Acne Can Be Devastating Both Physically And Emotionally
Our skin team will design a unique combination of ingredients to address many of the problems associated with acne including cystic changes, hormonal, hyperpigmentation and scarring.
Androgens – Male Hormones:
Yes ladies, you do have male hormones inside your body. Starting in early pre-puberty, your body begins to produce DHEAS (dihydroepiandrosterone sulfate) which is an androgen. When puberty officially hits, you also start to produce testosterone and DHT (dehydrotestosterone).
Androgens really ramp up the oil production of your skin. On one hand,
this is a good thing, oil keeps skin moist and supple. On the other hand, too much oil production blocks your sebaceous glands where the oil (or sebum) mixes with the dead skin cells and makes a nice clog in your pore. This is a gourmet feast for bacteria which find the clogged pores and begin to multiply.
Androgens produce sebum. Sebum is the fat or oil secreted by our pores and coats the hair follicles. If you don’t shampoo your hair every day, it becomes oily due to excess sebum. We have sebaceous glands on our face, neck, head, and shoulders, which explains why we have acne breakouts in these areas.
Many women, in fact up to 50% of all women experience some form of adult hormonal acne the week before their period. This is caused by that androgen surge. Some women are even more prone to adult acne because they have larger problems with androgens, and these are the women with polycystic ovarian syndrome. Because the overabundance of androgens throws their monthly cycles completely off kilter, they never know when they’ll experience an acne breakout.
Most women who suffer from adult hormonal acne experience their worst breakouts on their chin and around their lips. Adult hormonal acne typically begins after the age of 25 and occurs on and off during the course of adulthood. The bad news is that when a women begins to go through menopause, her female hormones begin to dwindle, and those androgens become even more dominant. Here comes the acne, yet again.
Some women have had good success by understanding what causes their acne and sticking to a very strict daily face cleaning regimen.
There are a number of acne products on the market, most of them targeted for teenagers. Most of these products can be too strong for more mature skin, but you can use them sparingly and see how your skin reacts. Anything that irritates your skin is too strong.
Try The Following Regimen To See If It Helps:
- The most important thing is to wash your face twice a day with a gentle soap. There is no need to wash your face more often unless you are sweating profusely or have a very dirty job.
- Salicylic acid is found in a number of acne products and this works to dissolve the sebaceous oils, helping to remove any skin debris that is clogging your pores. Rinse this off.
- Find a very mild benzoyl peroxide cream, something that is 2.5% or less. This is applied directly to the skin at night to help unclog you pores as you sleep. Try this every other night at first.
If your acne does not respond to this treatment, you may well need to visit your dermatologist for help. There are topical antibiotics that can be prescribed and are very helpful. The second alternative is a prescription for Retinoic Acid. The beauty of Retinoic Acid is that it also decreases wrinkles and rejuvenates your skin. This is dangerous to pregnant women, so it will not be prescribed if you are pregnant, or are thinking of becoming pregnant.
The last thing you can do to help control your adult hormonal acne is to avoid certain compounds in your skin care products and makeup. Avoid products that contain butyl stearate, lanolin, lauryl alcohol, oleic acid, vegetable butters and oils, and waxes.
