When I was a teenager, acne and pimples seemed like the plague, and I've never really broken free of their humiliating tentacles. It’s not only the young that are afflicted, everyone from babies to adults can suffer from some unsightly and painful pimples from time to time. So, it’s such a godsend that we have these 8 wonderfully easy, fast-acting remedies lying around our homes that can actually assuage and erase all our acne problems.
Read on to see just how to fix your pimple problems for good, and learn whether toothpaste really is a good solution to your acne!
What is acne?
Our skin is made up of pores, each of which can potentially form its own pimple. Underneath our pores, glands secrete an oil, sebum, which hydrates our skin. Moving up through the pore, sebum carries old dead skin cells, clearing them out of the way. In every skin pore we also have a hair follicle, which can occasionally block up the pore, meaning no oil or dead cells can escape. When the pore gets clogged up and is filled with bacteria, it forms an inflamed pimple.
Scientists and dermatologists (skin specialists) are uncertain about the principal causes of acne. Some believe it to be generated through an excess of hormones (as with teenagers, babies and pregnant women), some through a genetic predisposition and others through particular environmental factors, such as the use of skin products.
Other possible causes that may lead to acne could be the use of medications, including contraceptives, lithium or steroids. It’s been reported that certain foods such as dairy, soy, sugar and bread may help cause acne to develop. Dairy and soy intake may cause hormonal changes; sugar and bread (wheat in particular) may cause inflammation.
Since bread may even contain all of these risky ingredients, one simple solution to rid yourself of pimples is to remove bread from your diet temporarily, to see whether this has any positive effect on your skin condition.
Different types of pimples
Comedone magnified x10: source
The most common type of pimples are:
• Whiteheads are comedones, clogged pores, formed when one’s pore is totally clogged up with oil and dead skin cells. The appearance of the pimple is white.
• Blackheads are comedones, formed similarly to whiteheads. They only appear black due to the light; they are not in fact filled with black or dark dirt.
• Papules are the result or second stage of black or white heads when inflamed or irritated. Picking at them can lead to worsening inflammation, infection or scarring.
• Pustules look similar to whiteheads with worse inflammation, and are filled with pus.
Here are two more examples that are less common but more serious: Nodules – large and firm skin bumps; and Cysts – large pus filled bumps. If you suspect that you have these pimples, then you should consult your doctor or dermatologist.
Pimple Treatments
Common acne medication is typically made up of combinations of the following ingredients which have been shown to offer effective solutions to acne related skin problems:
• Benzoyl peroxide kills bacteria and helps skin turnover. It keeps skin pores free of bacteria and clean.
• Salicylic acid is used to treat inflammation of white and blackheads and also reduce the likelihood of pores becoming blocked.
• Retin-A is a form of vitamin A used to improve skin cell turnover. It also helps unclog your skin’s pores.
If you feel the need to see a dermatologist, they will probably provide you with stronger solutions of the preceding ingredients in order to rid you off the problem. Otherwise they may prescribe topical antimicrobials or oral antibiotics. Contraceptive pills can also, in some cases, have the opposite effect to that listed above. Some cause acne and some resolve it.
Preventative habits
In order to prevent any acne outbreaks, or to keep your skin as it is, make use of these preventative habits.
1. Wash your face twice per day – no more, no less.
2. Get into the habit of not touching your face without washing your hands first.
3. Refrain from picking away or squeezing your pimples. Your skin should fix itself, but if you interfere you are at risk of scarring.
4. Think of all the things that come into contact with your face (glasses, pillowcases) and start to clean them regularly.
5. Refrain from sleeping with your makeup, washing it off before you go to bed. Select noncomedogenic brands of makeup, whether you are buying for yourself or someone else.
8 Easy Home Remedies for Acne
Here are 8 fast acting but wonderfully simple home remedies you can use to fight your acne problems – so long as the condition is not too severe. If it is contact your dermatologist for medical treatment.
1. Aspirin
Acne medication often contains salicylic acid, and, luckily, so does aspirin. So instead of forking out for something you probably already have at home, try grinding up a single pill to make a paste which you can apply to the affected areas of your skin.
2. Honey
Honey is a wonderful natural anti-inflammatory solution to your acne related problem. It is also antiseptic. All you need to do is dab a bit of raw honey onto your spots. After waiting just a few minutes wash it off.
3. Tea Tree Oil
Tea tree oil is another handy and homely natural anti-inflammatory remedy, which will go a long way towards soothing those fiendish spots. Simply apply some oil to the spots and leave them overnight to work their magic.
4. Eye Drops
Eye drops are designed to soothe red eyes, and luckily they can be used to perform the same function on your affected skin. Just dab some of the solution to your skin, gently rubbing it in.
5. Ice
New spots can feel like red-hot burning pustules, so it stands to reason that a bit of frozen ice would do the trick to calm them down. Applying a bit of ice - wrapped up in a light towel of some kind - to your skin will immediately reduce any puffiness and cool things down a bit.
6. Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar also shares some key properties with typical acne treatments. If you have some of this lovely vinegar in your kitchen, why not apply it to your acne? It will kill bacteria and promote a greater cell turnover.
Baking soda, that superb powder everybody loves, functions as a mild skin exfoliant, helping to loosen that layer of dead skin on your face. Apply a paste of baking soda and water to your face to remove any excess oil, this will also encourage new cell growth.
8. Lemon Juice
Even if you don’t have any apple cider vinegar, you can still achieve the same effects with fresh lemon juice. Simply apply to your face and leave it overnight.
What about toothpaste?
When I was a lad I heard that the best home remedy for my unsightly spots was toothpaste. But I was never very convinced by the results, and now I know why. Toothpaste, although it contains some genuinely helpful ingredients such as baking soda and peroxide, is not suitable for skin. As well as drying your skin and your pimples out, it unfortunately causes too much skin irritation to be considered a good home remedy. So, put aside this age old idea about toothpaste and start using any of the other 8 home-remedies above!
h/t: tipsbulletin.com
