ACNE IN ADULTS

Acne, pimples, cysts, blackheads or pustules, although we have already passed puberty worry us, there is always that pimple or something more than that, at the most inopportune moment, whatever the moment and whatever our age.

Acne really is a practically chronic disease , it is difficult to eliminate it completely and definitively.

In this post I do not intend to talk about serious acne diseases in adults , but rather the most common ones, pimples or other lesions that appear more or less sporadically and more or less large, which can be suffered by any adult woman or man.

During this post I will talk about pimples, like the typical acne lesions since it is the colloquial language that we all know.

How grains are formed:

Acne is formed by sebum , oil is produced in the sebaceous glands of the skin.

There is a bacterium that lives in the hair follicles and in the pores, it is Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) .

When a hair follicle is obstructed by excess production of this sebum, by excess of dead cells or simply by skin dirt , together with bacteria, infection and subsequent inflammation occurs, this causes an immune reaction where leukocytes come to eliminate that infection, which causes the formation of pus in the pimple or comedo. And the unpleasant aspect of it.

Open comedones or blackheads are this excess of sebum together with keratin and dead cells, although they do not become infected, so they do not become inflamed.

There are different causes that can cause the formation of pimples or comedones.

HORMONAL CHANGES:

These cause an alteration in the normal segregation of fat, mainly due to an increase in androgens, such as testosterone . When the amount of sebum increases, the cells tend to regenerate more, but when they die it is difficult, due to the cutaneous fat, to be released. easily from the skin.

This, together with more fat and together with skin bacteria, cause the obstruction of the pore and the consequent formation of acne.

Interestingly, when acne appears for this reason, pimples usually appear in the jaw area and around the mouth.

Increased cortisol , cortisol is the hormone that we secrete when we are stressed, cortisol is also located in androgen receptors, which is why it also causes the formation of this type of skin lesions, for the same reason.

Lack of sleep can also cause acne formation due to increased stress due to excessive tiredness and cortisol formation.

During pre-menstrual syndrome, in which the effect of stress (formation of cortisol) and an imbalance of sexual hormones are linked, as well as during menopause, some women suffer from the problem that the amount of testosterone is higher than that of Estrogen thus likewise causes the formation of acne.

Pregnancy: Some women experience an acne breakout in the first three months of pregnancy.

Polycystic ovary syndrome : This problem can cause acne, weight gain and even hair as it can usually cause an increase in testosterone.

Thus, all drugs or other products that can cause an increase in the production of male hormones will also result in the appearance of acne. As it can be in the case of anabolics.

Medications such as antidepressants , ovulation stimulators in fertility processes and even the lithium supplement used in depression and bipolar depression.

FEEDING

What we eat can cause the formation of pimples due to the substance itself, due to a personal allergy to that food or even due to rejection due to intolerance or simply due to poor digestion of the food .

For example, if we eat something that makes us feel bad, it is very likely that the next day we will wake up with a pimple.

There are some topics such as chocolate , they are true when the amount is really excessive due to its own stimulating components of chocolate such as the xanthan bases that they contain such as theobromine and the important fat part that cocoa butter contains, which is a fat itself.

Thus, also fried foods, sausages due to their high amount of fat. Likewise, a diet that is too rich in spicy foods can cause acne, spicy foods are more difficult to digest, they can increase inflammation simply because of the vasodilation they cause.

Many of the industrial foods should be limited due to the large amount of toxins they contain, these toxins can directly cause acne as a reaction of the body against these toxins.

HYGIENE AND TREATMENT COSMETICS

To prevent acne from appearing, the most important thing is extreme hygiene . The lack of hygiene causes the infection of the glands that have been able to secrete more sebum, which together with other secretions such as sweat and external dirt clog the pore , which causes the ideal broth for the evolution of skin bacteria, as well evolves with infection, inflammation and appearance of acne.

When there is excess oil, the skin also tends to have it on the scalp, so this oil slides through the hair, if the hair is in continuous contact with the skin, such as a fringe, it can cause the formation of acne .

