Tips to Reduce Stress and Help Your Skin

Experts increasingly agree that stress plays a large role in acne. Too much stress means increased production of the hormones involved in sebum (skin oil) production and inflammation.

It’s important for the acne prone to have an arsenal of stress reduction techniques to help clear their skin. There are numerous stress reducing techniques which can enhance your quality of life by improving your overall health, strengthening your immune system, and enhancing your mental focus. Meditation, prayer, guided imagery, visualization, breath awareness, progressive relaxation and stretching are all helpful in reducing stress; choose a method that suits your personality, so that you will be more likely to practice it regularly and not be “stressed out” from trying to de-stress.

Dr. Richard G. Fried, dermatologist, clinical psychologist, and author of Healing Adult Acne: Your Guide to Clear Skin and Self-Confidence, suggests a simple, quick “square-box breathing” exercise. To do square box breathing: Inhale for two or three seconds, hold your breath for two or three seconds, and then exhale for two or three seconds. Repeat this sequence three or four times, with a two to three second rest after each round.

Another simple relaxation exercise comes from Dr. Dean Ornish’s Lifestyle Program. Make your room quiet and peaceful by drawing the shades and turning off the television or radio; turn off your phones so you won’t be interrupted. You may want to use ear plugs or cotton balls to completely shut out external noise. Sit or lie down in a comfortable position, making sure your head, neck and shoulders are comfortably aligned to allow you to breathe freely. At first, simply be aware of the present moment and notice how you are feeling. Then gradually relax more deeply, perhaps concentrating on your breath, repeating a positive thought, or visualizing a pleasant image. Five minutes a day of this exercise can be a great help.

Too much stress can wreck havoc with your whole nervous system and not just your skin. As a person who has a tendency to take on too much at one time, I know the effects of stress first hand. My skin is clearer when I take time to de-stress. Reading an inspirational book is always a great relaxer for me. What are some of your favorite stress reducing techniques?

Sources

Bender, Michele. Health, April 2007, Vol. 21. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier.http://0-web.ebscohost.com.halos.halan.lib.tx.us/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=20&sid=d8d63122-4db1-45d7-9d24-b949df995030%40sessionmgr7

Pearce, Anne. “Stress Management Tips from Dean Ornish’s Lifestyle Program” WebMD. http://www.webmd.com/content/pages/17/998993

Tags: Hormones, lifestyle, stress

Does being Prone to Anger Affect Acne?

Yes, we all know acne can make you angry, sometimes even miserable, but does being prone to anger make you more prone to acne? Although there have been some studies on the psychological impact of acne, little research has been done on the interaction between what psychologists term trait anger and acne. Trait anger is the tendency to become angry easily and frequently; it is part of what is sometimes called the type A personality.

Trait Anger’s Implications

Trait anger has been linked hypertension, heart disease and other health problems. This association has led some researchers to theorize that trait anger might also be linked to acne. Researcher D. A. Rapp and his colleagues theorized that trait anger might be linked to acne severity, patients’ skin-related quality of life, and patients’ compliance with and satisfaction with treatment. In 2004, Rapp studied nearly 500 acne patients to determine trait anger’s relationship to acne.

According to their expectations, Rapp and his colleagues found that trait anger did have a negative impact on a patient’s perceived quality of life, as well as on the patient’s satisfaction with treatment. Rapp did not find a strong association between the clinical severity of a patient’s acne and their level of anger, but he notes that further studies directed solely at this one factor are needed.

Implications for Practitioners Treating Acne

Because of the strong association between trait anger and patient’s quality of life and satisfaction with treatment, Rapp recommends that practitioners treating acne should try to assess the psychological impact the condition has on their patients. Practitioners should inquire how acne affects the patient’s life, validate the patient’s feelings about the problem, offer ideas for dealing with the negative impact of acne, and continue to monitor the patient’s quality of life during the course of treatment. Such practices would go a long way in improving the doctor-patient relationship. The emerging field of dermapsychology, in which dermatologists and psychologists work together for a healthy outcome for the patient, is based upon such practices, along with the realization that whatever its relationship to trait anger, acne can definitely lead to depression and lower self-esteem.

Given the recent studies showing the link between acne and stress, it would not surprise me if future studies find a definite link between trait anger and severity of acne. I have long been convinced of the link between physical and emotional health.

Realistic Implications

We all know that hormones effect acne. Stress, including anger, can effect your hormones, stimulating excess sebum production. The low down is, try a stress free lifestyle to help improve your acne.

