What Causes Acne
Acne is widespread and common. For most people, it is an
unpleasant but inevitable part of their transition through
adolescence and into adulthood. It is not a lot of fun to
suffer from acne, making it one of the most bothersome parts of
growing up. Understanding what causes acne, though, is the
first important step you can take toward learning how to
minimize it as much as possible.
Learn what causes acne?
To understand what
causes acne we must first understand the structure of your
skin, especially on your face. Your skin has millions of pores,
tiny openings in the surface of your skin; many of these pores
also have tiny hairs growing up through them as well. If you
follow the pore down into the skin you will find small oil
producing glands called sebaceous glands; the oil they produce
is called sebum.
In normal, non-acne skin, the sebum produced helps to keep
your skin smooth, moisturized, and healthy. It is produced by
the glands and works its way up through the pore onto the
surface of the skin. Sebum not only helps to keep your skin
moist, but it also helps to carry away things like bacteria and
dead skin cells. It is sort of like nature’s way of getting rid
of the "garbage" that inevitably gathers on your skin.
Acne develops when this natural process is interrupted or
thrown out of balance. This happens most often during
adolescence when the body begins producing large quantities of
hormones and other substances that the body must learn to
process and deal with appropriately. During this learning
process, though, fluctuations in hormone and other levels can
cause imbalances that lead to all sorts of situations including
the development of acne.
How acne actually forms
When your body produces extra hormones, it causes the
sebaceous glands under the skin to produce much more sebum than
before. Additionally, these hormones can cause the pores of
your skin to have a much more difficult time getting rid of the
dead skin cells that naturally occur. The result is a clogged
pore in which bacteria, dead skin cells, and sebum combine into
a mixture that leads to swelling, inflammation, infection, and
skin tenderness.
What happens next is you begin to form various types of acne
lesions on your skin; these can include whiteheads, blackheads,
and pimples. It is these common lesions that make up what we
know as acne, that troublesome rite of passage that causes so
much pain and difficulty for some people.
Living and dealing with acne
While there is no way to 100% get rid of acne problems,
there are a number of things you can do to make living with it
and dealing with it easier. These include:
• Cleanse your skin – Use a gentle facial cleanser twice per
day to help get rid of excess oils, dead skin cells, and
bacteria. Never rub or scrub your skin because this can cause
more irritation and more acne.
• Apply anti-acne medication – A number of excellent
medications are available both over the counter and by
prescription. These medications help to reduce the production
of sebum, encourage the removal of dead skin cells, and cut
down on the amount of bacteria on your skin.
• Moisturize your skin – Moist and healthy skin is better able
to overcome acne, so don’t let your skin get too dry. Choose an
oil-free moisturizer that is very light in texture.
Understanding what causes acne makes it much easier to live
with and deal with acne each day. When you have the right
information at your fingertips you are well on your way to
minimizing your acne problems!
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