Acne is one of the most common disorders. It has made its presence felt globally. It is more of a cosmetic disorder rather than a physical ailment. Acne can occur anywhere but it is commonly seen on face, neck and shoulders. It is generally found in people between age group of 12 to 24 years of age. It has been estimated that almost 80 % of the world’s population suffer from acne in one or the other part of their life.

What causes acne?

Following are the major causes by which acne occurs.

· Hormonal disturbances

· Hereditary causes

· Blocked skin pores

· Improper dietary habits

· Irregular life style

· Constipation

· Menstrual disturbances

Is there any type of acne?

There are three types of acne

(a) Black heads

(b) White heads

(c) Papules or pustules or nodules

How can I get rid of acne?

Below are some home remedies that are very helpful and effective in treating acne.

1. To reduce the oil formation on face, one should wash his or her face twice with water mixed with salt.

2. Application of paste made out of fenugreek leaves twice daily for 15 minutes is an excellent remedy to avoid acne.

3. Leaves of strawberry are very effective in reducing the swellings on the acne spot.

4. Gently massage the affected area with lemon and then face is thoroughly washed with luke warm water. It is good in reducing the acne and also retards the inflammation.

5. Fresh juice of lemon is also beneficial when applied on the affected area.

6. Boil leaves of holy basil (tulsi) for few minutes in water and leave it over night. It is then applied on the acne to get excellent results.

7. Application of paste made from orange peel is also a good remedy in avoiding acne.

8. Juice of aloe-vera plant or the pulp of its leaves is very effective in accelerating the healing process of acne.

9. Apply ice on the acne before going to bed. You will surely discover reduced swelling on it in the morning.

10. Mixture of paste made out of mint juice and turmeric powder is also very powerful agent to heal acne.

11. Rubbing of garlic paste on the pimple will heal it very early without leaving any scar.

12. One tablespoon of lime juice mixed with equal amount of ground nut oil is very useful in preventing acne.

13. Juice of raw papaya, when applied on acne give wonderful results.

14. Tomato pure prepared from ripe tomatoes is excellent remedy to avoid acne.

15. Applying paste made out of the seeds of radish is extremely beneficial in acne conditions.

16. Apply honey on the acne spot helps in reducing acne if acne is caused by infection.

17. Grated cucumber should be applied on the acne to get good results.

18. Boiled oat applied on the face for about 10 to 15 minutes is helpful in suppressing pimples

19. Clean the acne spot each morning by cotton ball soaked in vinegar over night. It might be sharp to touch initially hence it must be first tried on hand.

20. Drinking wheat grass juice is very effective in treating acne.

21. Apply paste of curd mixed with oat flour on the acne spot to find excellent result.

22. Neem paste mixed with turmeric powder is very effective in treating acne

23. Fuller’s earth (multani mitti) is very effective in treating pimples when applied on face.

24. Jambul seed paste application on the acne is highly recommended to reduce acne.

Do you suffer from acne? Is acne depriving you of your confidence?Acne can cause tremendous physical and emotional pain. It makes us look ugly!

I desperately tried various over the counter acne products and dermatologist prescribed acne cure treatments with limited success. Why? Because these topical creams & antibiotic treatments do not treat the ROOT cause of Acne problem! As a result, ugly acne kept coming back.

I have discovered that to effectively treat acne, you have to treat the root of the problem. Acne is not only a skin problem, but an internal problem as well.

So now, I will share with you 3 acne killer secrets that I have learned that have given me clear, healthy, and radiant skin.

The Causes of Acne

Your acne is caused when pores in your skin get clogged by dead skin cells and excessive sebum content. Sebum is an oily substance produced by the sebaceous gland.

The clogged pore is the perfect environment for the acne bacteria. This bacteria in the plugged follicle leads to inflammation of the skin. This leads to pimples or acnes. Acne can be either mild, moderate or severe. For severe cases of acne, you should go visit a doctor.

Thus, the contributors of acne are clogging of the pores by oil and dead skin cells and the presence of bacteria. To effectively fight acne, one must address it from both the outside of the body and inside of the body.

