Acne is a very common skin disease. Treating acne would vary depending on the severity of the condition. Today, there are lots of acne treatments in the market. Here is an outline of the most popular treatments:

1. Benzoyl Peroxide
This is one of the most reliable and effective acne treatments in the market. Most commercial products like Proactiv and Exposed contains benzoyl peroxide which is effective in attacking the bacteria such as propionibacteria acnes which causes acne breakouts.

2. Sulfur
Since it was used to fight acne for decades, most commercial products use it as their active ingredient. Sulfur promotes the shedding of dead skin cells that could potentially block your pores. It also helps heal existing pimples and prevents them from coming back.

3. Salicylic Acid
Like sulfur, it also promotes shedding of dead skin cells. Unlike benzoyl peroxide, it does not have any effect on the p. acnes bacteria. It is only effective if being used regularly.

4. Resorcinol
It often combined with sulfur and resorcinol to prevent small acne lesions.

5. Accutane
Used for treatment of severe acne only. It is an effective and powerful drug that treats most severe acne, even those that has been unresponsive to other treatments. Since it can be potentially dangerous especially for pregnant women, you are advice to consult a physician before using it.

6. Acnezine
Acnezine is a combination of 2 or more of the ingredients making it very effective. This make it to become one of the most popular acne medications in the market. Beside treats acne and heals blemishes, it also prevents future outbreaks. It helps in flushing out harmful toxins by introduces anti oxidants to the body which.

7. Proactiv
A popular product with lots of celebrity endorsers. It works wonders in clearing out pimples. It is also a combination of tretinoin components. It’s a 3 step process that starts out with a cleanser, toner and repairing lotion.

8. Clearpores
A top rated acne product that helps clear acne in different ways. First, it attacks the p.acnes bacteria. Then, it promotes shedding of dead skin cells and it reduces excess oil or sebum.

9. Exposed
Like Acnezine, it also fights the p. acnes bacteria, regulates the production of sebum, and unclogs pores. The manufacturers are so confident of this product that they offer a full year guarantee.

10. Laser Treatment
This acne treatment is for severe cases as well. Infected areas are targeted by laser light impulses attacking the p. acnes bacteria. A light sting, just like snapping a rubber band in your skin will, be present and a light swelling and redness in the treatments areas will be noticeable but it eventually fades out. Positive results can be seen in as little as 1 week or two sessions.

Most of the acne products mention above can be bought over-the-counter. However before deciding which product to use better consult a dermatologist first in order to assess your condition. Different medications are given depending on the severity of the infection.

Different acne treatments can work in many different ways. Some acne products target the pustules and cysts while others try to eliminate the bacteria in the hair follicle to ensure the reduction and elimination of acne.

It is important that you should know the common ingredients which used in acne products before you applied:

1. Isotretinoin
This ingredient is used to reduce oil or sebum production, soothes the inflammation in the form of pimples, pustules and cysts and can also help unblock the clogging of pores. However, overuse of this ingredient can also cause side effects such as dryness and scaling of the skin, particularly on the lips.

2. Alcohol and Acetone
This ingredient mainly use in cleansers as well as astringents. They are effective in removing dirt and oils from the skin. They can cause stinging or a burning sensation on the skin. If you have severe acne, you are not advice to use these products. However, it can prevent the increase of break-outs if you use it regularly at the onset of acne.

3. Salicylic Acid
This ingredient aims to dissolve comedones or whiteheads through the removal of dead cells inside the hair follicles. It prevents the pores from being clogged allowing oil or sebum to pass through unimpeded. However, it can cause mild redness if you overuse it. It will be nice if there is a maximum of 2 percent salicylic acid in the acne product. For some acne sufferers, a stronger mixture can be prepared depending on your skin’s needs.

4. Benzoyl Peroxide
This is considered the most active ingredient in acne treatment. It is basically an anti-bacterial ingredient that helps remove bacteria in the follicles. It also has the effect of dissolving comedones which is an early sign of acne. Some products have benzoyl peroxide ingredient from 2.5 to 10% worth. Again, it depends on the severity of your acne. This is recommended for early onset acne and for prevention. Side effects would include dryness and scaling in some and redness and swelling in others.

5. Sulfur
This is rarely used alone as a product. This is actually included in acne products as an additional help to reduce acne. They remove dead skin cells and excess oil. A keratolytic preparation has drying effects on the skin. It can also cause soreness, especially at the start of the treatment. If this persists, it is advised that use of the product be discontinued until the side effects subside. A change to a lower dosage can also help.

6. Antibiotics
Some acne treatment products have antibiotics in them to help kill bacteria and prevent the spread of acne. Some doctors also prescribe antibiotics to help prevent scarring. Antibiotics such as tetracycline, tretinoin and sodium sulfacetamide come in oral or as topical medication. They must be taken regularly and within the period prescribed. A more natural remedy is tea tree oil which also has antibacterial properties but is usually in topical form like oils, creams and gels.

Adult acne is an infection of the skin which can affect an adult’s face, neck, back and to some extent, even the arms. It is cause by inflammatory and most of them referred to as spots, zits or pimples. There are many medications and treatments that can be administered to acne patients. There are 2 types of acne treatments: topical such as acne creams and astringents; the form of capsules or tablets the antibiotic forms.

In the past time, researchers have proven that antibiotics which are used in treating acne might be triggers for common illness. An experiment was run where the volunteers subjected themselves to six weeks of antibiotic treatments for acne.

