Posts Tagged ‘beauty’

Self Tanning Spray

Monday, February 15th, 2010

The tanned appearance is both popular and all the rage more now than at any time for many years; people like the brownish glow of their skin as it makes them feel fashionable and self-confident. However, at the same time, sun bathing is less and less advisable because of the rise in the quantity of skin cancer cases. Therefore, substitutes to it have and still are being developed. Synthetic tanning using tanning beds or sunless tanning by synthetic means such as body lotions, creams, gels or self tanning spray are widely available.

Although the most advanced method of getting a tan is the use of a tanning bed or tanning booth, not everybody can afford to buy their own machine or go to a salon four times a month in order to have their tan refreshened, so the do-it-yourself solutions have become more and more prevalent.

A self tanning spray is a beauty product frequently containing DHA that can be applied at home as a sunless tanning solution. DHA is a chemical that causes a reaction with the skin’s amino acids, which in turn causes the turning of the top layer of skin a brown colour. The effect of a self tanning spray lasts for approximately six or eight days, if you are wise not to take too long in the shower, if you shun using too a harsh soap and if you do not rub yourself too hard with the towel.

Self tanning presents several challenges and so, although it is less expensive than treatment in a commercial tanning salon, it is also more difficult to get a satisfactory outcome. It is more difficult to get an even tan when using a self tanning spray. The coloring solution has to be atomized in a fine film with immense care not to overlap too much. Overlapping leads to darker tan shades on some body areas.

Therefore, another disadvantage of the self tanning spray is that you may need another person’s assistance for the procedure. The back for instance is very hard to spray unless there is someone to assist you. The same problem presents itself for the back of the legs, the nape of the neck and the bottom. If you ask a friend to help you with the tanning, it will make the procedure a lot easier.

You have to be particularly cautious to protect your eyes, your lips, ears and other delicate body parts. It is also possible to stain your nails and palms when using a self tanning spray. You could eliminate this difficulty by using gloves or wet wipes whenever necessary so as not to permit the tanning agent to dry on the palms or your hands or your nails.

Then, last but not least, do not spray too much fluid on your body, because the consequence may be an unnatural orange glow or a rather uneven tan. Although many people frequently use these cans of self tanning spray in its various forms, there is no question about it that they are a lower quality resolution when compared to the superior, but more highly-priced tanning bed or tanning booth.

Do you want to find out more about commercial tanning beds? If you do, please visit our web site on Tanning Bed Bulbs

An Surgery That Is Years Ahead of Liposuction

Monday, December 21st, 2009

Liposuction is a procedure that is offered on a daily basis in the US, and one that often entails supplementary procedures to do away with extra skin left over when a mass of fat is surgically removed from under the skin. For many patients, liposuction can be a painful experience, but there is a new lipo surgery on the market, SmartLipo, or also generally called “laser liposuction”. Hailed as a medical marvel by many people, SmartLipo is changing lives each day for individuals who are laboring with spare fat tissue that seems to not come off with dieting and working out. SmartLipo delivers on what it states it will do, and that is take out fat tissue effortlessly.

Traditional Liposuction - Invasive and Precarious

Even though the operation is performed often, the practice is quite invasive, & the result of the fat tissue removal is in the hands of the doctor, quite literally. The cannula, or tube, used in old-style liposuction is between four to six millimeters in diameter & necessitates an incision that has to be stitched. Once the excruciating process is completed, individuals can expect to wear compression bandages for at least 6 weeks. Often there can be unsightly unevenness underneath the epidermis where the fat was removed unevenly, especially in less experienced surgeons.

SmartLipo Benefits

SmartLipo Technology (or SMARTLIPO) utilizes the newest advancements in cosmetic operation technology, which provides physicians a safer, quicker and less costly method. For this reason, healing time is seriously diminished. Usually, it is merely a few days and the fee is about 45% lower than the old-style liposuction procedure. This is due to the fact that no general anesthesia is considered necessary.

