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of Consumer Guide, the Editors.  "14 Home Remedies for Acne."  16 January 2007.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://health.howstuffworks.com/home-remedies-for-acne.htm>  04 July 2008.

Inside this Article

  1. Introduction to Home Remedies for Acne
  2. Home Remedies for Preventing Acne
  1. Home Remedies for Treating Acne
  2. See all Home Remedies articles
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Home Remedies for Preventing Acne

The easiest way to get rid of acne is to make sure you don't develop it in the first place. Here are some home remedies for keeping your skin healthy.

 Wash properly. Wash only once or twice a day. For the delicate facial skin, use a soap or nonsoap cleanser labeled "mild" or "for sensitive skin" (Dove Unscented, Tone, Basis, and Neutrogena are some options). Rub lightly with your fingertips and warm water; do not use a washcloth. If your skin is oily, try using a soap that contains benzoyl peroxide for its drying properties.

Watch out for oily products. That goes for oily pomades on your hair, heavy oil-based moisturizers, and even oily cleansers such as cold cream.

Forego the facial. Facials, particularly those given by over-enthusiastic aestheticians who haven't been taught how to handle acne-prone skin, can do more harm than good.

Water-based, as opposed to oil-based, makeup is less likely to cause acne.
©2007 Publications International, Ltd.
Water-based, as opposed to oil-based,
makeup is less likely to cause acne.
Use water-based makeup. Check the label to find out if makeup is water- or oil-based. If the label is unclear, use this guideline: If it separates into water and powder when left to sit undisturbed for a while, it's water-based, and if it stays mixed, it contains oil. Better yet, use powder blushes and loose powders instead of liquid. Eye makeup and lipstick are okay, because you don't generally get acne in those areas.
 
Don't rest your chin on your hands. Try not to touch your face. It causes trauma to acne, just like picking pimples does. Tight sweatbands and chin straps from baseball caps and sports equipment can have the same effect.

Screen out the sun. Too much sun can lead to skin cancer and premature aging. Protect your skin without promoting more acne by using an oil-free sunscreen that has a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Unfortunately, many waterproof sunscreens are too likely to clog oil glands to use on the face; so if you'll be sweating heavily or plan on swimming, you'll have to stick to the oil-free variety but be diligent about reapplying it often (as recommended on the label).

Don't worry about diet. Chocolate, greasy foods, nuts, and other foods have not been proven to have anything at all to do with causing teenage acne. Of course, if you notice a correlation between something you eat and your face breaking out, you could try avoiding the offending food.

Watch out for iodine. This piece of advice is still somewhat controversial, but some doctors believe that high levels of iodine, found in some multiple vitamins and in iodized salt, may encourage acne.

Of course no matter how careful your are, most of us will have the occasional pimple. In the next section, we will offer some home remedies for treating acne.

For more information about acne and how to combat it, try the following links:

Acne Glossary
Most of us think of pimples when we think of acne. We don't bother dividing up the different annoying spots we see on our face. But dermatologists have broken pimples down into the following categories:

Comedo (pl. comedones). An oil duct plugged up with oil, dead skin cells, and bacteria.

Whitehead. A closed comedo, or a comedo with skin covering the top. It looks like a tiny, white bump.

Blackhead. An open comedo, or a comedo that does not have skin covering it. It appears black not because it contains dirt, as is commonly believed, but because the material has been exposed to oxygen.

Papule. A ruptured comedo in which there is inflammation and secondary infection. It looks like a small, hard, red bump.

Pustule. A ruptured comedo in which there is inflammation and secondary infection. In contrast to the papule, the pustule has more pus near the surface, giving it a yellowish center.

Nodule (sometimes called a Cyst). A ruptured comedo that is generally larger, deeper, and more painful than a pustule and is more likely to result in scarring. This type of lesion marks the most severe form of acne.

This information is solely for informational purposes. IT IS NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE. Neither the Editors of Consumer Guide (R), Publications International, Ltd., the author nor publisher take responsibility for any possible consequences from any treatment, procedure, exercise, dietary modification, action or application of medication which results from reading or following the information contained in this information. The publication of this information does not constitute the practice of medicine, and this information does not replace the advice of your physician or other health care provider. Before undertaking any course of treatment, the reader must seek the advice of their physician or other health care provider.

Inside this Article

  1. Introduction to Home Remedies for Acne
  2. Home Remedies for Preventing Acne
  1. Home Remedies for Treating Acne
  2. See all Home Remedies articles

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