Acne Magazine : Skin Care, Tips, Treatment Reviews

So, it’s been about two months now that I’ve had my pricey Clarisonic facial cleanser tool. For a refresher, the Clarisonic is a device that is made by the same folks who make those Sonicare toothbrushes, which I have to admit I’m dying of curiosity to try and see if it works better than your run of the mill manual toothbrush. It uses “supersonic” cleansing action, where the bristles rotate so quickly that they literally help get down deeper into the pores, and get your skin cleaner.

I got it because I wanted to start really getting my face clean and smooth every night since I do wear moisturizer, foundation and an additional SPF face perfector tinted product as well. I just felt like I wasn’t getting my skin totally clean at night I guess, and I thought that this Clarisonic tool may help with that. Plus, I thought it would be nice to treat myself to a relaxing, massaging, deep humming and soothing type of cleanse every night.

So I bought it. I like that way it made my skin feel right away, but I couldn’t really gauge whether it was making my skin look better or not until I went a week without using it when I forgot to pack it when I went on vacation for a week to the Carolinas.

I did miss it, but I really wanted to see if my skin looked any different. It seems that this thing does help to keep away those little irritation bumps that tend to pop up on my chin. Perhaps those were there because I wasn’t getting my face 100% clean every night and leaving debris in my pores, or maybe there is another reason. Whatever the reason, I did notice my skin looked slightly better when I started using the Clarisonic again.

It looks a bit clearer, and smoother and more evenly toned, so I think this thing does make a difference. I don’t however think this is a necessity, I think you can probably get good results using a cheaper method of deep cleaning, but I think this may last a long time, so in the end, it will probably end up only costing me pennies a day to use.

I’ve had those long, lazy days on the weekend sometimes where I’ve already washed all the makeup and dirt and grime from the day off of my face the previous night, and I’m sitting at my computer, getting errands, run or doing whatever in the morning, that I just plain forget to wash my face the next day. What’s the big deal anyways, it’s already washed the night before, why not give my skin a total break from soap, water, and whatnot the next day?

It depends on how oily your skin is, but you may very well be able to get away with these occasional entire days without washing your face, unless of course you need to put on makeup, then it’s entirely advisable that you wash your face in the morning to prepare your skin and prime it with protective moisturizers and SPF for the day to come.

Many times though, especially if it’s a day where I know I’m not going to be exposed to UV in the winter, and I really don’t want to dry my skin out all the time by washing it twice a day, and it’s a weekend day where I don’t have to put on face paint for my job, I enjoy just leaving my face be and going washless for the day. I just use a blotter mid day to blot off the excess oil, and I’m good to go.

Then, the funny thing is, when I do finally wash my face in the evening (I still do wash it the once at least, don’t want too much toxic stuff and oil to build up, and I want my face to be clean from debris when I sleep), my face feels baby smooth. It’s almost like your skin needs a break from washing, and needs to bathe it’s own protective oils all day once in a while.

It’ sort of like a vacation for the skin, is the way I look at it. And so far, this practice has not made me break out at all. I think that having acne, unless you have severely oily skin, we tend to think that we have to constantly wash and dry out our skin, and in fact that damages it more and just makes us break out more in the end. It’s good to give your skin a break from washing and makeup every once in a while – it allows it to breathe and be free of anything, just for a little while.

Something that not too many people may be upset about, seeing how indoor tanning at salons have become pretty out of fashion because of the dangers of excess sun exposure as warned by so many (although I do believe we need some sun, we need that vitamin D!), is the fact that the Obama administration has decided to tax indoor tanning to help recover the billions lost in other concessions for the economy’s fix it package (aka the bailout).

So, to pay for so many shortcomings of banks, tanning salons will now have to pay a tanning tax if they offer indoor tanning to the government. I guess you gotta recover your money some how, huh? What I do find a little interesting is that they chose to tax an unnecessary, fun thing that lots of teens do and there has been such a drive to stop teens from tanning, I’m thinking that they did this on purpose to sort of kill two birds with one stone.

Although I hardly doubt that many young girls will stop going tanning just because of a tax. My guess is that the tax will be somewhat negligible when the cost is inevitably passed on to the consumer, and they’ll barely notice the difference in the cost of their tanning sessions.

Should be interesting to see how this shakes out. I don’t think it will force tanning salons to go under or anything like that, as they will definitely find a way to pass the cost on to their customers, but they may have a little price adjusting to do for a while when they try to figure out their new strategies for covering costs.

