Acne-Prone Skin

While acne is different for each individual, there are a number of risk factors which can mean that you are more prone to developing acne.

• Hormonal Changes: During different stages in our lives we go through hormonal changes in our body, during these times we are at a higher risk of developing acne. An increase in androgens, which are male sex hormones, may lead to acne. These changes could be puberty, pregnancy or menopause for example. The good news is for most of these phases in life, once our hormones regulate again our acne can improve or clear-up altogether.
• Age: Much like the above hormonal risk, age does play a role in risk. Teenagers experiencing hormonal changes are most at risk of developing acne with acne being most prevalent in the teen age group.
• Genetics: While lifestyle, health and hormones play a huge role on the risk of developing acne, genetics can also be considered a risk factor. For someone with a history of acne in their family or if it is present with both parents, they can be at a higher risk of developing acne. This could be through overactive sebaceous glands or slower ability to shed dead skin cells.

Acne treatments will depend on the type of acne you are experiencing. The first step will be to identify if you are suffering with acne or just a breakout, as many people experiencing isolated breakouts can bring on acne due to using products which are to harsh on their skin and destroying their acid mantle.

In order to treat your acne effectivley, you must first understand that your skin is only part of the problem. Good diet, an active lifestyle and managing your stress alone goes a long way to giving you the complexion you're looking for. If your acne is caused due to a hormonal balance, the type of exercise and food you incorporate into your lifestyle may need to be more targeted to an insulin resistant lifestlye.

Once you've addressed the problem and adjusted your lifestyle as needed, the next stage is how to treat your skin.

• Look for products that are suitable for sensitive skin
• Choose fragrance-free if you can, note that some products do have a natural fragrance which is fine, but synthetic fragrances usually use ingredients which can irritate acne prone skin.
• Try a Benzoyl Peroxide cleanser 2-3 times a week
• When washing off your cleanser, use a flannel that is gentle on the skin, to avoid further irritation
• Exfoliate regularly. One of the main causes of acne is a build up of dead skin cells. Try a gentle exfoliator such as an AHA, with salicylic, glycolic or malic acid
• Look for ingredients to incorporate through your cleanser like ceramides or niacinamide to lock moisture into your skin and decrease inflammation, redness and dryness
• Choose products that are lightweight, heavy serums and rich creams are comedogenic and can clog your pores
• Add hyaluronic acid to speed up healing and bring moisture back to the skin

It is difficult to prevent acne, especially if you suffer with hormonal acne. However, there are several steps that you can take to improve the appearance of or calm your acne and to prevent acne scarring.

• Don't Pick Your Face: One of the best pieces of advice to prevent scarring and irritation is to leave your face alone, although it is also the hardest to abide by. This is particularly important when dealing with cystic acne as this is most likely to cause deep scarring. You can pop a regular spot, but you need to be very careful and timing is everything. We'd also like to mention that this does not just mean don't pop the spot, stop touching those bumps with your dirty fingers throughout the day while you think about the potential of popping your spot
• Oils are Not the Enemy: Lighter, plant-derived oils are extremely nourishing for your skin and they are the perfect way to remove your make-up safely without irritating your skin further, oily skin does not hate oil products, just choose good-quality products. Additionally a lot of acne products can dry out the skin, so don't be afraid to use a quality oil to get moisture back into your skin
• Protect your Skin Barrier: A lot of traditional skin treatments focus on drying out the spot to reduce inflammation and infection, this can cause the skin to become more inflammed and irritated as it can breakdown your acid mantle. Make sure to keep hydration in your skin
• Use AHAs: Glycolic, lactic, malic or tartaric acid are excellent acids to gently exfoliate sensitive or irritated skin, removing dead skin cells and trapped hair follicles and unclogging pores. Many acne sufferers think AHAs will be too harsh on their skin but they are an effective method for tackling acne
• Be Gentle & Kind To Your Skin: At the end of the day, you're stuck with your skin so try and get along with it and be kind to it. Using harsh products or scrubbing it raw with a face cloth is not going to do you any favours. Treat your skin kindly and remember, you are more than your skin, and it is a work in progress
• Less Stress: Stress is one of the biggest reasons we get flare-ups, it can affect our sleep, eating and exercise routines increasing our cortisol levels which wreaks havoc on our skin. Find a way to unwind and relax, whatever works best for you
• Supplements: If you find that you're following all of the top tips on how to prevent acne and have a killer routine down but those flare-ups just won't quit, maybe your deficient in something or need an extra little bit of support? Try a supplement like Inositol Balance or Hair, Skin & Nails and see if your skin improves.