The Facts And Fiction Surrounding Acne

As with many conditions there is a lot of information distributed about acne and what causes it and this information is a mixture of both fact and fiction. Accordingly, let us look at a few of the things that are being said and see if we can divide the myth from the fact.

Diet

There is no direct link between eating things like chocolate or greasy hamburgers or drinking too many soft drinks and developing acne spots. It is true however that what we eat plays an important role in all the body's systems and therefore it does have a minor role to play in whether acne is less or more likely.

For example, eating greasy foods does not directly turn into rising oil production within the sebaceous glands that adds to acne, although foods that do contribute to an increase in oil production would of course have an effect. However, iodized salt is the only food substance which has been shown to have any real effect and it just exacerbates existing acne but does not cause it.

Hygiene

The chances of getting a spot are increased when a pore becomes plugged and bacteria get trapped inside. What this means is that hygiene habits that work to close the skin's pores can play a role. But this effect is only minimal and the bacteria and dead cell skins that become trapped and are unable to make their way out of the pore are only influenced to a small degree by an absence of regular face washing.

Nevertheless, after acne arrives good skin hygiene is especially important and mild cleansing two times a day with soap and water will help in treating acne and encouraging healthy skin in general. Good hygiene is a good idea for a number of reasons but it is most helpful in treating acne because it provides a good surface for medications to work most efficiently.

Acne spots are greatly influenced by excess sebum (skin oil) production which is triggered chiefly by hormones and harsh cleansers applied roughly do not just clear away any excess oil but also affects the skin's ability to cope with it.

Stress

Because stress has a tendency to weaken the body's immune system and impact its level of hormones it might be thought that stress would play a part in the onset of acne. However, there is no evidence that stress results in acne, but there is evidence to suggest that it could play a small role after acne has developed.

One difficulty in assessing the role played by stress is that people who suffer from chronic stress also also suffer from additional health problems which complicate the picture. Bear in mind too that we are talking here about clinical stress and not simply the worries that we all have as part of the ups and downs of day to day life.

Medicines

A lot of people are tempted to raise the dosage of over-the-counter medications in the belief that if a little medication does a little good then a lot of medicine will do a lot of good. Unfortunately, this is not so and it both wastes medication and might actually harm the skin. You should always stick to the instructions on any medication and if an over-the-counter medication is not showing signs of working within two or three weeks then you should talk to your dermatologist.

It is also worthy of note that there is no such thing as the best acne medicine. Each of us is different and a medication which proves to be the best acne medication for one individual will not necessarily work for somebody else.