Accutane (isotretinoin) is an OTC (over the counter) product used for treatment of severe acne problems. Isotretinoin is given as an oral medication, only prescribed by a dermatologist. Isotretinoin was first developed as chemotherapy medication for pancreatic and brain cancer and other. His chemical composition is retinoid; he is derivative of a synthetic form of Vitamin A and is found in small quantities normally in the body.

But in 1982 Hoffman-La Roche announced isotretinoin as Accutane, a revolutionary systemic drug for treatment of severe acne problem. Accutane targets sebaceous glands and reduces oil production. But as all drugs he has side effects, like dry skin, dryness of the nose which leads to nose bleeds and eyes dryness also.

But the more serious side effect is his teratogenic (Birth Defects) effect. Sexually active woman and still in reproductive age are given the advise to take at last two forms of contraceptives during treatment. It also effects on blood composition and may lead to depression, suicide and mental instability.

The best benefit of Accutane is that after one or two treatments courses, acne should go into long term remission, however there are some that have not experienced this and have had pursue alternative acne treatments.

For the prescribing of the Accutane it is the doctor or dermatologist that must carefully and correctly gauge the proper dose and time of administration and the period of treatments duration. Also the dermatologist must take care of the benefit–risk ratio for every single patient with acne. Since 01.03.2006 this acne medicament is prescription drug in United States and dermatologist are required to register their patients before prescribing.

But these precisions didn’t work at all stages and the consequence of the side effect of this medical treatment was 30% of children with congenital malformations.
On 29.06.2009 Hoffman-La Roche discontinued Accutane manufacturing and selling in United States.

Now some generic alternatives are available on the market Roaccutane – not for American market (same as Accutane before July 2009), Amnesteem, Claravis, Clarus, Decutan, Isotane, Izotek, Oratane, ISOTRET or Sotret, while topical isotretinoin is most commonly marketed under the trade names Isotrex or Isotrexin. These generic products have the same side effects as Accutane.

Unfortunately, you can’t just go out and take vitamin A, as it can become toxic if taken in too high of dosages, however, there are some excellent alternative products to treat acne which combined things like supplements and cleansers and other specialized topical ingredients which treat acne safely and very effectively.

The pores are places where the glands open on the surface of the skin. With the surface of the skin they are associated with channels These glands are situated, in particular, on the face but also on the whole body. Faulty skin is a result of the glands distributed on the whole human body.

During the summer heat, many of us have this problem – excessive sweating. Nobody wants to sweat, to feel like his clothes are plastered on the body, to see those white and wet circles under the armpits of the shirts … not to mention the unpleasant smell.

To neutralize the unpleasant odors, the most important is personal hygiene. Showering every day, even several times in a day, if you have the possibility, it is very good because this prevents excessive multiplying of the bacteria on the body, and thus reduces the unpleasant odor. If you have a shower several times a day, it is not necessary every time to use shower gels and other aggressive cosmetics. The use of these means is enough once a day so, the other showering can be only with hot water.

You have to pick the right products if you want to shrink your pores on a daily basis. These aforementioned advices are very useful if you really want it. The other recommended advice is the usage of antiperspirants. Choosing whether to use the antiperspirants or not depends on you. If you use it, always put it only on completely dry skin. When you leave the shower, dry your skin and than apply the antiperspirant to act extremely efficiently.

A bigger problem is presented with the pores on your face .In some people the pores can be particularly visible and look like scars. The enlarged pores increase the risk of problematic skin because the pores collect dirt which causes inflammation of the face. To prevent these we need to clear our face several times a day. All this takes time and eventually the person’s face is not fully cleaned.

If you sweat on the whole body, not only on the critical parts, what you should do is to quit from using crèmes, lotions, gels for skin etc.
At these high temperatures the only thing that can help people to reduce the sweating and to shrink the pores is the body powder which can have amazing effects.
This same powder can also be used for the feet.

Acne (acne vulgaris) is a common skin condition usually present at young people but sometimes can be found even at elderly people. Acne usually causes outbreaks of skin lesions called pimples, affected areas are face, neck, chest, upper back and shoulders and the skin looks very unhealthy and dirty. Recent investigations show that this is one of the most common diseases over the world.

Over the counter drugs, often called OTC drugs are products that became very popular alternative to prescription medications which were used for treatment of acne. These products are readily available and person doesn’t need a prescription for them.

Common used and most effective OTC acne fighting ingredients are few but the group of these ingredients is enlarging fast. Standard active ingredients for acne fighting used in OTC acne medications are salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, sulfur, resorcinol, glycolic acid. On the other hand a huge demand for OTC acne medications with natural active ingredients is occurring. These natural ingredients common used are tea tree oil, witch hazel extract, chamomile extract, aloe vera, green tea extract, lemongrass and others.

