How to Acne

Pimples on the face, neck, back and/or shoulders characterise acne. The disorder often begins during adolescence, the very time when appearance becomes especially important. Although it can cause considerable distress, acne poses no risk to health. The malady is more prevalent in boys than girls and affects 80 percent of teenagers. Acne is one of the commonest skin disorders - if not the commonest. It has been estimated that 70 percent of the population have some clinically evident acne at some stage during adolescence. It is a disease of the sebaceous (oil-producing) glands which occurs only during a particular age period. It starts after adolescence and by the age of 25 years most patients stop having acne. The underlying cause of acne is an over-sensitivity to normal levels of the sex hormone testosterone. This over-sensitivity makes the sebaceous glands in the skin produce an abnormally high level of sebum, the oily secretion that lubricates and protects the skin.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

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• At the same time, an abnormal reaction of the lining of the sebaceous ducts makes them too sticky. Instead of being shed when they die, these lining cells build up and block the duct. The dammed-up se

1. PREVENTION
   The following general advice is helpful for any one who tends to get acne, and it may be all you need to do to control mild acne.
    Wash your face with an oil free soap that doesn’t overdry the skin.
    If you need a moisturizer, use a product that is light and non-greasy.
    Ultraviolet rays can help relieve acne, so expose affected skin to day light for a maximum of half an hour each day, but not when the sun is at its most intense (usually 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.).
    Choose your sunscreen with care. Buy products that are oil face or non comedogenic (free of ingredients that clog the pores of the skin).
    Avoid getting very sweaty or spending long periods in a human environment. Many people find that this makes their skin condition worse.
    Iodine containing food supplements and iodized salt may exacerbate acne.
    Keep your hair off your face, especially if it is oily and avoid touching your face too often.
    If you use hair gel and have acne on your forehead, do without these products for a couple of weeks to see if this helps.
    Apply tea-tree oil to blemishes with a cotton bud or piece of gauze once or twice a day. If you prefer, dilute the oil with water.
2. TREATMENT
   The baseline treatment for the prevention of acne should be applied all over the acne prone areas like a cosmetic. Two or three applications a day especially after washing the face are generally adequate, and 5% lactic acid in a suitable base is the best remedy for this purpose, although other antibacterial/antiseptic agents like 2% erythromycin, 1% clindamycin, or 10% sulphur in calamine lotion can also be used. Retinoic acid as a 0.05% ointment, or benzoyl peroxide 5-10% gel are more useful for comedomic lesions.
3. Whenever acne is more severe and cannot be controlled with topical applications alone, one can use an appropriate antibiotic systemically in full therapeutic doses or ketoconazole for periods of 4-8 weeks. Such courses are to be repeated as and when required. Applications of lactic acid lotion or the other agents have to be continued even when required. Applications of lactic acid lotion or the other agents have to be continued even when there is no acne till patient has grown out of the acne age.