Acne Information

By Melanie Vasseur

Those who have never suffered with acne (Zits) cannot possibly understand the stress it causes; but things are gradually improving for sufferers. It is one of those areas where research has continued to make advancements; as a consequence, many of these new treatments are very affective. Most acne skin care products can be broken down into three main areas:

* Internet or Drugstore: Treatment that helps prevents condition
* Internet or Drugstore: Treatment to help relieve the condition
* Prescription only treatments

Those that fall into the preventative category are based around general skin conditioning to help stop acne from forming; this sector deals with skin creams, lotions and cleansers that can help stop the problem. Many people use products similar to this every day as part of their skin care regime; many use these products to protect their skin from the environment even if they do not have the acne condition. There are acne skin care products that are more specialized in there approach; they clean out the pores to help stop sebum or oil which can clog these areas. Excess oil needs to be stopped from clogging the pores as this oil make it easier for bacteria to grow, exacerbating the condition.

Skin care treatments such as exfoliation skin peels, clean the skin and help control the spread of the condition; most are readily available over the counter at drug stores or even online. The peels clean the skin by removing all surface pollution and dead skin cells which can block the pores. Many other acne skin care products have become available over the counter and on the internet; they don't usually require a prescription.

Most of these creams etc. are based on benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid, both of which are the enemies of bacteria (and hence acne); these include creams, cleansers and peels that slow down acne formation. Although benzoyl peroxide works well, reactions can happen so it is suggested that any skin care product containing this should not have more than 5.5 percent of the active ingredient; if a reaction occurs, a cleaner or cream containing alpha hydroxy acid should be safe.

It might just be a case of trial and error to find an acne skin care product that works; if nothing you use is effective then speak to your dermatologist for advice. There are benefits of seeing your doctor or dermatologist, they can prescribe you with a prescription for treatments not available over the counter, for example a course of antibiotics. In some case your doctor may suggest the pustules are drained of harmful contents under local anesthetic; specialists never recommend the sufferer tries this themselves as it can cause permanent skin damage. Your doctor may even suggest a course of hormone therapy as a skin care treatment; hormone changes are known to be one cause of acne. There is no longer any reason to despair if you have this skin complaint or are prone to its effects.

Esthetician, chemist and spa owner, Melanie Vasseur has been producing her own line of skin care products for over 25 years. For more information on her holistic line of skin care products please visit www.vsskin.com. She may be reached at Melanie@vsskin.com or 619-236-9095.