Causes And Cures Of Adult Acne

Acne is generally a teenage problem but it can return in adult life between the ages of 25-40 years of age. Adult acne can be caused through a variety of different reasons. The hormones in birth control pills, a possible hormone imbalance, stress, excessive sweating or being a hot climate can cause pimples, poor quality make up choices and it is also down to genetics.

If you are on a birth control pill, perhaps changing to a different one could help, there are many available. Using oil free cosmetics and non-acnegenic products that help keep the skin from breaking out. Hormone imbalances can be treated by your doctor on the relevant medication, stress can be managed successfully to minimize further attacks. Wearing cotton and clothing that allows the skin to breathe, avoid very tight clothing made of materials like Lycra and nylon where possible.

Blackheads are a big problem in adult acne although they are not caused by dirt. It is a combination of dead skin cells and oil that become trapped within the pores; this then clogs the duct that mixes with bacteria that turns black once it is exposed to the air. Whiteheads are a collection of sebum and keratin that plugs the opening of the pilosebaceous unit (skin pore) and embeds itself in the follicular canal under the skin so that it looks like a raised, white bump. It is also often called as a closed comedone.

Exfoliating can help to loosen blackheads although you must use a very gentle facial scrub. Other methods such as adhesive strips and comedone extractors can be used to loosen the blackheads although they are met with very mixed reviews and can leave marks on the skin. Steaming the skin can help open the pores and allow blackheads to be removed. It is best to seek advice from a dermatologist or skin spealist who will give you the best method to removing them.

Adult acne is treated in exactly the same way as teenage acne although the products that teenagers use are often only suitable for very young skin and so as you get older, these products can be too caustic. A visit to a trained facialist could help as they can advise you precisely what you should be using on your skin. Contrary to popular belief, chocolate and cheese does not cause acne.

For serious adult acne that does not respond to ordinary treatments, retinoids, antibiotics and azelaic acid can be used, although this is extremely expensive. Certain birth control pills are highly effective at treating acne and a more extreme treatment is the use of Accutane a highly concentrated form of Vitamin A but this is only to be used for 5 months as misuse can cause serious irreparable damage.

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