Inadequate cosmetics can block the skin, especially comedogenic and occlusive cosmetics , we cannot add more oil to skin with an oily tendency and enlarged pores, or cosmetics that will clog the pore, for this, the ideal is to use free products in fat and serum. Also some silicones are occlusive.

Some makeup, especially long-lasting and especially those that leave the skin shiny, have all the points for pimples to appear.

When hair begins to come out after waxing or shaving, if the hair comes out crooked or not strong enough, it can also cause pimples to form in those follicles.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

When someone suffers from acne, the first thing to do is extreme hygiene.

We must try to unblock the pores to avoid the formation of more injuries.

We have to treat the skin as if it were a pure infection.

The skin is inflamed and more sensitive , so you have to use treatments that cleanse in depth but are not aggressive and alter it more.

Obviously normal skin with two pimples or a small acne outbreak is not the same as teenage acne or rosacea (in which acne is more generalized and the skin is highly sensitized).

I recommend cleaning with plenty of water both in the morning and always before going to bed . If you play sports, it is also advisable to wash your face well.

With a type of mild soap or foam (I remember that my comments are for people with small adult acne breakouts, since in adolescents I would recommend a much more astringent soap) that is rinsed with warm water.

You can use micellar water to remove traces of makeup, but always use a deeper cleanser afterwards.

Later I recommend the toner as an essential element even if the cleanser is rinsed in water.

If the skin is irritated from acne treatments, a little rose water or witch hazel is enough.

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On the contrary, if the skin is normalized, a tonic that is also a little antiseptic. I personally have a soft spot for a very cheap product sold in France called “eau précieuse” with salicylic acid and boric acid.

Later, if the skin is very oily in general, I recommend treating the entire face with a somewhat acidic lotion (with AHA) , which does a little peeling, unblocking the pores and preventing pimples from forming.

Glycolic acid at high concentrations and salicylic acid will also regulate excess fat.

To eliminate the granite, on the tightening and emptying of the same.

I understand that it is horrible to have a yellow pimple on your face, and many times it is impossible to resist emptying the comedo. Most dermatologists are totally against it, due to the possibility of new infections and marks or scars on the skin.

That is why, if it cannot be avoided, (that white pimple in the middle of the face) it must be done with extreme hygiene, cleaning the skin a little beforehand with a cotton ball with a little alcohol and between two clean tissues. Sometimes it is better to prick the granite with a hypodermic needle, avoiding pressing too much and causing a "major breakdown". The comedone must be completely emptied otherwise the next day we will have the same one again, and taking extreme measures that everything that comes out can easily infect the surrounding area.

We have products that can help dry these pimples without having to touch them, so that they are absorbed by themselves and do not come out as much.

Benzoyl peroxide

It is one of the most used ingredients to eliminate acne, this component works by eliminating the bacteria that causes acne, although like most acne treatments in which we will dry the area and peel the skin a little. It is generally used between 2.5% and 5% in the form of ointments or gels.

It really is an asset that works quickly.

Salicylic acid

This acid works by reducing inflammation and eliminating dead cells, which is why it peels, as if it were AHAs.

It will help to cleanse the skin in depth and regulate the formation of fat.

It is keratolytic, in turn helps reduce skin inflammation and reduce redness.

Most acne treatment lotions contain it.

Sulfur

This mineral is one of the oldest treatments for the treatment of acne. It acts by regulating the sebaceous glands, as a bactericide, it reduces inflammation.

This mineral is part of keratin, which in turn is part of the skin, it is also necessary in the formation of collagen.

Specific acne masks often contain sulfur and many of the older acne formulas contain sulfur.

The only discomfort is the smell of it, since it is quite unpleasant.

antibiotics

As these are lesions in which the presence of the Propionibacterium acnes bacteria is very important, if we find an antibiotic that eliminates it, we will also prevent the formation of acne.

Therefore, the use of both oral and topical antibiotics is effective.

