Diabetes | Sinusitis | Flatulance | Stomach Acid | Gout | Stress | Acne | Weight Loss

Indigestion | Body Odor | Gastritis | Insomnia | Asthma | Constipation | Athlete's Foot | Bad Breath

_______________________________________________________________________________________

How to reduce and eliminate acne

Before we start discussing the cause, treatment and elimination of acne, let me remind all affected readers: do not prick, pierce or squeeze your acne at any time. Let's face it. Just be what you are. Let your face be as it is. Do not feel embarrassed or shy when facing the public because everyone understands and sympathizes with your predicament. When you squeeze inflamed acne, you are not giving the inner skin layer a chance to rejuvenate. No doubt you remove the pus but you will also leave scars permanently especially with poor skin turnover.

Acne is a very common skin eruption which is characterized by comedones (blackheads and whiteheads) and pus-filled pustules. Severe acne can cause the emergence of deep cysts, redness, swelling, extreme damage to the skin, and scarring. Normally it starts at puberty and if left unattended will lead to a serious problem right through adolescence. Though usually appeared on the face, acne can also erupt on the back, chest and the shoulders.

Acne occurs when hair follicles become blocked with oil and dead skin cells. As we know, at the base of the hair follicle, there are sebaceous glands that secrete the oily substance called sebum. Sebum has a purpose in that it lubricates your hair and skin but as always when you have an excess of anything, problems will crop up. In this case, the sebum travels up the hair shaft and team up with dead skin cells to form a soft plug. This will lead to the formation of a whitehead, blackhead or the inflamed or infected pimples. The increased sebum production can be due to many factors including hormones, bacteria, and medications.

The treatment of acne involves four areas of concerns: speeding up skin cell turnover, stopping bacterial infection, reducing the inflammation and reducing the oil production. If you can tackle these areas, then elimination of acne is easy.

1] Ensure that you wash your face gently twice a day with a mild face wash with a pH of 5.5 which will stabilize the skin's condition thus promoting its barrier function and resistance to harmful effects of the environment. Washing will reduce the surface oil, and maintaining the face in a dry condition will reduce infection.

2] You must also ensure that you have enough sleep because skin cells are nourished and rejuvenated during sleep.

3] For bacterial infection, depending upon the severity of acne, topical or systemic antibiotics may be initially prescribed by your physician but this should not be unnecessarily prolonged because this has a bad effect on the friendly bacterial flora essential for our health.

4] Probably the most effective anti acne product is benzoyl peroxide as it kills the bacteria P. acnes, also helps in removing excess oils from the skin, and removes dead skin cells. Try using a lower strength of the preparation as it can cause excessive dryness, redness and minor swelling. Contrary to popular beliefs, foods do not cause or exacerbate acne.

5]  Eliminate all forms of sugars and refined carbohydrates from your diet.

6] The following supplements are useful to reduce and eliminate acne:

    a)  Vitamin E 400 IU daily

    b)  Zinc Tablet 20mg daily

    c)  Omega 3 Oil 2000 mg daily

    d)  Evening Primrose Oil 2000 mg daily

    e)  Vitamin A 50,000 IU daily