Acne Skin Care

It wasn't that long ago when acne was considered a curse for the many individuals that suffer from this problem; but things are gradually improving for sufferers. Medical investigation and research is ongoing and making interesting discoveries; now, some of these skin conditions are gradually being conquered. The acne skin care products available fall into these:

• Over-the-counter: Preventative
• Over-the-counter: Treatment
• Specialized, on-prescription acne products

General or preventative acne products form a large section of the skin care market; for example, special toners and skin cleansers. Many people use products similar to this every day as part of their skin care regime; many use these products to protect their skin from the environment even if they do not have the acne condition. There are acne skin care products that are more specialized in there approach; they work by limiting the production of sebum/oil and prevent clogging of skin pores. These products prevent the oil from getting trapped in pores and can hamper the growth of bacteria, this can lead to the bad skin condition.

General skin care treatments also include special exfoliation products like skin peels; most can even be purchased over the Internet in addition to normal outlets. Dead skin cells and other atmospheric pollutants are removed cleaning the pores which reduce the chance of any bacterial growth. The growth of the skin care market has allowed even more specialized acne skin care products to be available without the need to visit the doctor. Most of these creams etc. are based on benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid, both of which are the enemies of bacteria (and hence acne); these include creams, cleansers and peels that slow down acne formation.

It is preferable when you first start using this type of product to keep the concentration of it low, around 5.5 percent is best; an alternative to this includes products which contain alpha hydroxy acid. It might just be a case of trial and error to find an acne skin care product that works; however, if nothing you try seems to work, you should contact a dermatologist. On-prescription treatments are prescribed by a dermatologist and can include ointments that can be applied on the affected area or oral antibiotics or just any topical ointment.

Under certain circumstances, having the infected material removed from the pores under a local anesthetic may be suggested by your dermatologist; specialists never recommend the sufferer tries this themselves as it can cause permanent skin damage. Your doctor may even suggest a course of hormone therapy as a skin care treatment; hormone changes can be responsible for acne but hormone therapy can be very effective when used under prescription. There is no longer any reason to despair if you have this skin complaint or are prone to its effects.