Acne Magazine

On CNN, I watched a piece of their “Health Minute”, which focused on adult acne, specifically on a 51 year old African American woman’s sudden onset of adult acne which happened to be fairly severe.  The woman featured in their segment actually ended up opting to go on the serious acne medication accutane to get her beautiful skin back, but often times adult onset acne can be treated through topical means or even by herbal acne supplements, which you know is what we endorse here. 

The dermatologist featured on the segment said that adult acne can be caused by hormonal changes, sun damage, or even bacteria on the surface of the skin.  She said they often will do bacteria tests on the surface of the skin to rule out that possibility and to focus more on the other potential causes of adult acne so they can more accurately and effectively treat it. 

She also confirmed what we talk about here on AcneMagazine quite a bit, and that is the fact that adult acne must be treated differently from teen acne.  Why?  Because and adult’s skin contain much less natural oil and moisture than a teen’s skin, and often must be treated with more gentle and nondrying topical acne treatments so that the skin does not become excessively irritated, dry and red, which may actually end up looking worse than the acne itself if the acne treatment is inappropriate for the skin type and age of the patient. 

It was also mentioned that adult acne may very well be a phase that disappears by itself, since the hormones may regulate, but after a few months if it has not gone away it may be a persistent problem that they would want to treat via self treatment or going to a dermatologist for recommendations. 

Well, a study has confirmed what many have suspected and much inconclusive data has supports, and that is that women have more adult acne than men do.  Yeah- lucky us! 

The age group for women that were included in this obervational data were 20 years old and older, and this age group of women has substantially more indcidence of adult acne than men in this same age group.  People that fall into this category are having what’s considered post adolescent acne, and there are a couple of theories, many of which we’ve discussed in detail here on this blog, as to what the causes are for acne into adulthood.  Everything from stressors to diet and environment have been speculated on for the reason behind the increase in adult acne.

The purpose of the study, which was covered by a University, was to figure out how extensively acne, a very common skin condition, only to greatly varying degrees in its patients, occured in adults once they had passed that hormonally volatile stage of their teens.  The women surveyed with a much higher rate of acne incidence to the survey given to both men and women, so their research concluded that women were much more likely to suffer adult acne. 

They are also hoping to do further reasearch on the hormonal reasons for women having the higher incidence of adult acne, since it is obviously of some sort of hormonal significance, and that this study can then lead to new and different treatments for adult acne, using perhaps some sort of hormone therapy or drugs that modify the hormone activity in the body safely.

Another interesting note on this survey/study is that most people did report that although they still had acne, that their acne had significantly improved since their teen years. 

In studies on the ever increasing incidence of adult acne, something that unfortunately us adults also have to deal with now, most fingers are pointed at hormones as the culprit, not cosmetics or other environmental or external factors.  As far as I’m concerned, you all know that stress and anxiety most definitely affects my skin, and that has never changed for me, even into adulthood. 

I also find that certain caffeinated beverages and foods can trigger a breakout, but that is almost assuredly related to the fact that caffeine makes me overly nervous and anxious, which still in effect is what leads to the acne breakout.  Many herbal acne supplements are supposed to help curb this fluctuation, as well as medical acne treatments that inhibit androgens from over producing.   

Some people have been quick to place the blame on cosmetics and other skin care products, or other environmental factors, but the truth is, most breakouts I’ve experienced from cosmetics or other allergens that cause reactions are very different breakouts from a real “acne vulgaris” breakout where pimples originate deep within the skin and have a definitively different patter than just the minor “rash” types of breakouts.  At least this has been my personal experience, so I can’t speak for everyone on this point of course. 

The interesting fact is that significantly more women than men suffer from adult acne, and the thought is that this is because of hormones, because women continue to see hormonal fluctuations throughout their life while men only have them basically in their youth, or teen years, all thanks to a little thing called the menstrual cycle which dictates our hormones for us. 

Some may think I’m crazy for the way I harp on the fact that stimulants and my skin do not agree, and whenever I ingest an abundance of stimulants - we’re talking more than one half cup of strong coffee, my skin almost certainly will be paying the acne piper the next day.  Well, yet another story of how a stimulant made me break out today. 