Folks having Smartlipo go through a much faster recuperation time with far less ailments when compared to earlier liposuction methods. This can be attributed to the laser that causes instant coagulation of the minute blood vessels in the fat tissue.

The laser process allows your Smart Lipo doctor to operate the minimally invasive process consistently to all areas being treated, utilizing the laser as a guide. Smart Lipo accuracy makes for a more uniformly treated area, which gets better even further as the healing time comes to an end and the outer skin shrinks around the site.

Instead of the massive tubes and unpleasant doctor’s check-ups required of old-style liposuction, SmartLipo uses smaller tools & specialized technology to zap fat cells for contouring and re-sculpting areas of the physique including the neck, love handles, abdomen, backs, thighs, hips, knees, arms, & chin.

Compression Garments for SmartLipo Recovery

Compression garments are not always compulsory. Considering on the size of the body that undergoes SmartLipo, the physician could prescribe compression garments be worn for a brief period of time in order to minimize swelling plus help in healing. Yet the truth remains, compression garments do not need to be worn for as long a period of time for SmartLipo as in conventional liposuction. For larger body areas treated by this cosmetic operation, a compression garment may be given to wear for two to six weeks following the operation. Compression garments are imperative because they cave in the hollow areas caused under the skin as the body fat is melted away. The consequence is a flatter more properly shaped body surface that looks good to the eye.

SmartLipo is a surgical procedure where adipose tissue is removed by lasers and drained out by a tube like device called a cannula. The surgery itself is named Laser lipolysis. It is one of the first laser lipolysis procedures to be approved by the US food and drug administration . Rather than manually slicing the cannula through the area of fat elimination as in liposuction, plastic bariatric surgeons opt for a much narrower cannula (tubing that is one millimeter in diameter), which has a laser attached to the end.

Beneficial “Side Effect of SmartLipo Laser Treatment

Collagen is the fibrous connective tissue that is used to hold bones, muscle, and other bodily tissues together and is found in abundance under the epidermis. As we age, collagen degrades in the in the lower layer of skin then the epidermis becomes increasingly furrowed.

In addition to melting the body fat, Smartlipo surgery has been verified to tighten the deeper tissue, consequently inducing collagen synthesis in the skin. The wavelengths aimed by the laser to the area beneath the exterior of the body stimulates the growth of collagen as almost like a “side effect” of the primary treatment, but in this instance, it is a useful side effect. The result is a tighter, more toned exterior after complete healing.

Smartlipo laser lipolysis is a minimally invasive procedure that uses a laser to liquefy unwanted fat swiftly, whether located on the face, neck, back, thighs, arms or breasts. In contrast to conventional liposuction, laser lipolysis exclusively targets fat tissue, immediately liquefying it so it can be either drained with no trouble by a cannula device or or else absorbed by the body’s lymphatic system.

The enduring effects of the laser lipo treatment are dazzling. From the laser utilized to melt the fat cells in sensitive body parts, to the sealing off of blood capillaries to decrease blood loss, and finally to the non-traumatizing of connective tissue is all advantageous to the patient. SmartLipo is a very smart choice for any person who has localized fat that needs to be surgically removed.

Read more about this at Smart Lipo Recovery and Recovery After Smart Lipo

Ladies Wide Dress Shoes - 3 Ways to Look Sexy and Comfortable For Less

Sunday, December 20th, 2009

Ladies wide dress shoes have revolutionized the way that women with wide feet dress. Now they are not forced to wear a certain style of shoes just because they have wide feet or be uncomfortable with shoes that do not fit. In this article we are going to chat a little bit about ladies wide dress shoes and how to appear hot and comfortable for less.

Ladies Wide Dress Shoes

Swapping

Do you ever see one of your buddies wearing a pair of shoes that you just love? If you and your pal both have wide feet you can come to an understanding to go in on some wide shoes together and just switch out on particular occasions. This way you can have twice as big a assembly of wide shoes for ladies.