Source

Rapp, D.A., et al. “Anger and Acne: Implications for Quality of Life, Patient Satisfaction and Clinical Care” British Journal of Dermatology 151 (1): 183-189, 2004. http://medscape.com/viewarticle/484747

Tags: Hormones, lifestyle

Does Sunscreen Cause Breakouts?

I just read a question that was posted on Yahoo nine minutes ago. The young lady said she’d just dissolved ten zinc tablets in water, put them on her blemishes, and then her skin started to itch severely. She was asking for some insight into why that would happen.

First, I’m thinking that the fact that it happened is not a good thing. I’m also thinking that unless the bottle said to administer them in that manner, she shouldn’t have done that. The itching could easily be due to an inappropriate dose of zinc being delivered to the skin.
I see these types of questions all too often and it’s really a concern. I beg of you, please don’t use medications in a manner other than how the manufacturer directs on the bottle. You could really harm yourself.

I know you’re probably wondering how that relates to the title of this article. When I was researching the zinc-on-the-zits question, I came across another one: Does sunscreen use lead to breakouts? According to Zoe Diana Draelos, MD, there may be a correlation, “Most of the sunscreens on the market today are based primarily on UVB absorbing ingredients, such as octylmethoxycinnamate, oxybenzone, homosalate, etc. Many also have UVA absorbing ingredients, such as avobenzone, titanium dioxide, or zinc oxide, as secondary sunscreens. All of the UVB sunscreens and avobenzone function by transforming ultraviolet radiation to heat energy through a process known as resonance delocalization…In some patients, I believe that the increased sweating induced by the sunscreens accompanied by the warm sunny weather cause increased activity by the eccrine glands”.1

I remember having trouble with this when I was younger. I’m fair-skinned, so the sunscreen was really important, but I hated wearing it because I broke out after. And now that I think about it, it was usually twenty-four to forty-eight hours later, just like Dr. Draelos notes in her article. The result of my decision was some pretty nasty sunburns, which I’m paying for thirty years later.
Wearing the sunscreen is important, but who wants to add to their outbreaks? If you’re having this trouble, Dr. Draelos recommends avoiding sunscreens that release heat and try the following instead: “…these patients should consider the use of physical sunscreens, such as titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, which primarily reflect ultraviolet radiation with only minimal absorption. These products do not produce heat yet provide excellent UVB and UVA protection”.1

I wish I would have known that thirty years ago. Instead, I spent a lot of time with a red, peeling face, and now I’m on the constant prow for new skin cancer lesions. But your story can be different. Find the product that gives you the protection you need, without the outbreak that follows. Wear the sunscreen. Protect your skin. In thirty years, you’ll be so glad you did.

1http://www.modernmedicine.com/modernmedicine/article/articleDetail.jsp?ts=1209001019050&id=53373http://www.modernmedicine.com/modernmedicine/article/articleDetail.jsp?ts=1209001019050&id=53373. Retrieved April 23, 2008.

Tags: sunscreen, topicals

Three Ways to Minimize Your Acne Scars

Living with embarrassing acne is one thing, but dealing with the scars it leaves behind is another. Thanks to certain medical procedures, acne scarring no longer has to leave you in the dumps feeling “scarred for life.” Talk to a dermatologist you feel comfortable with about the following 3 methods that can be used to minimize the appearance of acne scars.

Red Begone With Pulsed Dye Laser (PDL)
This form of laser treatment will help get the red out of acne scars in their early phase by reducing inflammation in the area (Modern Medicine, 2006). Not only will this treatment help reduce scarring, but it will help prevent future break-outs from reoccurring. This procedure is painless and does not have any harmful side effects.

Flattening Scars Using Microdermabrasion
When scars newly develop they appear reddish in color; however, over a period of time they will turn a whitish silver color. Microdermabrasion can help bring back the pigmentation in acne scars. This procedure uses a fractional laser to stimulate the collagen in the skin, making the scarring less visible (Modern Medicine, 2006). Some patients may experience skin peeling after treatment, but the whole procedure is non-invasive.

Go Topical With Retin-A
Though scars are a nuisance, they are the skin’s way of healing itself. With topical treatments such as Tretinoin, you can reduce the inflammatory changes that acne scars cause, and help speed up the healing process. Certain side effects may occur such as itching and mild stinging. Talk to your dermatologist before starting any treatment.

If for some reason you’re unable to seek medical help for your acne scars there are other alternatives that have worked for many people. The healing properties of Aloe Vera not only treat sunburns and dry skin, but it also treats acne scars. I suggest taking the gel directly from the Aloe Vera plant and applying it to your scars. Another option is camouflage makeup. This will hide almost any imperfection on the skin including scars, stretch marks, and tattoos. This stuff works miracles!

