Acne is teenagers’ greatest problem - it has an effect on over 17 million teenagers in the United States alone. However, as a medical condition, acne can be controlled - it is not dangerous, although it breaks the hearts of millions of teenagers around the world each day.
This makes it more of an emotional problem than a physical one. After all, it is extremely improbable that anyone has ever died from acne, yet nearly every teenager has been through it for the whole of time.
Technically, acne is the result of clogging of the sebaceous glands and follicles with oil, which leads to eruptions similar to pimples and cysts. It must be emphasized though that pimples are not acne although they may result from the same cause.
Acne tends to coincide with the onset of puberty but can go on longer or even start after puberty has finished.
The oil that clogs the sebaceous glands is known as sebum, which rises up through the skin and would normally come out onto the skin like perspiration, but if it cannot get out owing to blockages, Propionibacterium Acnes bacteria grow, pressure builds up and little volcanoes appear on the skin until they burst owing to that pressure.
One thing is certain, you ought to never squeeze an acne ‘pimple’ or you may make acne scars and they are both unattractive and difficult to remove. In fact, acne scar treatment frequently involves either surgery or a number of visits to a dermatologist to remove the scarring.
You might be wondering why this sebum oil cannot get to the surface of your skin and flow freely without causing problems. Well, it is usually the result of dead skin cells, but this does not mean that the sufferer does not wash in the correct manner. In fact, washing too much can be a cause of chronic acne.
Anyway, near total blockage of sebum results in acne and incomplete blockage results in blackheads, which are more common in adults. Whiteheads are also a result of acute blockages in adults.
There is another degree of complication: the blockage of sebum can be close to the surface of the skin, which will result in smaller, narrow ‘pimples’, or it can happen lower down which will cause larger bumps, which are usually more painful because it takes far more pressure to burst the ‘volcano’..
Acne in teenage years or adulthood can break out on any part of the body, but it is most prevalent on the face, the chest and the back, which is where the most sebaceous glands are.
Boys and girls appear to suffer equally from this ubiquitous problem of achieving sexual maturity. However, girls may seem to get more worries, but this is almost certainly to do with their longer hair.
The total management of acne is impossible, because it comes from hormonal changes within, but if you are suffering from acne, oil is your enemy. Your own oil.
Therefore, while treating acne, keep your hair off your face even if it seems to be clean. Change your pillow case often. Really often, like every day if you can. Do not wash your face more often than three or four times a day and try an alcohol or similar based cleaner once a day. Do not use make-up and keep your hands off your face because they are naturally very oily.
Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on several subjects, but is at present involved with acne in adolescents. If you have an interest in such software, please go over to our website now at Treating Acne Scars