Coupons

Another excellent way to save some cash on ladies wide dress shoes is keeping a look out for coupons and specials.

There are several web sites that will give you discounts such as free distribution or percentages off just for buying in bulk. Bulk does not mean that you are going to be purchasing tons of shoes. 2 shoes or more may be considered bulk. It all depends on the offer.

Special Deals

There are some other exceptional offers that I have noticed on the internet such as prize drawings - when you buy a certain dollar amount of shoes on their website you get entered into the drawing. Maybe you think that the site will not pay up but this would not be a wise move for them - they want to keep up their reputation. There isn’t a much better way than giving out free money, correct?

Ladies Wide Dress Shoes

In this article you have learned how to be frugal and attain more for your cash. If you are like me then this is tremendously essential. Why would you want to blow cash when you can use these three great methods to attain what you want and look attractive in ladies wide dress shoes?

Are you ready to find Ladies Wide Dress Shoes at great prices? Find FREE information and FREE coupons @ http://www.Ladies-Wide-Shoes.com

Tanning Booths: An Overview

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

It is a well-known fact of life that a lot of individuals like to get a wonderful Hollywood tan just as if they had been lying in the sun on a secluded beach in Malibu. You would be able to get an all over tan with no clothing or strings to restrict the tanning process on your concealed beach. But private beaches do not come cheap, do they? Getting a tanning booth is one the several different means that you can make use of to get the all over tan that you want.

These tanning booths are quite similar in intent to the tanning booths which are so popular in commercial tanning salons. As with tanning beds, there are many brands of tanning booths on the market for both commercial and domestic tanning bed equipment. So, you will need to investigate into these diverse tanning booth systems closely in order to find one that suits you and your resources. There are nevertheless a few notes of concern that you should bear in mind when selecting your tanning booth.

When you are using tanning booths, you will notice that these booths use very high temperature ultra violet bulbs to rapidly bring about the alterations your skin will have to go through in a tanning session in order to get bronzed. Just as when using tanning beds, you will need to use some protective eye glasses when in the tanning booths. These safety glasses will shield your eyes from becoming damaged by the powerful, but harmful ultra violet rays.

On the other hand, if these ultra violet rays are quite so dangerous, why do individuals choose to subject themselves to such lengthy periods in tanning booths? Well, the answer is really fairly plain, it is just because of the fact that individuals like to have a beautiful, golden coloured skin. Another fact is that, since there is so much bad information in the papers about the dangers of sun tanning, it is simple to understand why some people prefer to try the sunless tanning path instead.

Which is where tanning booths, among other products, come into their own. However, having mentioned a few details and hazards, if you are still thinking about acquiring a sunless tan then you might be interested in reading the benefits of using a tanning booth. The first benefit is that you can get a tan whenever you like. The second benefit is that the tanning booths take up less room than tanning beds as they stand in a vertical position.

However, before you go out and purchase a tanning booth, it is a good idea if you check out what a range of people have had to say about the products. If you still feel that tanning booths are the answer to your wishes, then there is a wide selection of tanning booths for you to consider.

Once you get your tanning booth set up in a spare room, you will never look back. The simplicity of use and being able to fit your tanning sessions in whatsoever time of the day or night you like is of immeasurable advantage.

Do you need to discover more about Sunstar Tanning Beds? If you do, please visit our website on Tanning Bed Bulbs

California Tan - The Best Tanning Lotion

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

There are a variety of benefits to California Tan tanning lotion which is why increasing numbers of individuals are starting to give the merchandise a go. There are a number of brands of tanning lotion available throughout California and selection can be really difficult. You will find it confusing which one to choose with all the diverse brand names, but it’s up to you at the end of the day.

The majority of these suntan lotions are to be had with tingle factors, bronzers, cooling effect and a mixture of all of them. California Tan tanning lotions are advertised in all the media and the campaign has drawn many new users.