The most used OTC acne medications are topical preparations like masks, foams, gels, scrubs, liniments and creams. Most of them contain benzoyl peroxide and/or salicylic acid or combination of this two. Benzoyl peroxide is the most often used active ingredient in OTC products, and it is available in concentration of 2,5% increasing to 5% and 10%.

Research suggested that best effects can be achieved starting with 2,5% and increasing through 5 – 10%. But concentrations of 5 and 10% of benzoyl peroxide are not significantly more effective than 2,5%.

On the other hand salicylic acid is well tolerated. Beta hydroxy acid works as an acerbic by elimination of the dead skin cells. Salicylic acid is used in makeup removers, but is also used in gel and lotion form. Sulfur is another well known and old ingredient used in OTC acne medications. A lot of soap cleansers contain sulfur as active ingredient.

Resorcinol in OTC remedies helps in the process of rapid skin development and lessens the blocked pores. Generally it is used in combination with sulfur. On other side natural ingredients in OTC topical skin products are used for their antiseptic properties and as a group of remedies well tolerated from the skin. Tea tree oil has proven antiseptic properties and his use in topical skin care OTC products in 10% concentration has the same effect as 5% of benzoyl peroxide.

Aloe vera in OTC acne medications is used regarding antibacterial and antifungal activities, it has been shown to inhibit growth of bacteria and its use is well established also for his effect of soothing, moisturizing and healing properties. It is available in many forms gels, scrubs, creams. Witch hazel is used in OTC topical products as a strong antioxidant and astringent, as a useful ingredient alone or in combination in fighting acne.

For other natural OTC acne fighting ingredients they are used in combination with the benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid and other to enhance their acne healing properties.
Acne can definitely be treated with a combination of both natural and chemical ingredients, but of course it’s best to go with the most natural acne treatments and supplements possible, after all, you don’t want to add more toxins to your body, you want to remove them for clear skin.

I just happened to run across a new device (at least new to me) called ANSR, which is a small, round hand held device that emits one half blue light and one half red light for intense photo therapeutic acne treatment, and a shot of anti aging treatment in there as well with the red light. We’ve talked about blue light therapy for acne before, and how incredibly effective it can be, especially when paired with other acne treatments or supplements, or even just the right diet and lifestyle to treat your acne and keep it at bay.

This little device is just a tad over a hundred bucks, and it has really gotten some rave reviews so far from it’s users, both those that are using it for acne and those that are primarily using it for the anti aging properties of the red light.

Blue light is best for acne, but combined with red light, you basically get the best of both worlds because you are treating your skin with blue light to help kill surface bacteria, which will keep your skin free of the bacteria that causes acne lesions, bumps and lumps and redness, and with the red light, you are giving your skin a nice infusion of collagen boosting every day, making your skin plumper, more resilient, and ready to defend itself against the ravages of aging and gravity every day.

Basically, the reason our skin starts sagging and looking worse as we age is because it lacks the abundant collagen that it once had when we were kids and teens. This device may be the perfect inexpensive alternative to acne AND anti aging for those of us that are maybe in our thirties or even forties and still have acne but also are starting to show the signs of aging. Heck, even if you’re in your twenties, this ANSR device might be good for keeping wrinkles, lines and the other sagging that comes with aging at bay.

I have not yet tried this device, as I do have a hand held red light laser already and sad to say I lack the discipline to use it every single day, but I can tell you that when I do use it, it has a great effect on my face and the way it looks. I say if you’re looking for an acne hand held, inexpensive alternative to getting blue light treatments in a Doctor’s office, you may want to at least look into the ANSR device.

I know that I go over this every spring and summer, but again I’m going to reiterate the importance of wearing sunscreen. Especially on your face, since it’s the first thing exposed to the sun’s harsh rays when you step outside, and your poor face is the first one subjected to every other environmental ravage as well, which is precisely the reason that facial skin is one of the first parts to show the signs of aging and photodamage (damage caused by the sun).

This is unfortunate, since your face is the very thing by which so many people judge and view you.  That’s why skin care is so vitally important, and making sure that your facial skin is protected at all times from sun damage is of the utmost importance.  Just the tiniest bit of sun an really dry out your facial skin and magnify wrinkles. I know this from personal experience since I’ve accidentally let my sunscreen wear off or I’ve been in the sun a little too long when I thought I’d only be outside for a few minutes, without sunscreen.

My face almost always looks worse for the wear the very next day, which is a true testament to me that it’s important to keep your face out of the sun as much as possible.  Of course, the sun’s rays are necessary to produce vitamin D, but there are plenty of other body parts that are larger that can soak the rays up for you.  That is one party the face always has to miss out on.