The most effective and frequent topical antibiotics are clindamycin, erythromycin and minocycline (although this does not exclude others that your doctor may prescribe), generally in the form of lotions with an alcoholic excipient, which must be applied to completely clean skin.

Oral treatments, always under medical prescription, are very effective in cleaning the skin of this bacterium and avoiding the formation of comedones. In small outbreaks, treatment for a week or ten days will suffice, although in severe ochronic acne, longer-term treatments are necessary.

Retinol and isotretinoin

Retinol is the natural form of the vitamin and iso-tretinoin is the acid form of vitamin A.

Both one and the other, in topical form, act by regulating the formation of sebum, so that the skin in general dries out quite a bit, some people use both retinol and isotretinoin (in ointment) as a peeling effect to eliminate wrinkles, it is for this reason it is effective in turn on acne.

The important problem with this product is sun hypersensitivity, it is totally contraindicated.

As it has a very important drying action on the skin, it is necessary to avoid the contour of the eyes and lips.

Oral isotretinoin is used as a treatment in severe acne processes, since it acts as an anti-seborrheic, keratolytic, anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory.

Hormone blockers

As I mentioned before, excess testosterone causes the formation of excess sebum. If we achieve a hormonal balance, we will naturally regulate excess sebum.

As drugs, the most common products in women are contraceptive pills in which the amount of estrogens and progestogens is increased. Others that at the same time contain testosterone blockers, Cyproterone.

As a natural product to improve hormonal balance, Saw palmetto will help to block, above all, the metabolites of testosterone, which in turn are the cause of hair loss.

In many women, evening primrose oil supplementation will stimulate estrogen production and borage oil will in turn cleanse the skin.

detox treatments

Many times, pimples or an acne outbreak appear due to too many toxins in the body , excessive unhealthy food, alcoholic beverages, stress, little sleep or even excessive smoking, all toxins literally dirty the skin, dull it , increases cortisol and in turn causes an increase in the amount of fat secreted.

To do this, apart from external cleansing in depth as I have explained before, we have to do internal cleansing, detox treatments, in this post I have some recommendations on how to do it.

I also recommend reading this other one.

Sun

It is known in people who suffer from acne that the sun improves acne lesions, the sun acts as a bactericide, brown skin dries out a bit, so in oily skin this secretion decreases or it serves to hydrate the tanned skin.

This keratolytic effect of the sun, and if you are also in the sea, improves the lesions.

Although sometimes when you stop exposing yourself to the sun, a rebound effect occurs by increasing the number of dead cells, by peeling of brown skin and by increasing the amount of sebum. The bacteria proliferate again.

mud masks

Mud, sulfur or green clay masks are very effective, they dry the skin a little, absorb dirt from the skin and act as disinfectants, it is a good last minute remedy.

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MY RECOMMENDATIONS

I have left a lot of points in the inkwell, since for example some recommendations of natural products would have been interesting, I will leave it for another post, this topic is very extensive and the truth is that many people suffer from it.

Some of my favorite products are:

As cleansing products I like Neostrata in foam with glycolic acid.

Eve Lom has a cleansing cream that, although you have to have a little patience to use it, the skin is clean and not irritated. They also have a cream called Dynaspot that dries out pimples.

Bioderma Sebium soapy cleanser, this gel is not at all aggressive with the skin, but it cleanses in depth.

The Normaderm stick that in addition to drying the granite hides it.

Leorex Pure is a mask with silicon specific for oily skin, it absorbs oil and cleanses it in depth.

Maskryn mask from Brill laboratories with clindamycin, when the outbreak is something more important and it is not a single pimple, the gel form seems to me to be too aggressive for adult acne.

Tensoderm mask from Viñas laboratories, I like it a lot because it is very astringent while it contains a little camphor which helps to clear the skin especially when it is intoxicated.

The tonic that I have already mentioned before Eau Précieuse.

Always use non-greasy serum as moisturizers.