California Tan tanning lotions are prepared to be applied on a daily basis, because they can help the skin maintain its moisture level in order to create a healthy glow. They are able to protect your skin from the destructive rays of the sun even without any supplementary protective chemicals. Consequently you can use California Tan tanning lotions to advance skin care, for tanning is itself one means for the skin cells to be sheltered from the sun in that tanning encourages the manufacture of melanin, which helps in the efficient and harmless absorption of ultraviolet radiation.

In deed, California Tan tanning lotions are able to make sure of a natural and ideal tan without the risk of drying out the skin. Tanning lotions are meant to be used outdoors. The chief ingredient of the tanning lotion should make certain that the skin is safeguarded against the dangerous rays of the sun while the other constituents hydrate and nourish the skin throughout the tanning period.

Good tanning lotions are also effectual moisturizers of the skin and prepare it for display to ultraviolet rays. Moreover, California Tan tanning lotion also contains antioxidants which may help in the removal of wrinkles and fine lines in the skin, so that the skin will appear younger. Constituents comprise natural items made from plant extracts plus the vitamins A, E, and C. The overall effect of applying California Tan tanning lotions is to produce a radiant, natural look and a fresh, smooth feel to your skin. However, be aware that frequent tanning is harsh on some skin types.

It is essential to bear in mind the three major functions of the California Tan tanning lotion, which are hydration, nutrition, and oxygenation. By nutrition is meant the requirement to supply vital vitamins to the skin cells, which will sustain its regeneration and oxygenation as well. Hydration refers to the correct moisturization of the skin. Lastly, oxygenation means providing enough oil for the skin to process tanning successfully. Tanning lotions are not dangerous to use since medical research has been thoroughly conducted on it.

When selecting the California Tan tanning lotion that works best for your skin, it is important to know your skin type. What may work best for your friend may not really be very for good on you. Is your skin oily? Dry? Normal? Or is it a combination of any of them? It is also quite important to picture the effect which you want.

Do you need to find out more about tanning bed supplies? If so, please visit our website on Tanning Bed Bulbs

The Successful Treatment of Acne

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Acne is horrible. However, it’s not something that cannot be tackled. There are heaps of acne skin care products around. We can pigeonhole acne skin care products into 3 broad categories -

1] Deterrent or all-purpose acne skin care items; 2] Over-the-counter, specialised acne skin care products; 3] Prescription acne skin care items.

The general acne skin care products are the ones that are used as an acne-prevention measure. These include cleansers, make-up removers and similar items that help prevent acne. In the real sense, these acne skin care products are those that should be part of your daily schedule anyway. However, some of these are more orientated to work like an everyday acne skin care product.

These acne skin care products act against the reasons for acne e.g. limiting the production of sebum/oil and avoiding the congestion of skin pores. Basically, these acne skin care products inhibit the oil from getting trapped in the skin and hence impede the growth of the bacteria that lead to acne. Broad-spectrum acne skin care items also take in exfoliation products like skin peels. These work by removing dead skin cells, thereby reducing the likelihood of pore-clogging and bacteria increase.

Then there are specialised acne skin care products that are available over-the-counter i.e. without the requirement of a prescription. These include items like vanishing creams which scour the extra oil from the skin. Most of these acne skin care products are based on benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid, both of which are the enemies of bacteria (and so acne too). You must start with a product that has a lower concentration of benzoyl peroxide (e.g. 5%) and see how your skin reacts to it.

Alpha-hydroxy-acid based moisturizers are also popular as acne skin care products. You may have to test a few, before you find the acne skin care product that is most successful for you. If nothing seems to do any good, you should get in touch with a dermatologist.

Prescription acne skin care items are the ones that are prescribed by a dermatologist. These include ointments that can be applied on the affected area or oral antibiotics or just any topical medication. A dermatologist may also suggest a minor surgical process to do away with the contents of pustules. However, never try to squeeze or do this by yourself, as it can lead to the permanent damage of your skin.

