Acne is a very common skin problem that affects almost everybody at some point in their life.
So, what is acne?
It is a skin condition where the hormones of the skin’s oil glands lead to clogged pores.
Symptoms such as whiteheads, blackheads, papules, pustules or pimples, nodules or cysts appear. These can occur on the neck, face, neck, chest, back, shoulder and even arms.
Although not health threatening, this skin disorder can lead to scarring if not treated and controlled properly. This is a skin condition can cause a lot of emotional upsets.
HOW DOES ACNE DEVELOP?
The follicles or pores on the skin contain oil glands, also known as sebaceous glands secrete sebum which is an oily substance that helps to lubricate the skin and hair.
Sometimes the skin’s pores get clogged with too much oil or dead skin cells. The combination of oil and dead skin cell is called plug. The plug stops sebum from reaching the surface of the skin and allows bacteria Propionibacterium acnes to grow.
The bacteria produce enzymes and chemicals that attract white blood cells which will cause inflammation. Inflammation is just a reaction of body tissues to injury or disease. It is marked by four signs: redness, swelling, heat and pain. When the plugged follicle’s wall breaks down, it’s contents (sebum, dead skin cell and bacteria) spill into the nearby skin, acne lesions are formed.
WHAT CAUSES ACNE?
While not all the causes are known, there are a number of factors that could trigger an outbreak. Knowing the cause of your skin problem will help towards finding ways to control and treat it.
WHO GETS ACNE?
Anybody can get pimples or even just blackheads and whiteheads. It is not restricted to any age group and is gender-blind.
Signs of pimple outbreaks usually start in the early teens and lasts for about 5 – 10 years. This is the time when sebaceous glands of the skin start to produce more oil. It affects both boys and girls. The condition for boys may be worse as they tend to have more oily skin.
Heredity factors play a part as well. If your parents had bad skin conditions, you would not be that lucky too.
The bad skin condition usually goes away on its own in the early 20s. Sometimes, the condition can persist well into the late 20s, 30s or even 40s.
It affects both young men and women. Young men tend to have more lasting and more severe acne. Young women tend to have the condition on an intermittent basis. Their skin condition is more serious when there are hormonal changes due to their menstrual cycle.
There are many factors that can trigger outbreaks. Most people will suffer from these outbreaks some time in their life. It is very hard to completely prevent it.
However, there are simple steps that can be done to help provide better control of outbreaks.
Even when an outbreak occurs, you can improve your skin condition with proper treatments. Medications used could be over the counter or prescribed.
While you may not be able to entirely avoid acne, permanent scarring can be prevented with proper care.
CAUTION
Are you are new to a particular skin care product? Always buy a small quantity to try out and test it on a small patch of skin first. A particular brand may work wonders for your best friend, but have a different result with your skin. Remember, different people may have different reactions to different products.
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