Acne Skin Treatment

Skin Care For Adult Acne

Understandably it's a difficult decision about what acne skin treatment you put on your face, after all you don't want to make it worse or cause scarring.  Therefore if you can identify what type of acne you have, you'll be in a much better position to know which acne skin treatments to use.

Skin care for adult acne is not that dissimilar to teenagers with acne but adults can experience a different kind of acne such as rosacea or vulgaris acne.  Rosacea acne is more of a redness/red rashes/bumps/red blemishes on the facial skin whereas vulgaris acne consists of pimples, cysts, nodules and papules.

Explanation of The Different Symptoms

Pimples/Blackheads

Pimples are sometimes referred to as blackheads and/or whiteheads. 

We have something called the sebaceous oil glands which lie underneath our skin.  Our skin pores are connected to these oil glands with a 'follicle'.  The oil substances (from the sebaceous oil glands), along with any dead skin cells, are carried to the surface of the skin through the follicle.

However, a thin strand of hair which grows through the follicle clogs the pores up which results in pimples to form on the top of the skin.

Blackheads are these pimples which are open and the visibility of yellow or black is something called the keratin which is the oily secretion from the sebaceous gland.  This keratin darkens as it oxidises (is open to the air).

Whiteheads are pimples which are closed.  The follicle is filled with the same oily substance but doesn't open to the skin's surface.  Because it doesn't open the keratin is not exposed to the air and therefore doesn't oxidise and stays white.

Cysts/Nodules/Papules

In more severe case of acne where whiteheads occur the secretion of oil is much more and will cause a bacterium (Propionibacterium ) and damage the walls of the hair duct which leads to further infection and redness. 

This is when cysts, nodules (inflamed lesions) and papules (rounded, solid bumps) arise more aggressively on the skin.

Redness

The redness, blemishes and rashes are causes of the rosacea type acne.

Scars

See the acne scar skin care page for detailed information on treating acne scars.

Learn more about acne causes here.

The Best Acne Skin Treatment

There are so many acne skin treatments on the market it is a difficult decision to know which is the best one to try.  

Skin care for adult acne :

• Retinoic Acid is among the most popular acne creams.  This solution contains vitamin A and is known to help with the inflammatory side of acne.
• Benzoyl Peroxide creams are known to be very effective in treating acne.  However, please be warned if you have acne with sensitive skin that benzoyl peroxide creams will not be suitable for you, they are too harsh and will aggravate your acne further.
• Oral antibiotics such as Sotret and Accutane can also be prescribed for more extreme cases of acne.

Please note that you should try and test one acne skin treatment product at a time.  Don't use two at the same time as the effectiveness of each one will be thwarted.  Give one treatment at least 6 weeks to show any signs of working before moving onto the next.

In addition to acne treatments you should also follow a good daily skin care routine including cleansing and moisturising twice a day.  Also make good use of sunscreen when needed.

If you are unsure about your symptoms then go to your local chemist and get the advice of a qualified Chemist or see your doctor to get the best acne skin treatment for you.

If you have acne together with sensitive skin, then you might want to read up on effective acne sensitive skin treatments.

Read about a great product which is kind to your skin and clears acne away called UltraClear.

If you have acne scars, read about acne scar home remedies.

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