5 Tips on Getting Rid of Acne
Not everyone is unlucky enough to suffer from acne at some point in their life, but the fact is most of us do have to deal with bad skin from time to time, but the important thing to remember is that acne can be treated as long, so do not lose heart. There are lots of different acne treatments out there. Some are simple lifestyle changes to boost your overall health, whereas others require a bit more time and effort, but with the right approach, acne need not ruin your teenage years or even your adult ones—so read on for five useful tips on getting rid of acne.
Tip #1 – Give your lifestyle an overhaul
Lots of us can admit to eating too much junk food and not getting enough exercise, but if you are suffering from acne and your skin is a mess, the time has come to start looking at making some positive lifestyle changes. Eating healthily and exercising regularly will not miraculously cure your acne, but it will improve your overall health, and a healthy body and immune system give your skin a fighting chance to recover from acne.
Aim to eat a better diet and cut out the junk food and excess alcohol. Too much fat and sugary food is proven to irritate the sebum glands in the skin, which is a major cause of acne. Once you start eating more fresh fruit and vegetables, you should notice a difference in your complexion. Concentrate on snacking on healthy foods full of vitamins and minerals instead of laying waste to a bag of donuts at coffee time. Your skin will thank you for your self restraint.
Tip #2 – Go natural in your skin care routine
Harsh cleansers and skin care products containing chemicals and addictives are not always good for acne prone skin. Many of them strip the skin of its natural oils, which only causes the sebum glands to over compensate by producing even more oil. This becomes a vicious circle and the more you cleanse the skin the more spots you get. So rather than use harsh skin cleaners, try using skincare products made from natural ingredients instead.
Natural skincare products are a lot kinder to the skin. They do not contain strong chemicals and are less likely to cause further irritation on skin already stressed and inflamed from the acne. Skin products containing natural ingredients such as tea tree oil can help treat the bacterial infection and settle the inflammation down, while store cupboard staples such as honey and oatmeal can deep cleanse the pores and remove blackheads.
It is worth experimenting with natural ingredients and making your own face masks using citrus and antibacterial tea tree oil. See what works for you and have fun at the same time—natural products are safe to use and very effective for mild to moderate cases of acne, so give it a go.
Tip #3 – Probiotics
If your doctor has prescribed antibiotics to help treat your acne, it is a good idea to add probiotics to your diet. Antibiotics are not terribly discriminating and kill all bacteria in the body, including the good bacteria that populate the digestive system. So although antibiotics are very helpful at controlling the skin infections that cause acne, they play havoc with your gut and in the long term can make your acne worse.
Good bacteria in the gut help the body to effectively process waste and remove the toxins. When the delicate balance of flora in the digestive system is disturbed, the body is unable to get rid of toxic waste products and it all accumulates, eventually oozing out through the skin instead, causing acne to worsen.
Taking a probiotic supplement can help to restore the natural levels of good bacteria in your system. Alternatively, try eating probiotic foods such as natural live yoghurts. These are a tasty way of ensuring your good bacteria stay nice and healthy, even if you need to take a long term course of antibiotics.
Tip #4 – Do not stress about things!
Keep an eye on your stress levels if you want to keep your acne under control. It is easy to stress out about acne, but stress is incredibly bad for your health. Stress can cause all kinds of long term health problems (including making your acne worse) and many cases of adult acne are triggered by stress.
Once you recognize that stress is affecting you, try and do something positive to keep your stress under control. If work is stressing you out, delegate some responsibilities to junior personnel or consider changing jobs. If relationships are the stress point, take a good look at where changes can be made.
Try yoga or Pilates to help manage your stress levels in a healthy way, or join the gym and start burning off some excess energy doing exercise—the harder you work, the more effectively your metabolism gets rid of waste and increases healing blood flow to the skin.
Tip #5 – Do not suffer in silence
Acne can be very depressing, no matter how old you are, but always remember, there are lots of help and resources for acne sufferers available if you ask for it. If over the counter acne treatments are not working, seek medical advice. Doctors and dermatologists have lots of treatments for acne, so there is no need to suffer in silence any longer.
