly visible with today’s youthful fashion trends. Most
acne prevention and control compounds contain specific compounds to
address the problem. The packaging will indicate the presence of these
compounds. One of these is benzoyl peroxide (sometimes in combination
with the antibiotic erythromycin). The popular Clearasil contains this
agent.
Most affected teenagers address acne prevention with manic scrubbing and
dieting. They do this because of a mistaken assumption that the problem
is related to poor hygiene or improper nutrition. Avoiding fat-laden
junk foods like cheeseburgers is definitely a step in the right
direction for other health-related reasons. However, it will do little
by ways of acne prevention. Skin hygiene is important, and one can
prevent acne to a certain extent by increased and regular cleansing.
However, one tends to go overboard and resort to using extreme measures
like a face wash of strong toothpaste and other harsh compounds. This
will only aggravate the problem by encouraging increased compensatory
oil production in the skin.
The belief that astringents discourage excess oil secretion is nothing
but a myth. Astringents do take care of superficial oils. However, they
are of no use in acne prevention because they cause the skin to
contract. This clogs pores and causes long-term aggravation for
short-term cosmetic benefits. The best course of action is using a mild
cleansing agent to wash town the entire face (not just the fabled T zone
or only acne-affected areas) and regular shampooing of hair.
Oily hair causes facial oiliness. This is especially true for those who
sport chin/shoulder-length hair. Most importantly, picking at or rubbing
of acne blemishes is strictly contraindicated. Doing this can lead to
permanent scarring and skin discoloration that will require measures
like laser treatment to correct later on. Excessive exposure to sunlight
is also a definite no-no - especially if one is using a compound like
trenitoin, which increases the skin’s photosensitivity. Tanning lamps
can cause the same harmful effect. Females affected with acne must
rigorously scan the contents of their cosmetics before using them – only
those without an oily base and with the tag ‘noncomedogenic’
(non-obstructing to skin pores) on the label should be used. It is also
important to avoid sports headgear such as headbands and cycling
helmets. Many fashion accessories that cover part of the facial skin can
cause constrictio