Acne is a sensitive skin condition and should not be over aggressed. Believe it or not cleansing too much isn't the best thing for your skin, but a proper skin care routine is key to treating any skin condition. These few tips are great for those who are treating adult acne or pre-pubescent acne in pre-teens and teenagers.
Tip #1: A proper skin care routine, obviously. BUT, cleansing in the morning isn't entirely a necessary step. Cleansing at night is most definitely necessary, but while you're sleeping your skin doesn't accumulate as much pollution and dirt as during the day, so a simple toner or astringent is all you need to use to start your day.
Tip #2: Herbal steam baths! To do this, you fill a bowl or your sink with scolding hot water and hold a towel over your head as you lean over the water allowing the steam to open the pores. This is effective on its own prior to using a clay mask or treatment mask. To make this more effective, add a few drops of rosemary essential oil, teat tree essential oil or even willow bark essential oil. Each of them have astringent, soothing, and hydrating properties. Steam the face for 5-10 minutes, pat dry with a towel and moisturize or follow with a treatment mask.
Tip #3: Instead of an astringent (toner with salicylic acid), use witch hazel, or the steam bath listen above. Witch hazel has great antiseptic properties and is an effective toner for hormonal acne such as pubescent acne or pregnancy acne, as salicylic acid should not be used during pregnancy.
Tip #4: Use a treatment moisturizer. Treatment creams and lotions usually contain salicylic acid or glycolic acid. For teenagers, I recommend a low percentage of salicylic acid because %2 and higher can be quite irritating and glycolic acid exfoliates the top layer of the skin which is very unnecessary for young skin. Treatment creams (such as Bioderma Sebium Al, Avene Cleanance K, La Roche Possay Effeclar Duo) are best used at night, but if used during the day they should be used with an SPF of 15-30.
Tip #5: Look for oil free (especially mineral oil because it is a pore clogger, same with petrolatum) and non-comedogenic. Oil isn't a bad thing for acne, however products on the market don't always have the highest of quality ingredients so they can produce large quantities at a low cost. Most often the oil in moisturizing products is mineral oil, which isn't the best choice and will clog pores. So look for oil free to avoid this, also non-comedogenic means that the ingredients in the product have been tested for quality and do not clog pore. This is important as acne is often caused by a build up of dead cells and over production of oil in the pores, we don't want to clog them more!
Tip #6: This goes with tip #1, don't use harsh facial scrubs too often. I recommend treating the skin condition as gently as possible and once it is cleared up, add a scrub ONE day a week to keep the pores clear of dead skin cells as a preventative measure only. Clay masks are great to follow up after a scrub because the pores are clear and can now be treated to prevent bacteria growth. And continue with the above treatments.
All these tips can be used together as a routine or you can pick one or a couple to try as treatments! I hope this was helpful for you all and good luck!
Presley Charlotte :)
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