I hope the above methods help you find the treatment that is right for you and your acne scars. After all, who needs the constant painful reminder?

Source:
Modern Medicine. “Ways to Minimize the Appearance of Scars.” December 12, 2006. http://www.modernmedicine.com/modernmedicine/Dermatology/Ways-to-minimize-the-appearance-of-scars/CustomizableHandout/Article/detail/428778?contextCategoryId=40554&searchString=back%20acne (April 10, 2008).

Tags: acne scars, dermabrasion, laser therapy

Accutane Lips?

There are many blogs out there about experiences with Accutane. Although the long-term benefits are wonderful, surviving the therapy can be a challenge. I’ve had two courses of Accutane, and sometimes my lips were so dry and peeling they felt like they were going to crumble off my face. Because they were so dry, they also bled. Ugh. It was a little embarrassing to have to explain why they were such a mess.

So why does this happen to people on Accutane? First, let me say that these troublesome lips are the most common side effect of Accutane therapy, so it’s absolutely normal. Accutane is a form of Vitamin A, and works by decreasing the amount of oil in your skin. There’s a lot of great information about it at http://www.drugs.com/accutane.html. As with many treatments, what’s good for one part of your body isn’t so good for another part. I’ve never had acne on my lips (wouldn’t that be awful?), and I know none of you have either. Still, our lips have to bare the brunt of the other good stuff that Accutane does.

What can you do for those peeling, crumbling lips? Basically, moisturizers and sunscreens are the foundation of lip care. Since all of your skin is extra sensitive to the sun while you’re on Accutane, you need to pay special attention to protection during the time you’re undergoing treatment. According to Skin Therapy Letter .com, those dry lips can get so bad that secondary bacterial infections may pop up, requiring a topical antibiotic, and topical steroids if your lips are really inflamed (http://www.skintherapyletter.com/treat/acne/isotretinoin_side_effects_1.html). This website, which is written for dermatologists by dermatologists, has a list of excellent products. The sunscreens they list are specifically helpful for “Accutane Lips” and also act as moisturizers in the process.

Overall, I found that although the dry lips were a pain, the benefits of Accutane therapy far outweighed the side effects I experienced while on it. I needed two courses, many years apart, and I survived both times. However, Accutane’s not for everyone. It has severe risks associated with it, and specific terms that users must agree to. So be sure to educate yourself before you start down this road.

If you’re not on Accutane, and think you might benefit, talk to your dermatologist about it. If you are on it, and your lips are doing okay, then you’re probably not taking it correctly. If you’re on it and your lips feel like they’re about to fall off your face, then you’re on the right track. If that’s the case, we’d like to hear from you. Tell us your “Accutane Lips” stories and what you’re doing to cope. And if you’ve finished your course and your lips have returned to normal, we’d like to hear about the other side of the mountain as well.

If you’ve about had it with the whole thing, hang in there. Accutane’s side effects only last as long as the treatment, and usually go away about two weeks after you stop the drug. In the meantime, pamper them with the lip care product that’s right for you. And remember…eventually you’ll get your lips back!

Tags: accutane, dry skin

Why Me?

Many people blame themselves for acne, but here’s why they are wrong.

I hear a lot of people asking ‘why me?’. They eat healthily, they’re clean, they exercise, they use all the products they’re meant to, they do all the things they think they should be doing, but still their acne remains. So what do they do? They blame themselves some more and move into a spiral of despair and self-loathing. Sound familiar?

Acne is caused by changes in what is called the ‘pilosebaceous unit’, which is basically the term used to described the hair shaft, hair follicle, sebaceous gland and erector pili muscles (the tiny muscles that lift your skins fine hairs when you’re cold). It is most common during puberty as it can be caused by the hormonal changes in the body – namely the activity of hormones called Androgens. In some cases acne is also genetic.

The simple fact of the matter is that 80-85% of people are affected with some kind of acne in their lives, making the people who do not get it at all the very rare minority! Acne tends to diminish once people enter adulthood and their hormones settle down, but adult acne is not uncommon either.

Unfortunately, there is no telling how long acne will last in each person, nor exactly what the causes and cures are. You can only do what you can do. As long as you lead a normal, healthy lifestyle and have explored dermatological or medical help and the problem is still there, then it might be time to bite the bullet and accept it as part of your life, at least for the time being.

Making yourself miserable and single-minded will only add more problems to your life then you will solve through obsessively worrying. Ultimately, you need to learn to accept yourself for who you are, praise yourself for the good you are doing for your skin and body, and start doing some work on your self.