This time the culprit is the now banned substance called ephedra, which is actually a naturally derived stimulant that was popular in diet and weightloss supplements, but was banned by the FDA after investigations and complaints on the herbally derived substance turned up the fact that ephedrine presented unreasonable danger to the health. 

It is still, however, legal to put into cold medicines and allergy medications.  This brings me to my story.  I was at work yesterday and started to feel sick, as in a cold sick.  I borrowed some Sudafed from a coworker who had some similar bug.  As the name implies, Sudafed is loaded with ephedra (ephedrine). 

I didn’t even think twice about taking it though, I’d do anything to feel better so I could get through my workday, so I took only a half pill, worried that a whole one might make me too shaky and speedy. 

Well, just a half pill, and I was shaky and speedy for the rest of the night.  I also experienced heart palpitations (why is this stuff still legal in cold medicines again?)  I woke up this morning, and lo and behold, I had two new big zits on my chin! 

There was not even a hint of a zit coming on yesterday - in fact, I had totally clean, healthy clear pores, and yet I had two new ones waiting for me in the morning.  I know my skin so well now, that this was definitely directly related to me taking that tablet of Sudafed.  Does anyone else have sensitivity to stimulants that has acne or is it just me?  Comments would be appreciated.  I really want to know if others out there experience the same thing.

Funny heading, I know, but my mom had a case of the “phew” when she recently went to see a dermatologist about a worrying hard, black bump that had appeared about a month ago on the bridge of her nose, where her glasses rested. She thought for a while that it might just be some sort of irritation bump or something, but was alarmed when it did not go away. 

She was thinking it might be the big “C” word, so she booked an appointment with a dermatologist.  My mother is in her fifties, so that last thing on her mind was acne or blackheads, she was more so concerned that her skin had rebelled against all the tanning she had done in her teens, even though her pale, 100% Irish skin could not take it and she frequently burned her facial skin to a crisp in the name of looking tan and gorgeous (yes, she deeply regrets doing this now). 

To make a long story short, she visited the dermatologist.  He took one look at the mysterious black bump on her nose and said “oh you just have a comedone”.  A comedone is just another fancy word for a “blackhead” zit.  Blackheads occur when dirt and/or bacteria clog a pore and it just stays there, open to the world unlike a whitehead, which seals itself off in a skin.

The dermatologist, in one swift move before my mom could even protest, removed the blackhead, extracting it fairly effortlessly with one of those neato extraction tools that dermatologist are so adept at using.  My mom no longer has to worry that she might have cancer - it was “just a comedone”!

Speaking as a woman, I have to say that PMS is bad enough, it’s even worse when you add a fresh zit or two of full fledged acne breakout to the mix.  PMS, or premenstrual syndrome is a controversial syndrome which some believe may not actually exist except for in the woman’s mind, although I will refute that statement! 

PMS is the week or two before a woman’s period when her hormones (arguably) fluctuate, in preparation for the shedding of the uterine wall, hence the period or bleeding that occurs during menses, or menstruation. 

Many women report a variety of side effects, or symptoms from this period of time called PMS, including skin breakouts, mood swings, cramps, bloating and weight gain, migraines, and some lesser known side effects and symptoms of PMS thought to be more unique to the individual than a bonafide, universal PMS symptom that most women complain of.

I for one know that PMS affects my skin.  Why else would, like clockwork, my face exhibit more signs of oiliness, and break out about one week prior to my period?  I’m even on the birth control pill, and this still happens to me.  It also happened while I was off the pill, but it still happens today on the pill as well. 

Can some other women comment on the PMS and acne connection?  I’d appreciate hearing other women’s thought and experiences with this.

Men and women are very different creatures when it comes to hormonal ups and downs, coupled with the effects it has on our skin and the entire system, both mentally and psychologically. A prime example of this is the way acne manifests in men vs. women.

The accelerated hormonal development in pubescent and teenage boys almost always results in acne, but this is not the necessarily the case for girls. Women often develop acne for the first time in their twenties or even later -as I did when I kept getting acne past my college years and on into my corporate “professional life” (boy did I feel professional with a big boil/zit on my face).

Another factor that influence acne in women vs. men is the fertility cycle and the hormonal changes it usually triggers throughout the body.  This is more often than not the cause of sporadically severe and moderate acne outbreaks in women, although the exact process is poorly understood at this moment.

