Acne Prevention – How To Fight Acne Before It Happens!

Acne is not the same as having a few zits, or a few pimples appearing on your face. Acne can even spread to different parts of the body, including your neck, your back, and your chest, and can be a very embarrassing skin condition. Those who have severe acne should most certainly seek the advice of a dermatologist for possible treatment options. For those who do not have acne, most of the time, you can prevent it from ever occurring. The following paragraphs will take a look at a few ways to prevent this skin condition.

Diet

Most people do not realize it, but our skin is the largest organ that expels waste from our bodies, in conjunction with our intestines, bladders, and colons. Because of this, how we eat will be reflected in by the condition of our skin. By eliminating unhealthy foods from our diets, we are decreasing the amount of toxin being expelled from our pores. Thus, we can help prevent an acne outbreak from development by eating a healthier diet. Nutrients recommended to add to your diet to help with acne prevention include:

• zinc
• vitamin A
• vitamin E
• vitamin B6

Each of these vitamins and minerals can aid in the prevention of acne in their own way. While zinc, especially in the form of zinc gluconate or zinc sulfate, can reduce the androgenic hormonal effects on our skin. Vitamin A can help reduce sebum production. Vitamin E helps protect skin cell membrane from damage, as well as helps maintain healthy skin my eliminating harmful free radicals from our bodies, that can often be generated during physical activities. Vitamin B6 helps prevent premenstrual acne, and reduce the sensitivity to the effects of testosterone. By adding foods rich in these vitamins and nutrients to your diet, you can reduce your chances of getting acne.

Exercise

Getting regular exercise can also help prevent acne. When we exercise, we are increasing the blood flow to our skin, and providing more oxygen to our skin cells. Sweating moderately also cleans our skin pores from the inside out, also aiding in the prevention of acne. Regular exercise and moderate sweating are excellent ways of helping to prevent acne, but taking a shower immediately afterwards is very important.

Detoxification

Detoxification is the process of removing harmful toxins from our bodies. Many different types of cleansers are available to help prevent acne, including:

• colon cleanses
• liver flushes
• enemas

When there is a toxin build up in vital parts of our digestive system, the toxins begin to excrete themselves from our skin pores, increasing the chances of an acne outbreak. By eliminating the build up of toxins, we are helping to prevent acne.

How To Treat Acne Through Diet Changes

According to older beliefs, acne can be caused by excessive consumption of greasy foods and chocolate. Many dermatologists and other skin professionals now say that there is no proven scientific connection between food and acne.

However, I prefer to believe that what you choose to put in your body will have a definite effect on your health, including your skin condition. Sugary foods, excessive caffeine, and greasy, fatty snacks—all have a negative effect on our bodies and overall health. Not drinking enough water also does not help in skin repair and formation of new tissue. If your skin is particularly susceptible to acne, having a poor diet will definitely not help the situation.

It is known that eating too much sugar and refined carbohydrates can lead to a surge in insulin. This in turn may create a condition referred to as IGF-1, where an increase in insulin creates the production of excess male hormones. Excessive male hormones can create an excess of sebum, the greasy stuff that can clog pores, attract bacteria, and create monster zits. IGF-1 is also believed to cause keratinocytes to multiply, which can wreak havoc on skin.

Doctors have consistently warned of the health dangers of consuming saturated fats and trans fats. Saturated fats have an overall negative effect on the body, weakening the immune system, promoting inflammation, and for acne sufferers, perhaps raising the skin’s oil production level. To have the best complexion possible, keep your body healthy and filled with good, health-promoting nutrients. You should strive to reduce saturated fats because they promote inflammation, and will not help you in your battle against acne.

Certain oils are, however, absolutely essential to your health. These essential fatty acids reduce inflammation, and help promote healthy skin, nails and hairs. Examples here include flax oil, olive oil, and fish oil.

