Acne - What Causes Acne?

Though acne may not be a serious problem, it can sometimes lead to psychological and mental stress. Many people lose their self esteem because of this problem.

So what causes acne? Acne is caused by hormonal disorder. Excessive secretion of the skin oil glands combine with naturally occurring dead skin cells and block the hair follicles. This oil secretion beneath the blocked pore provides a perfect environment for the skin bacteria Propionibacterium acnes to multiply, and thus the skin inflames producing the visible lesion.

Acne commonly occurs in adolescents and young adults. Almost 85 percent of people between the ages of 11 and 30 have acne outbreaks at some point. Acne tends to go away by the time you reach your thirties, but for some people it may even go up to their forties and fifties.

Causes of Acne:

Several other factors that cause Acne are:

• Hormonal changes during menstrual cycles and puberty.
• Stress, as it causes an increase in output of hormones from the adrenal glands.
• Hyperactive sebaceous glands, secondary to the three hormone sources above.
• Build-up of dead skin cells.
• Bacteria in the pores.
• Skin irritation or scratching of any sort will activate inflammation.
• Use of anabolic steroids.
• Medicines that contain halogens (iodides, chlorides, bromides), lithium, barbiturates, or androgens.
• Sudden exposure to high levels of chlorine compounds, particularly chlorinated dioxins.

Adult acne:

25% of adult men and 50% of adult women get affected by adult acne at some time in their adult lives. It can cause depression and social anxiety the same way it can in a teenager. Adult acne is more common than people may think. The causes of adult acne are unknown; however it is believed to occur because of these reasons:

• Recurrence of acne that cleared up after adolescence
• Flare-up of acne after a period of relative quiet, especially during pregnancy

It is best to consult a dermatologist for the proper treatment. You would have to use Clear Skin Regimen using benzoyl peroxide. Treatment for adult acne is the same as treatment for teen acne.

Body acne:

Body acne is a common problem which occurs mostly on the chest, back and buttocks. Like facial acne, stress and hormones are the cause. Other factors like perspiration and wearing tight fitting clothing also causes body acne. Tight-fitting clothing traps perspiration against the skin and mixes with surface oils, thus clogging the pores and causing blemishes.

Treatments:

The treatment is aimed at healing the existing lesions, stopping new lesions from forming, and preventing scarring. The dermatologist would prescribe several over-the-counter (OTC) medicines depending on the extent of the problem. Some of the medicines would be topical to apply on the skin and others may be oral.

Some of the common OTC topical medicines are:

• Benzoyl peroxide – This helps to destroy acne and also reduces oil production.
• Resorcinol – This helps in breaking down blackheads and whiteheads.
• Salicylic acid – This helps in breaking down blackheads and whiteheads. It also cuts down the shedding of cells lining the hair follicles.
• Sulfur - This helps in breaking down blackheads and whiteheads.

The prescription topical medicines include:

• Antibiotics - They help slow or stop the growth of bacteria and reduce inflammation.
• Vitamin A derivatives – They help in unplugging the existing comedones, thus allowing other topical medicines to enter the follicles.
• Others - Benzoyl peroxide, sodium sulfacetamide/sulfur or Azelaic acid help to reduce oil production or help stop or slow the growth of bacteria and reduce inflammation.

Following these treatments would cure your acne, and the psychological stress and embarrassment caused by this disease will also go away.

Acne - Not Just A Problem For Teenagers

Twenty-five percent of all adult men and fifty percent of all adult women suffer from some form of acne. These are the facts but how many adults have never had at least one acne flare up in their adult life? Adults can develop acne well into adulthood - twenties, thirties and forties and beyond that even. No acne is pleasant but somehow adult acne seems worse as acne is typically thought of as an adolescence problem. In reality adult acne, or any acne for that matter, is very hard to deal with and can lead to depression, a negative self-image and social anxiety may occur as well. The causes of adult acne are different for all people and the treatments vary as mush as the causes do. Most adult acne can be treated and managed effectively.

The causes of adult acne are unknown; some people think that adult acne has hormonal roots. The appropriate adult pimple treatment may involve balancing your hormones, which typically requires a trip to your healthcare provider or dermatologist for some testing to conclude that hormones are indeed the problem. The development of a pimple is very detailed and very intricate. While it is known that pores that are clogged can block oil from escaping, it is not known why it happens in one pore and not another. It is also not known why this does not happen in all of the pores. The many causes of adult acne and teen acne include hormone imbalance, diet, genetics, vitamin deficiency, stress, and more. The real explanation may be a complex mix of many of these factors. Since it is not know what causes pimples, it is important to focus on the proper treatment of acne.

Acne is often considered a hormonal disease or condition, meaning hormones are responsible for the maturing of the oil producing glands in our skin. Did you ever wonder why you never see acne on a young child? Young children do not have the hormones needed to mature the skin's oils. Once a person becomes and adult there are many things that can throw our hormones out of balance and in turn wreak havoc on our skin, among other things. Some things that cause such imbalances are puberty, pregnancy, menopause and many other things that cause hormones to flare up. Acne may be precipitated by androgens, the male hormones found in men and women. Oil surpluses made by these hormones are the biggest cause of clogged pores and hair follicles, which results in bacteria growth and acne pimples and blemishes. Acne that is caused by hormones is typically more prevalent in women during natural cycles like menstruation, pregnancy and menopause.

Treatment for adult acne is very effective and there are many forms of treatment available. The best treatment happens to be the same treatment recommended most for teenage acne. Benzoyl peroxide kills acne much better than any other acne medication out there on the market today, including all prescription medications. For this product to be effective an acne sufferer must use enough of the product and use it according to the given instructions. If used correctly and in a large enough amount the acne will start to clear up. This method of treatment is also very simple and is not evasive in any way. Benzoyl peroxide does not have a negative effect on the skin first unlike other prescription acne treatments, meaning you will not see a worsening of the skin before you see the improvement. Skin does not build up a tolerance to this treatment so it will be effective for long-term use. If it works on acne the first time, it will always work.

There may be a genetic component involved meaning acne can run in families. Up to fifty percent of women whose acne continues beyond their teens show evidence of increased androgen levels, with raised testosterone and/or lowered sex hormone binding globulin, a protein found in the blood. Correction of these abnormal hormonal imbalances often improves symptoms, so you need to see to it that your doctor is prepared to measure these hormone levels and help you seek a treatment. Several different treatments are available over the counter to help mild to moderate symptoms and your pharmacist can advise on which product would suit you best.

It is important to realize that adult acne is more common than most think and adult sufferers are not alone, there is a large population of adult acne sufferers. If you are troubled by adult onset acne, first consult your doctor. He or she may have a hormonal adult acne treatment that can help. If you have adult acne and it is severe or causes you pain do not hesitate to talk to your healthcare provider and discuss possible medical treatment of your acne.