Tags: confidence, happiness, lifestyle, stress

When Acne is More than Acne

Did your acne suddenly appear after you had never had a pimple in your teen years or had been blemish free for years?   If you are female your sudden acne could be the sign of a serious disorder called polycystic ovary syndrome, rather than a mere annoyance. Polycystic ovary syndrome is so called because the ovaries of affected women may have an abnormal number of  small cysts; the condition can lead to female infertility, diabetes, heart disease, and uterine cancer.

Sudden Onset Adult Acne

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) manifests itself primarily in adult women, although it can occur in girls as young as eleven.  The body fails to produce enough of the hormone progesterone to induce ovulation; PCOS is the leading cause of infertility in women. The sudden onset of acne in adulthood, after one has either never had acne or been pimple free for years, can be a sign of this disorder.

Other Symptoms of PCOS

Don’t be alarmed if you’ve suddenly developed adult acne.   There are other causes, such as  medicine, stress, and food allergies that may trigger a sudden acne attack.   However, if you are also experiencing trouble with menstruation, infertility, weight gain (especially around the middle), abnormal hair growth on the face, chest, stomach, back, fingers or toes, male-pattern baldness, or pelvic pain talk to your doctor about the possibility of PCOS.

Talk to your general practitioner or your gynecologist.  While it may seem logical to ask a dermatologist about the underlying causes of sudden onset acne, these specialists are often more geared to prescribing a treatment, rather than discovering the underlying cause of acne.  I discovered this from personal experience, when my always present case of mild acne suddenly turned into a distressing case of cystic acne. The dermatologist prescribed medication, but seemed uninterested in the underlying cause.  Fortunately, for me time cured my terrible outbreak and left me once more with a mild form of acne.

If you do have PCOS there are many treatment options available.  The Hormone Foundation notes a variety of treatment options including medication and diet.   Many women with PCOS are primarily concerned with their inability to become pregnant, but the condition should also be treated because it increases a woman’s risk of diabetes, heart disease and uterine cancer

Sources
The Hormone Foundation.   “Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Treatment Options”
http://www.hormone.org/Public/polycystic/treatment.cfm

U.S Department of Health and Human Services.  “Polycystic Ovary Syndrome”
http://www.4woman.gov/faq/pcos.htm#e

Tags: adult acne

Makeup Secrets for Ladies with Acne - Part 2

When all people notice when they look at you is your acne, that means that one way or another, acne is the most interesting thing on your face. Without a doubt, we want to change that, so that when someone looks at you, they will see an attractive, confident young woman instead.

Even though we’ve taken care of our skin to make it look as healthy and vibrant as possible, there still is not a focal point on your face that we actually want people to notice. Most general makeup guides will tell you to either play up your eyes or your lips, but I’m going to advise you to always focus on your eyes. That’s because even if you have great lips, you’re not going to like what they look like an hour after you put on your lip products.

Lip liner is red, and will always bleed at least a little around the edges, re-introducing red near your mouth, an area where you probably already have some acne. This creates the exact same problem that a too-red blush would, picking up the red of your acne and amplifying it. The other reason not to play up your lips is because lipstick has oils in it that will quickly eat away your foundation. Despite your best efforts, you won’t be able to keep your lipstick completely within the confines of your lips, and the half-life of your meticulously made-up face will quickly deteriorate as lipstick at the corners of your mouth smears it away.

Apply a simple chapstick (tinted, if you’re feeling really wild) to your lips, and leave it at that. Focus on your eyes instead. You have almost complete freedom here, except for a couple of key points that I would like to introduce. First, stick with neutral or cool colors, to avoid putting any more red onto your face. Unlike with your cheeks, it’s perfectly acceptable to “cool down” your face by playing with greens and blues on your eyelids. The warmest color I would ever recommend you use is a brown.

Second, keep under-eye makeup minimal. Lining or applying mascara to your lower lashes means that eventually that makeup will slide down to the area under your eyes, leaving you with unsightly black splotches. Not only does this also decrease the useful life of your makeup, it means that you’ll have to do a hasty swipe under your eyes to take away the gunk. This displaces your foundation, and exposes even more of the redness underneath to the world. Do whatever you want to your eyelids and brow bone, but leave your lower lashes alone, and you’ll be much more pleased with how well your makeup lasts.

When we use makeup as a tool to minimize how our acne looks, we can effectively keep people from noticing it. We want the attention to be on us and our ideas, and not our current skin condition.