The result is the volunteers who were subjected to this controlled condition were found to be more susceptible to URTI or upper respiratory tract infection which is 200% more vulnerable to URTI. They discover that who did not take the said antibiotics did not develop the respiratory tract illness. The experts also notice that overuse of antibiotics could lead to bacteria become resistant which will cause the body being more prone to infectious diseases.

Another experiment regarding acne was run under The University of Pennsylvania. People around age 15-35 years old were participate in that experiment from 1982 up until the year 2002.

This experiment answered the usual questions intended for acne patients such as how often they go to consult a physician; the common illnesses that they have developed while under treatment; and whether they have contracted URTI. The results have long since come out and the experts have observed and reported that during the first year of their experiment, 15.4% of the patients who were afflicted with acne had at least a single occurrence of URTI. Within that same year, those who have taken antibiotics were found to be 2.15% more vulnerable to URTI as compared to their counterparts who weren’t administered with antibiotics.

In general, acne antibiotic is the medication of defense against most infectious illnesses.
You normally will resort to antibiotic medication if you get acne. But now, please think twice before you ever do that. Antibiotics can also be pretty powerful when used in treating serious or fatal infectious diseases. Antibiotic-resistant germs have evolved because of people’s mentality that an antibiotic is the primary cure for most infections—even acne. You should stay as far away from antibiotics unless absolutely necessary. You would never know when you would really need it.

As everybody knows, the risk of smoking like lung cancer, heart disease and emphysema, it also causes other imperfections on the human body such as acne. Especially this happened on the skin of elderly smokers who tends to have a yellowish coloration. You might think that they are cool but after few years later smokers will notice that their skin make them look older and easy to get adult acne.

While smoking, the tobacco would slowly narrow the blood vessels in the body. This diminishing circulation deprives the skin of much essential nutrients and oxygen it needs to create and maintain healthy skin cells.

Alcohol, yet another social tool, is also the skin’s enemy. The effectiveness of the skin in defending the body against most bacterial infections will be reducing. People who are more prone to acne should try to avoid these two social acts.

Some people try to get vitamins A or E to let their skin look younger. But it will be useless if they still taking alcohol and smoking regularly. These 2 factors will cause the formation of free radicals which would slowly damage the elasticity of the skin’s collagen and fibers. Minus these two, the skin would cease to look young and flexible.

According to the British Journal of Dermatology, women who smoke are more prone to develop NIA or non-inflammatory acne as compared to female non-smokers. 40% of the smoking population, especially female, developed acne in varying forms like blocked pores, small cysts, or enormous white heads. Moreover, the smokers only have half the level of normal skin secretions of vitamin E which can make the skin less prone to acne.

If you are one of those people who have decided to let go of smoking or drinking, then there is still hope. Begin by immediately undergoing water therapy. Drinking 8 glasses of water daily and eating a well-balanced diet would soon bring back the old glow on your skin that these social activities destroyed.

Antioxidant is a popular term in all health care articles. We always encounter such a term whenever we read or browse health articles in the papers, books or magazines. Moreover, almost all advertisements and commercials of beauty and health products always mention antioxidants.

The question to ask ourselves to be able to understand the sudden hype about antioxidants is to know what it is and what can it do to our body.

Antioxidants are chemicals that prevent the oxidation of other chemicals. In biological systems, the normal processes of oxidation produce highly reactive free radicals that can readily react with and damage other molecules which may continue to damage even the body’s own cells. Antioxidants play the housekeeper’s role, “mopping up” free radicals before they get a chance to do harm in your body.

Although all the hype about antioxidants slowing down the signs of aging and promoting skin rejuvenation do not have a solid scientific basis, most skin experts are claiming that antioxidant vitamins and minerals can help in our overall well being by combating the free radicals in our body.
Here are several antioxidant nutrients which appear the most likely to produce benefits to your skin.

Vitamin A or Beta Carotene. It has been discovered that beta-carotene protects dark green, yellow and orange vegetables and fruits from solar radiation damage and it is thought that it plays a similar role in human body. Carrots, squash, broccoli, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, kale, collards, cantaloupe, peaches and apricots are particularly rich sources of beta-carotene.

Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) is a water-soluble compound that fulfills antioxidant role, among others, in living systems. Important sources include citrus fruits (like oranges, sweet lime etc.), green peppers, broccoli, green leafy vegetables, strawberries, raw cabbage and tomatoes.

Vitamin E is a principal fat-soluble antioxidant vitamin in the body. It protects cellular membranes, lipoproteins and other “oily” structures. Skin is high in unsaturated fatty acids (”oily” molecules especially susceptible to free radical damage), and can benefit from vitamin E protection (both oral and topical). Sources include wheat germ, nuts, seeds, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, vegetable oil and fish-liver oil.

Flavonoids are a diverse group of plant pigments with antioxidant properties that contain proanthocyanins and polyphenols that are good for the skin. These substances are responsible for color in many fruits, vegetables and flowers. In addition to providing color that attracts insects or animals, these pigments protect plants from environmental stress. In addition to being potent antioxidants, some flavonoids have antiallergic, anti-carcinogenic, anti-viral and anti-inflammatory activity. Over 4,000 flavonoids have been characterized and classified, but only a few have been researched.

Coenzyme Q10, lipoic acid, cysteine and methionine are potent antioxidants.