Acne Vulgaris

February 22, 2010

How To Avoid Acne Vulgaris And Pimples

Stephanie Young asked:

You can definitely learn how to avoid acne vulgaris and pimples. Commonly called blackheads, whiteheads and acne, these common skin problems afflict all sorts of people, especially teenagers over the world.

Acne vulgaris is a type of acne that is inflammatory in nature. Although acne is found to be at its most severe stage in the teenage years, it is known to become mild and mostly disappear as a person crosses this turbulent period in life. Besides teenagers, women commonly face acne problems during their PMS phase. This is because there are a lot of hormonal changes in the body before a woman gets her period. Surprisingly even people in their 40s have also been known to get pimpls.

This affliction affects those areas of skin where the sebaceous follicles are the most active. These areas are the face, chest, and the back. If you are wondering why teenagers get zits more than others, it is because in this phase of life the levels of the male hormone testosterone are usually high. As a result acne gets triggered. Over time as the body creates a natural balance of hormones, the acne also decreases and eventually disappears. But how long will it take for the pimples to go away forever, no one knows. Sometimes it can disappear in a few weeks and sometimes it can take forever.

Acne vulgaris is known to cause redness and scarring. Large pimples are called cysts. Both these conditions are painful. It is a scientific fact that acne vulgaris does not even spare newborns. It can be present in the first few weeks and months in the life of a newborn. Why is that so? Well, that is because the maternal hormones contain an excess of androgen. But this acne is neonatal and disappears by itself. Acne in teens is also a result of the same androgen hormone and its changing levels.

Whoever has said, 'like father, like son' or 'like mother like daughter,' must be referring to acne. That is because heredity plays a major role in causing acne. Besides hormone imbalance and heredity, cosmetics, poor diet habits and increasing levels of pollution are some other causative agents.

You might want to know how to avoid this skin problem. There are several ways to do that. Let us see them now to gear ourselves for our battle against acne...

Medications such as steroids, lithium, antiepileptics, and iodides cause acne. So keep away from such medicines as much as possible.
Even seafood can make pimples worse as it contain a high amount of iodine, a friend of acne. It is better to take sea food in moderate quantities.
Cocoa rich foods such as chocolate and fried food stuffs like french fries, potato chips and sugar, among others, cause acne. So now you know what to eat.
True acne vulgaris may be caused due to pregnancy and polycystic ovary syndrome. Now, you can't do much about that, so bear the acne with a smile.

Here are some easy-to-remember tips on how to avoid acne...

Never use rough sponges or face cleansers that have granules on your face. Such products rip the natural oils off and leave you exposed to acne.
Avoid touching your face again and again especially if your hands are unwashed.
Wear a sunscreen when you step out in the sun.
Do not pick at your existing pimples. That would only cause more to break out.

There might be numerous answers to the question, 'How to avoid acne vulgaris and pimples', but first and foremost do not lose hope. Consult a doctor, use natural remedies and finally try out the products in the market. Something or the other will surely click and you would be able to avoid zits forever.

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