Acne is a relatively common skin condition that typically starts around puberty, in fact about 80-85% of people will suffer from some degree of acne during their teenage years and this frequently continues into adulthood. Unfortunately we are not yet aware of the precise causes of acne and there is no single cure which works for everyone. There are however a variety of tried and tested treatments which can help or even completely eradicate the condition.
As all sufferers know, acne is a condition which causes redness and spots on the skin. These can be painful and in severe cases lead to scaring. The blemishes most often occur on the face but can also be found on the back, chest, neck and behind the ears, in fact anywhere where there are a lot of oil glands on the skin. In acne, these oil glands produce excessive amounts of sebum, an oily lubricant used by the body to keep skin pliable and soft. This excess of sebum is unable to be flushed away by the skins normal mechanisms and builds up inside the hair follicles leading to the formation of whiteheads and blackheads. Bacteria thrives in this environment and the skins defense to rising bacteria levels leads to inflammation and redness of the infected area.
Acne can be affected by things such as hormones, especially the hormone testosterone high in both both boys and girls during puberty; genetic factors as acne seems to run in families; stress, possibly because stressed people tend to touch their face more often and so spread bacteria;and some chemicals. Contrary to popular belief acne is not caused by eating chocolate or being dirty and it is not infectious.
There are a number of treatments available for acne and your doctor will be able to advise you of these. In addition there are things you can do yourself to help improve the condition. Cleansing the skin is obviously very important as this helps to reduce bacteria levels. You should use a gentle cleanser twice a day and a facial steamer two to three times per week.
Steaming opens up the pores on the face and increases sweating. The sweat acts in two ways, firstly washing the excess oil, grime and dirt out of the skin and secondly, since it contains salt it has a antibacterial effect, reducing bacteria levels in the skin and giving a thorough but gentle cleansing. Steaming also stimulates the circulation blood to the skin resulting in a greater supply of essential oxygen and nutrients and it moistens and softens the skin too.
To increase the effectiveness of a home steam, some people add herbs or essential oils to the water. These can have very beneficial effects. Rose hip for example is high in vitamin A and useful for skin regeneration. Mint can help to break down the dirt and oil in your pores making it easier for them to be flushed away. Since stress is thought to play a role in acne outbreaks, adding lavender a known relaxant to your steam treatment may help.
There are a variety of ways to steam your face. Perhaps the most basic is to do it yourself at home over a very hot bowl of water! However, there are a selection of fantastic facial steamers available to buy, which can make the job a whole lot simpler and safer too, no wandering about with kettles of boiling water. Perhaps the cheapest model available is the portable steamer. This is lightweight and very easy to use, just fill up the reservoir with water and turn it on. You can safely add essential oils to the water reservoirs of commercial steamers and one great advantage is that you can control the steam volume, having either a fine mist or a strong steam spray delivered. Some facial steamers are designed to be used with ozone which is antibacterial and dries the skin, giving even greater benefits to users.
Once you have finished your steam treatment, you must always wash your skin immediately afterwards to remove all the impurities which have been drawn out by the steaming process, otherwise you will make the condition worse. The results of steaming your skin in this way will not be seen for a few weeks, in common with all other acne treatments. But if you continue to regularly cleanse your skin in this way, you should be rewarded by a much improved complexion.