High levels of the male hormones called androgens are the likely cause for premenstrual acne, since it is known that these male hormones do a lot to regulate the oil production in sebaceous glands. The higher the count of androgens, the higher the risk is of getting clogged pores (aka acne) with sebum.

While women have less chance of developing the same kind of male-specific severe acne that plagues men, they also can have a harder time getting rid of it, especially later in life past the teen years. What’s worse is that during pregnancy, women suffering from acne must only use topical treatments recommended by their doctor and are not allowed to use the drugs which tend to be more effective and immediate.

Birth control pills are a common way of treating acne, since they interfere precisely with the hormonal cycle and serve to rein in acne. However, the use of any kind of pills to treat acne should be supervised by a doctor.

One of the best methods for getting rid of acne is the ClearPores System. This amazingly effective system uses deep washes, pills and creams to cleanse your pores, kill bacteria and protect your skin against renewed attacks. It’s really the perfect choice.

As a side note that I was thinking about after I posted that last post, there is a statistically higher amount of women affected by chronic acne in their midlife - about 8% higher than men.  In other words, women in midlife (and actually even menopausal women) are more than twice as likely to suffer from acne in their older years, and also suffer more severe acne.

I think this is probably due to the natural hormonal fluctuations in women as they age.  Their estrogen drops, and they become more susceptible to hormonal irregularities, such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, vaginal dryness and yes - acne.  Even younger women are more susceptible to acne breakouts during their menstrual cycles, and at certain peak hormonal periods, which can vary from individual to individual. 

This fact is undisputed.  As a matter of fact, I think I’m going to research the period/acne link.  That’ll be for next time.  Oh I just love these inspirations, don’t you

I read an interesting article recently about how the occurrence of acne in people in midlife - meaning late forties and fifties, is increasing at a noticeable rate.  While we may think that this is easily treatable, adult acne is a little trickier, because you are dealing with aging skin that is a little thinner and not as “tough” against the common acne treatments that tend to dry out the skin, as commonly used by teens, the most affected age group when it comes to acne. 

And it’s not just treating the acne itself that becomes a harder task, scarring is a bigger issue in aging skin, since the skin is less elastic and likely to “bounce back” after acne has basically eaten a hole in their skin. This means more pitting and scarring where acne lesions once stood, due to less skin resilience. 

Researchers also comment that often times the blow that acne blemishes can deliver to your confidence and self esteem can leave you feeling like an insecure and confidence-lacking, no matter how old you are.

There was a recent study and survey performed on how adults with acne and severe acne scarring are viewed at work and outside of work.  The findings were fairly disappointing, leading to the conclusion that these adults were viewed significantly differently than if they had pristine faces with no signs of past acne.  The findings of the survey were presented at the 26th annual scientific meeting of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery (ASLMS) in Boston Massachusetts.

The survey’s findings also pointed to more troubling facts outside of work, in these people’s personal lives.  It showed that women with moderate or severe acne scarring had a much harder time going out on dates than women with a smooth, acne scar-free complexion. At the work place, strikingly similar results were found. The men and women interviewed in the survey who had moderate to severe acne scarring from more youthful days all reported that they knew they were looked at differently and faced more challenging obstacles at the work place in gaining promotions, gaining the respect and confidence of their peers and clients, and generally reported a more difficult time at work than their counterparts who did not have acne scarring.

I think this study is interesting for one, because maybe it’s the people’s personalities that presented them with these issues, and maybe it’s their own lack of confidence at the work place and in their personal life BECAUSE of the fact that they have acne scarring as adults and are very self conscious.  Regardless of what causes what, I think this survey shows that skin and a person’s complexion has a lot to do with self esteem, first of all, which also reflects on how other few you.  Do they view you as confident?  Timid?  Shy? 

Interesting Fact:

Remember in my last post I told you about the new acne laser therapy that was supposed to be available soon?   Supposedly this survey was carried out in an effort to get the new “Fraxel Laser” approved by the FDA, by showing that these adults with untreatable acne scarring were really influenced by it, and it is indeed a life-imposing health issue that needs to be addressed.  Well, it worked, because this new laser was approved and is supposedly going to be put into common use sometime in the next year or so (from what it looks like).