Sensitive Skin Acne Treatment

The only thing worse than having to deal with acne, is to deal with acne when you have sensitive skin! The search for the perfect sensitive skin acne treatment is often times elusive, especially given the incredible variety of medicine, creams, soaps, and diets available.

I can understand the frustration you must be experiencing – you follow every instruction your doctor gives you but it helps only marginally; you wash your face regularly, use the right toner and pimple creams, but all that leaves you with is skin that’s painful, red and even blotchy. Just like you, what many other acne sufferers with sensitive skin fail to recognize is that the rules of engagement are completely different.

Click Here for the Best Guide to Sensitive Skin Acne Treatment

As you know, sensitive skin is more susceptible to breakouts of blackheads, whiteheads, zit, pimples, blemishes and spots, more so than regular skin. Also, your skin gets irritated much easier, experiences blotching more readily and can have painful reactions to certain products. In short, what you need is sensitive skin acne treatment that is gentle and light yet able to effectively reduce the effects of acne. You’re probably saying, “I already know all that! Just show me how..” , well here are some of the tips I give to my students.

YOUR TO-DO LIST

First up, let’s discuss the skin care or face wash products you should use. For starters, ensure that you only use non-comedogenic (products that don’t block pores) and preferably products labelled as hypoallergenic. You will recognize that this may sound like a generalist statement, since different individuals have sensitive skin for different reasons, yet it is an important one nonetheless.

Why non-comedogenic? Well, many things need to happen before your skin is completely acne free, but the absolute last thing you want to happen is for your pores to be blocked, giving opportunities for cysts, nodules or pimples to form easily. It should be the only type of sensitive skin acne treatment you use.

Hypoallergenic products on the other hand tend to be so because they are normally soapless (which is important), contain little or no fragrances and have low concentrations of chemicals explained further below. There are many of these types of products around, but always remember that what works for someone will not necessarily work for you. Therefore, it is important to find a product that you are comfortable with and stick to it once you know it suits your skin.

To test, apply a small amount on the inside of your arm and watch for reactions within the 1^st half hour. Reactions here are a telltale sign of the same sensitivity your face skin may experience. Of course the main advantage is that you won’t have to walk around with an exposed rash if in fact it happens! A great alternative to these products is to use unscented castile soaps since they are gentle, foam very lightly and contain no industrial chemicals that will agitate your skin.

If you do use cosmetics and make-up, be wary of those with strong fragrances, since that may well be the irritant. Things like foundation powders and blushers also may contain colouring that could cause reactions, so as before, choose and stick to one you know is right for your skin. The jury is still out on whether mineral or non-mineral makeups are more beneficial for acne sufferers, but one thing is for certain, less make-up is always best. When attempting to find sensitive skin acne treatment, it always pays to err on the side of caution.

THINGS YOU SHOULD AVOID

On the flipside, there are some things that you should be careful to avoid, such as using skin-care products with exfoliating properties for instance. Such products normally contain particles like crushed peach pits or fine sand to give it an extra abrasive nature. Avoid them like the plague, using these too regularly will strip your skin of vital lipids and also subdue it to unnecessary harsh scratching. People with normal skin might use it to speed up removal of extra dead skin, but if you have sensitive skin, trust me, it is simply extra stress that skin that your skin does not need. I normally recommend them for normal skin users, but they’re a definite no- no as  sensitive skin acne treatment.

Also, try to avoid washing your face more than twice a day. Although almost all face wash advertisements you see focus excessively on removing excess oil, be aware that your face actually needs to maintain an adequate oil-water balance for healthy function. If you do feel that your face gets oily throughout the day, use oil blotting paper instead to remove the extra sebum. Having an extremely dry face (stripped of all its oil) is no better than having very oily skin.

Lastly, in selecting the appropriate skin care products, avoid going for products with a high salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide percentage. Although benzoyl peroxide is commonly touted as the magic “quick fix” of acne, what get publicized less are the side effects that accompany its use, especially in longer term. Even people with regular skin can get affected by the redness, itchiness and flaking of skin, let alone used as sensitive skin acne treatment.

Salicylic acid on the other hand acts like a commercial exfoliant, by stripping or dissolving top layers of skin (which is mostly dead skin) through a weak acid reaction. This can often leave your skin dry and may irritate it further if you have allergies to the substance. Fret not however, there are natural alternatives to these products that are as good as if not better than medicines with a high chemical dosage.

Take tea tree oil creams for example, they are primarily made of the extract of tea trees and has been recognized as a fantastic remedy for acne. Why is it great? Well the good ones contain no harsh chemicals, have a good helping of antioxidant properties which help combat free radicals and smell quite pleasant to boost! Furthermore, cases of allergic reactions to the substance are very few and far in between. Best of all, its all natural  – definitely a plus point for sensitive skin acne treatment!

Click Here for the Best Guide to Sensitive Skin Acne Treatment

In the end, all the advice above will set you on a great path to treating your immediate acne, but still does little to address the real underlying issues. Here’s what most dermatologists fail to tell you (well, not the good ones anyway), there is more to curing acne than just using products and having skin care habits. I’m sick of the number of times people have told me how they walk out of the dermatologist’s office with a bagful of costly treatments, detailed instructions on how to use them and not much advice apart from that!

Let me qualify that they’re not deliberately trying to deceive you – far from it! They are looking to solve your pain, but since you need the immediate pains solved quick, that’s what they focus on primarily. Acne however, must be addressed with a holistic treatment that focuses on balancing each aspect of the body. You might not realize it, but your skin is the largest detoxification organ in your body. As such, one of its prime functions is to remove toxins from your body through various means, resulting in external signs such as rashes, redness and yes even acne!

A great starting point is to reduce your intake of sugar and caffeine. This helps to deprive the bacteria on your skin of the simple sugars it needs as a source of nutrients. Also, ensure you get sufficient amount of sleep, drinks at least 1.8 -2 litres of water daily and keep your internal stress down to a minimum. Hormonal reactions and stress are perhaps the 2 things that can trigger acne more quickly than anything else, especially if you have sensitive skin. If you’re looking to augment your sensitive skin acne treatment, this is certainly a step in the right direction.