Your physician could also prescribe a hormone-based treatment (since hormonal changes are also known to cause acne). Such acne skin care items are known to be very efficacious in many circumstances. So, with all those acne skin care items, tackling acne is really not all that difficult.

Are you having trouble treating acne scars? If you are or you would like to know more about acne, please go to our website entitled http://treating-acne-scars.com

Tanning Equipment: What Do You Need To Have?

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

The process you intend to use for tanning has to be investigated with some attention. This is because of the number of different means, from which you can get a tan. In the majority of these sun tanning sessions, the tanning equipment that you will need is not that dear or difficult to discover. Nevertheless, you will have to ensure that you are selecting the right tanning equipment for the right tanning procedure.

For instance, you will find that the tanning equipment for a sun tan that is obtained at the beach will include a suitable tanning lotion, a good sun block, a clock to keep track of the time spent sun tanning and a few protective items. These protective items will be ones such as lip balm to keep your lips moist, a floppy hat for you head and good sunglasses. These items which should form a necessary part of your sun tanning equipment, are definitely ones that you will be pleased to have with you while you are tanning under strong sunshine at the beach.

Indoor tanning is obviously a different matter and so there are also different types of tanning equipment to take into consideration. These will differ depending on the variety of tanning that you are going to carry out. For example, you will find that tanning lotion requires tissues or towels to wipe up any spills, water and soap to remove excess tanning lotion. This is sufficient for self-tanning sprays. In this case, the most important item in your tanning session is the tanning lotion that you have chosen to use. This is perhaps the minimum amount of tanning equipment that you will need although it really is the bare minimum.

If you want to use tanning lamps, then clearly the most important piece of tanning equipment that you will have to have is a tanning bed or tanning booth itself. Once you have this all important piece of tanning equipment you will have to have tanning lotion to assist your skin respond to the ultraviolet rays from the lamps more efficiently by encouraging your skin to create more melanin.

Depending on the lotion you have selected above, you may also require another cream to stop your skin from drying out. For this you will have to have some cream that will moisturize your skin once the tanning session is over. The other important group of tanning equipment that you will have if you want to use tanning beds is that of safety equipment. For instance, if you do not wear eye glasses, you run a very high chance of damaging your eyes if you open them for even only a few seconds.

These are the modern popular means of tanning that you will find and it is imperative that you get the safe tanning equipment for each then you get the tan that you desire. You will also ensure that your health is protected from various dangers of a tanning session. Therefore you might want to check out what other items that you might require and only get ready for a tanning session when you have all of the tanning equipment ready.

Do you want to find out more about wolf tanning beds? If so, just visit our website on Tanning Bed Bulbs

Tanning Bed Bulbs

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

Tanning bed bulbs, as you find in up-market tanning beds, are a big part of the secret to the Hollywood suntan. You can have any type of tan you require with the wide range of lamps available on the market for tanning beds. There are several types of lamps, such as deep-tanning lamps, bronzing bulbs, face lamps and plenty of others too. These high-tech bulbs employ the best technology to produce a tan evenly, and above all, safely.

Furthermore, there are different bulbs for every kind of skin too. The tanning bed industry produces different bulbs for dark to light skin colours. Besides that, you can choose to have a soft tan, a golden tan, a bronze tan, or the deepest, darkest tan anyone has ever seen. You can even change the type of lamp, as your tan deepens, so that you can achieve all kinds of quite stunning results.

A tanning lamp is like having your own source of sunlight in a bottle. In fact, it is even better, because you are in control of it! Modern tanning bed lamps are made to the strictest standards and so are very safe. The tanning industry and the government have implemented strict rules to ensure your safety. So, if you carefully follow the instructions supplied with the bulbs, you may be confident that you will not be putting your health at stake in order to look like a Hollywood film star.

The UV rays that they produce are within the proscribed safety limits to ensure you remain safe, healthy and tanned. Furthermore, there are lots of choices available to you, ranging from UVB and UVA combinations to only UVA. It is quite simply your choice. So, why not choose your tanning bed bulb and give the sun a helping hand?