You should also ensure that you have an adequate supply of vitamins and minerals on a regular basis. Vitamin A is paramount for promoting healthy skin. Avocados and carrots are excellent sources of Vitamin A. Vitamin B-6, Vitamin C, and Zinc are other important nutrients for promoting a good complexion.

Another aspect to consider in terms of diet is your food allergies. Sometimes, people experience severe cases of acne, even if they lead a very healthy diet and have never suffered from severe acne before. In these cases, the cause may be a potential food allergy.

If you suspect your acne is caused by a food allergy, begin by increasing your daily amount of water consumption. Then try to rule out the root cause of your potential acne. Common causes of food allergies include dairy products, excess sugar, and certain refined flours and grains. Also, avoid foods rich in iodine, which have been linked to acne. Iodine-rich foods may include salt, liver, cheese, crabs, shellfish, clams, and kelp products. If you consume iodized salt, make the switch to sea salt. If you find dairy products worsening your acne, consider switching to soy or rice milk and cheese products.

The only way to prove whether there is a link between your acne and food is first by making definite changes to your diet. Observe carefully and see if you are better able to control your acne through the diet changes. Even if your acne is not caused by diet, you gain in terms of having a healthier and well nourished body. It is likely that your physical appearance will benefit from a body that is not filled with junk food!

Acne Treatment – Prescription Medicines

While it is true that in most cases acne can be safely and effectively treated with over the counter treatments any time you have an unusual skin condition it is advisable to consult a dermatologist. The doctor can provide you with valuable advice on treating the condition even if it is only acne.

Severe acne should always be treated by a dermatologist, they can provide prescription medication that is effective at treating the more sever acne outbreaks. Moderate and mild acne can usually be treated without the advice of a doctor but even with moderate acne prescription medications may be able to treat it better and faster then over the counter solutions.

Medications for treating acne are given in one of two forms; oral or topical. In many cases the doctor will use a combination of both types to treat the outbreak. Antibiotics are frequently used to treat acne and can be provided in either form. Other topical medications will usually include ingredients such as zinc and retinoids.

The most common antibiotic for treating acne is tetracycline. It works with a dual action both killing the acne causing bacteria as well as helping to reduce the inflammation. Antibiotics are not an immediate fix and will usually have to be taken for weeks or even months before the acne clears up, you will also have to continue the antibiotic even after the acne clears up to prevent a re-occurrence. There are some side effect reported with the use of tetracycline, with extreme sensitivity to the sun being the most common one. Any one taking tetracycline needs to be very careful about exposure to sunlight to avoid severe sunburns. Some people may also experience nausea, hives and even dizziness.

Women undergoing treatment with tetracycline may notice an increase in vaginal yeast infections. Young children and pregnant women cannot take tetracycline because it can cause discoloration of growing teeth.

Ointments that contain antibiotics have a lower rate of reported side effects. These ointments will kill the bacteria and but there can be some cases of the bacteria becoming resistant to the antibiotics. Combining other medications such as; benzoyl peroxide with the antibiotic lotion can greatly reduce the chance of such problems.

Retinoids are a derivative of vitamin A and are usually applied directly the skin in the form of a lotion or crème. The use of topical retinoid medications is very effective in treating blackheads and whiteheads. It produces the positive results by cleaning out the pores that cause the acne; the only common side affect is dry skin.

If the acne is severe and is not responding to other treatments then an oral retinoid medication may be used. This will cause the top layer of skin to peel off which will also open the pores. The oral retinoids also cause the body to create less sebum, which also reduces the acne issues by reducing the oil on the skin.

There can be some rather serious side effects associated with using oral retinoid medications. Since they can cause serious birth defects any woman on oral retinoids should use two forms of birth control to avoid the possibility of pregnancy. They can also cause depression and liver damage so anyone using these medications must be closely monitored by their doctor.

There are some other medications that have the side effect of helping with acne. In some women birth control pills help reduce acne by changing the hormone levels and reducing the testosterone levels. Zinc can also be used to treat acne.