So, without further delay, I wanted to again tell you the various facial sunscreens that I’ve compiled and tried over the years which I have found to be both very effective and also totally noncomedogenic. That’s right, they blocked the sun’s rays effectively with SPF of 15 or higher, and they moisturized really well too, without clogging my sensitive pores or causing any type of irritation bumps or rashes.

The first one is my favorite because it’s cheap and it’s a great moisturizer. It’s Aveeno’s moisturizers, in both calming and soy formulas (I like them both). They both have 15 spf and they also come in a generous sized bottle that lasts me two months or so for about $15.  There is also one by Avon that is a face perfector. It’s a powder/liquid that is translucent and has an SPF of 20.

I like to mix this with a little bit of tinted moisturizer or glow lotion for great SPF coverage and a nice, even but light coverage for the summer time to help my skin look more even. This product is called Avon MagiX Facial Perfector.  You’ll love the texture, it’s a velvety mix of powder and tiny flecks of light reflectors for great sun protection and a light foundation coverage for summer time.

Coffee is something that a lot of us Americans are hooked on.  Shoot, I have a hard time resisting the smell of it, the mere idea of holding a steaming hot cup in my hands in the morning with cream and sugar (actually I use Truvia, a natural healthy sweetener), and reading my morning news, or preparing for my day at work, makes me feel that familiar, cozy, warm feeling.  My husband brews it every morning, so it’s very hard for me not to give in to my coffee craving every morning and instead opt for the decaffeinated greet tea that I know is much better for my skin, and requires no cream.

Even though I have strong resolve most of the time, at least during the work week, I do sometimes break down and have that hot steaming cup of caffeine on the weekends. Because I know that too much coffee or caffeinated beverages, which are also usually highly acidic, cause acne for me, I try to offset some of the acidity at least, knowing I can’t really offset the caffeine.

What do I mean by acidity?  Well, coffee is a very acid-producing beverage, meaning that when it enters the body it causes a more acidic, toxic environment. That is not good for the skin.  Skin that has a good, alkaline diet (foods like cucumbers, walnuts and so forth are very alkaline), tends to have less breakouts and glow more than skin that is subject to lots of red meat, processed carbs and other highly acidic foods.

So, to at least offset the acidity in my cup of joe, what I do is I put some freshly squeezed lemon juice in my water. I drink tons of water along with my coffee, so that the coffee doesn’t dehydrate me (again, why I can’t keep my hands off this stuff for good, I don’t know, it’s all mental I’m sure, I don’t even love the jitteriness I get from the caffeine content).

Lemon juice, as I’ve discussed before, is sort of a wonder juice.  It helps to neutralize acid in the body. Seems counter intuitive, I know.  You’d think that something that tastes sour would be highly acidic, but once lemon juice hits your body, it actually neutralizes acidity and is beneficial to maintain a more alkaline environment within the body. Alkaline environments, it is believe, help with inflammation, while acidic environments promote inflammation.

I know I haven’t been around on this earth for all that long, being that I’m 35 years old, so I don’t know for sure what acne looked like as far as commonness back in say the fifties or sixties, or even the seventies when I was but a baby.  However, I have read numerous articles that acne seems to be getting worse and worse over time.  This is the reason that so many treatments have been created for it, ranging from adult acne to teen acne, because it is such an overflowing market right now with prospects – aka you and me.

Don’t get me wrong, I know acne was still an issue back then as well, but now you see more and more adult females and males with really bad acne, and it begs the question : what’s changed over the past few decades to explode the number of acne cases and make it the number one skin complaint that dermatologists hear?

I’ve thought about this a lot, especially because I happen to be in the top demographic of people who have seen a steady increase in acne over the last few decades, women over 30 years old.  This is particularly perplexing to a lot of specialists because your hormones are supposed to have calmed down quite a bit by the time you hit your thirties and your forties, and yet they are seeing more and more adults coming in with moderate to severe acne.

The reasons, I think can be one of a few, or perhaps they are more a synergy of many of these.  The first reason I can think of is the food we eat. We are eating FAR more processed foods than we were before, and even our meats and dairy cows and the chickens that produce eggs are being given hormones and synthetic inoculations of antibiotics. Perhaps this is all building up in our system and we are seeing it shown as acne on our face and other regions of the body?

Another reason I can think of are the generally higher stress levels and faster pace of life we are now living. Stress directly affects our hormones, and can spur on the androgens that cause acne lesions to form on the face.  I tend to lean more toward the food theory though, it just makes sense that we might be seeing a backlash from the synthetic hormones, antibiotics, and goodness knows what other chemicals are injected into our food supplies.