Tanning bulbs are ultraviolet-emitting devices that act as the main element of the various sorts of tanning beds and booths. Tanning bed bulbs have as their main purpose the enhancement of a cosmetic tan, although these lamps also have a reputation for the successful treatment of eczema and psoriasis. The depth and type of tanning depends on the spectrum of light produced by the tanning bulbs and the vast majority of tanning bulbs produce more ultraviolet light than the sun.

Nearly all tanning lamps use a device called a ‘ballast’ to regulate their power consumption. The ballast stabilizes the flow of electrical energy inside the lamp and is required to make sure that the lamps use only the necessary amount of wattage that they need in order to work effectively.

There are various types of tanning lamps on sale and include reflector tanning bulbs and high output bulbs. Most bulbs fall into two main groups: high pressure and low pressure types. (Within the tanning industry, it is usual to refer to high pressure tanning lamps as bulbs and low pressure tanning bulbs as lamps). Both high and low pressure tanning bulbs require a lack of oxygen inside the tube.

High pressure tanning bulbs vary in length from three to five inches and operate with 250 to 2,000 watt ballasts, although 400 watt high pressure tanning bulbs are the most common. They are usually included in the face tanning compartment of a sun bed. High pressure tanning bulbs are most often manufactured from quartz glass and an extra specialized coating, which is essential to filter out the lethal UVC ultraviolet rays.

HP tanning bulbs contain a small amount of mercury or argon and create ultraviolet light in high concentration. The handling of high pressure tanning bulbs should be carried out with a great deal of care and never with naked hands, because even a tiny amount of oil from your hands can cause the bulb to fail prematurely or even crack and the resultant spillage of mercury is potentially dangerous. High pressure tanning bulbs should be replaced after about 1,000 hours even though they will continue to produce light for up to 10,00 hours

Low pressure tanning lamps are very similar to ordinary fluorescent tubes, but the glass tube of low pressure tanning bulbs naturally filters out the harmful UVC ultraviolet rays. Low pressure bulbs have a useful lifespan of between 600 and 1,600 hours with 1,000 hours being the usual again.

Do you need to discover more about tanning bed bulbs? If you do, please visit our web site on tanning bed bulbs

How To Invest In Diamonds

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

Everybody likes diamonds and no one looks bad in diamonds, do they? It is not really within the remit of this article to propose whether diamonds are a first-class investment or not, but their supposed worth is enormous. Instead, I would like to discuss where the best place to buy a diamond is, because it is more importantant that you buy your diamond from a reputable merchant with a guarantee than that you believe you got a good deal on eBay by means of buying somebody’s granny’s engagement ring, which might not be authentic.

Consequently, before you commence browsing for diamonds, consider dealing with a bonded jeweller. Bonded jewellers sell bonded diamonds and there are very few bonded jewellers in the world. In deed, of the jewellers in the world, only roughly 5% of them are bonded.

Buying a bonded diamond will cost more than purchasing a non-bonded diamond, but when you look at what you get with the bonded alternative, you will perceive that it is well worth the extra expenditure.

First, bonded diamonds have a buy-back policy for the life of the diamond. No matter how long you keep the diamond, you can take it back to the bonded jeweller and sell it back to him or her, for a 100% refund.

If a jeweller does not offer a 100% buy-back warranty, for the life of the diamond, then you must take a nearer look at the diamond to see what is wrong with it. Just joking, thay will always offer you a 100% buy-back warranty or tell you why not.

Bonded diamonds also have a breakage policy. If the stone breaks or chips, the bonded jeweller will replace it with a new one - one time. No jeweller would ever offer such a policy on any stone that was not 100% natural, so just the offer of such a policy should give you peace of mind concerning the quality of the diamond. Bonded diamonds are natural and untreated.