Tags: makeup

Makeup Secrets for Ladies with Acne - Part 1

Females have one weapon against zits that guys generally do not have: the option to cover up their acne with makeup. Even though your skin will probably clear up faster if you go barefaced for a few weeks, I completely understand if you can’t take that scary step. Believe me, I too chose to wear plenty of makeup in middle school and high school. However, over the years I learned the best steps to hide pimples during the day.

The first step is realizing that your approach to makeup should be to minimize the appearance of acne, not make it invisible. For one thing, completely hiding your acne in face-to-face encounters is pretty much impossible, providing you don’t have access to daily extractions or microdermabrasion every morning before you apply your foundation (and this guide assumes you don’t). But you would be surprised by the number of girls who slap on layer after layer of foundation to try to make your bumps appear less “bumpy.” But really, all that does is create gently rounded hills all over your face. Instead, refine your goal: I can teach you how to apply makeup that will make people’s eyes slide over your acne in real-life situations, and make it almost unnoticeable in photographs.

Why are people’s eyes drawn to the acne on someone’s face, and not their beautiful eyes or winning smiles? It’s because pimples are splotchy, red, and sometimes shiny bumps that aren’t on most people’s faces. They’re irregularities, and that makes them interesting for eyes. So let’s make the skin where are acne is look as regular and boring as possible. First, take out the redness.

After you’ve washed and moisturized, smooth on one even layer of non-comedogenic foundation. If there are still some obvious red spots, apply a facial spot concealer with a hint of green in them to play down the red of your zits. Now your face should be pretty much all one color, but it might be shiny. Apply some powder to your forehead, nose, and chin. I prefer loose powder, and try to stay away from places that don’t get oily and shiny during the day. You don’t want it caking on skin that is too dry to hold it.

A lot of girls would stop here, looking in satisfaction at their now completely matte faces. But a face that is all one color is unnatural, too, and people who see you will think to themselves, “Wow, that girl must have bad acne to wear so much makeup.” We don’t want that, either. Therefore, we apply redness back on our skin, but on our terms. A slight flush on the cheekbones and cheeks is a sign of healthy, and that’s how we want our face to appear. Go for a pink color instead of a red, to avoid picking up any red hues that may still be showing through the foundation, concealer, and powder. Apply just as much as you would if you had perfect skin.

To find out how to treat your eyes and lips, read Part Two!

Tags: makeup

Is Proactiv the Solution For You?

We’ve all seen Proactiv commercials. Jessica Simpson, Serena Williams, and Kelly Clarkson insist that the Proactiv treatment of a cleanser, toner, and topical medicine cured their acne. The company has a great marketing campaign, and many hopeful teenagers willingly part with a good chunk of their money for a chance to try Proactiv. But is it worth it? First, let’s determine what is actually in the three Proactiv containers.

The first bottle is a face soap, or cleanser. According to Dan at Acne.org, “they [Proactiv] tell you to wash for one to two minutes which adds to the irritation.” The cleanser is harsher than most people would recommend for acne-prone skin. The second bottle is a toner, an item conspicuously absent from most qualified acne treatment advice. Moisturizer works much better, but should be applied after you apply the next item, a 2.5% benzoyl peroxide solution. I propose being gentle with the cleanser, using the benzoyl peroxide, and following up with your own moisturizer instead.

Despite the way in which Proactiv portrays their product, the ingredients really aren’t very mysterious or exotic at all, and it’s definitely possible to find them all on your own. In fact, products you find on your own might well do better for your skin. The general theme of more than three thousand Proactiv reviews on the Acne.org website is that the product tends to work for a month or so, and then the reviewers saw a general decline in skin condition to as bad as or worse than their skin was before they tried Proactiv.

Customer service is also notoriously bad at Proactiv. Most of Proactiv customers’ complaints at RipOffReport.com center around the fact that customers are often billed repeatedly for more orders of the product than they wanted, or they are not able to get out of the subscription service, despite repeated attempts at cancelling through customer service. “Proactiv Solution Proactiv continually deducts money from my bank account without my permission, causing it to overdraw, causing EXTREME monetary and mental distress,” one woman from Iowa reports.

You don’t have to look hard to find pages and pages of reports from Proactiv users who were cheated out of their money by Proactiv. For that reason alone, I would recommend staying away from it. Buy a facial cleanser, toner, and a tube of 2.5% benzoyl peroxide solution from your local pharmacy, and you’ll be essentially purchasing what’s contained in a Proactiv package, only for a much lower price. You’ll save yourself the potential stress of trying to talk a huge, bureaucratic corporation into giving you back the refund they guaranteed, too.

Tags: acne treatments, proactiv, topicals