Bonded diamonds improve in value, with a fixed appreciation rate that is intended to keep up with inflation. This means that a diamond that is valued at a particular amount of money today will be worth more in the future, as the price of diamonds continues to rise. This normally does not relate to buy-backs, although. It typically applies to trade-ins.

On the other hand, by buying a bonded diamond, you are protected against the prospect of a market collapse. If a market collapse occurs, the value of diamonds will drop. However, the bonded jeweller promises to refund you the discrepancy between what the diamond is now worth and what you paid for it before the market fall.

It may be tricky to find a bonded jeweller in your locale, but if you can, this is who you want to deal with, as opposed to dealing with a non-bonded jeweller. Specifically inform the jeweller that you are only interested in bonded diamonds. You can find a bonded jeweller in your area by exploiting various online resources like Google or Yahoo, or by calling the local jewellery shops.

If you are intending buying diamonds, visit to our web site now to learn hints and tips on buying diamonds http://buying-diamonds.the-real-way.com

Acne Does Not Equal Zits

Sunday, October 25th, 2009

There are various types of acne, named according to how or why the acne developed. Some of the forms of acne are: acne conglobata (chronic boils); acne fulminans (an extreme form of conglobata); acne cosmetica (caused by cosmetics); acne keloidalis nuchae (from shaving); acne medicamentosa (caused by starting or stopping a medication); acne rosacea (redness on the face); baby acne; hormonal acne; cloracne and the common variety, acne vulgaris (also known as ‘puberty spots’). In this article, we will take a closer look at acne vulgaris.

Acne vulgaris can be defined as: ‘an inflammatory disease of the skin, caused by changes in the pilosebaceous units (skin structures consisting of a hair follicle and its associated sebaceous gland). Acne lesions are commonly referred to as pimples, spots or zits’ (from Wikipedia).

Acne is most common in white Western teens, although it does occur in every country in the world, so there could be a genetic predisposition to it. It is possible that it could be an exceptional reaction to quite average levels of testosterone. For most sufferers, outbreaks of acne last only until adulthood, probably only a few years or at the most ten. For other people, however, it can be a life-long problem. It most often affects the face, upper-chest, upper-arms and back. However, an occasional spot is not the same as acne.

Acne vulgaris manifests itself in many ways, including: whiteheads, caused by pores which are completely blocked, trapping sebum (oil), bacteria, and dead skin cells, causing a white spot on the surface; blackheads, caused by pores which are only partially blocked, allowing some of the trapped sebum, bacteria, and dead skin cells to slowly drain to the surface (the black colour is not caused by dirt, but is a reaction of the skin’s own pigment, melanin, with the oxygen in the air); papules, which are inflamed, red, tender bumps with no head and pustules, which are similar to whiteheads, but are inflamed, and look like red circles with a white or yellow centre.

Whiteheads do not usually last long; blackheads do last a long time and pustules are what people call spots. Severe acne vulgaris is distinguished by nodules and cysts. A ‘nodule’ is a much larger and more painful kind of pustule and can sometimes last for months. Nodules are large, hard lumps under the skin’s surface. They often result in scarring and should never be squeezed, which could cause them to last for months longer still.

A ‘cyst’ can appear like a nodule, but it is pus-filled, and has been described as having a diameter of at least 5mm and, again, can leave scars and cause pain. Squeezing an acne cyst may cause a deeper infection and more painful inflammation which will last very much longer than if it had been left alone. Skin experts have ways of lessening swelling and preventing scarring with both nodules and cysts. It is a myth that acne sufferers are not careful about washing.

Indeed, it is a little-known fact that, over washing can exacerbate acne. There are many, many false ‘cures’ in the shops and many, many old wives’ remedies. However, any good skin expert would advise you that there is no sure-fire cure for acne and that the patient has to follow a deliberate regimen of cleansing until the acne just ‘disappears’ of its own accord.

Are you having trouble treating acne? If you are or you’d like to know more about acne, please go to our website entitled http://treating-acne-scars.com