Acne Killer Secret #1 – Preventing acne by taking care of your skin

The basic things you can do to prevent acne is to follow basic hygiene and skin care regimen. Your basic skin care regimen should include cleansing of the skin, applying an alcohol-free toner, and finish with a moisturizer + sunscreen. Toning your skin restores skin pH back to it’s normal range and it closes the pores to your skin to prevent dust and the air borne particles from settling in your pores.

You should clean your skin with a gentle cleanser at least twice a day to remove your skin from oil, dead skin cells, dry skin – substances that can clog the pores. It is imperative for the pores of your skin to remain bacteria free. The presence of bacteria is something which contributes substantially to the growth of pimples. If you have overall cleanliness of the skin, you can lessen the chance of pimples.

Look for cleansing products that contain salicylic acid. Salicylic Acid is a naturally occurring organic acid and a gentle, effective exfoliator. It is very effective for acne and oily skin and helps to unclog pores by removing dead skin cells, loosen and remove blackheads and whiteheads, and prevent future outbreaks. Products should contain 1-2% concentration of salicylic acid in order for it to be effective. For sensitive skin types, a 1% concentration would be suitable and for stubborn acne, 2% concentration is recommended.

Note that Salicylic Acid also makes skin sensitive to the sun. Sunscreen should therefore be used while applying Salicylic Acid. Sunscreen also guard your skin from harmful rays of the sun and helps slow down aging of the skin. If you have oily skin, you should use an oil-free sunscreen product.

Acne Killer Secret #2- Fighting Acne from the inside

The main cause of acne is the concentration of toxins inside the body. The body expels toxins through excretion, sweating, or through the skin. If the body is not efficient in expelling the toxins through excretion or through sweating, some of the toxins go out through the skin. This causes inflammation of the skin and increases the bacteria level on the surface of the skin, leading to acne problem.

To effectively fight acne and achieve radiant, youthful, and healthy skin, one must take good care of the body by practicing the following healthy habits:

(1)Reduce Stress – Stress causes the body’s level of cortisol (stress hormone) to go up. This leads to increase of your blood sugar and produces more oil on the skin, which can lead to skin aging and acne prone skin. Stress can be controlled by getting adequate sleep and rest and doing meditation and practicing deep breathing. Deep breathing also helps to remove the toxins in the body.

(2)Get on an exercise program – Exercise reduces stress and helps improve blood circulation to the skin, making the skin more healthy and radiant. Also, the sweating from exercise also removes the toxins in the body.

(3)Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables each day – colorful fruits and vegetables, garlic, and onions are essential for clear, healthy skin. The more colors, the more they contain antioxidants and vitamins that help to nourish the skin. Carrots, tomatoes, romaine lettuces, spinachs, cantaloupes, berries, beets, cabbages, broccolis, and kales are excellent sources.

“Water intake also plays a big role in keeping your skin healthy and beautiful. It helps to keep the skin hydrated and get rids of toxins in the body. It is recommended to take at least 8-10 glasses of water a day.

(4)Consume these healthy fats – Omega-3 fatty acids and Omega-6 fatty acids are essential fats that the body cannot produce. They must be consumed through diet. These essential fats are responsible for reducing skin inflammation and improving blood circulation, giving you a clear, glowing skin and helping you to prevent premature aging. Food that are rich in these healthy fats include salmon, sardines, mackerels, nuts (walnuts, almonds), seeds (pumpkins, sunflower), and flaxseed and olive oil., especially wild salmon. You can also take fish oil supplements.

Acne Killer Secrets #3 – Use an acne treatment system that fights acne from inside and outside the body

By following the above steps, it goes a long way in preventing and controlling your acne problems. However, for some of us unfortunate acne victims, our acne problems are more serious. Therefore, tougher measures must be taken. In addition to following the above recommendations, it is recommended to use an acne curing system that fights acne bacteria both from inside the body as well as outside the body. Most over the counter acne products in the market such as Clearsil, Oxy-10, ProActiv only address acne problems at the skin level and that is not enough to effectively fight acne.

Apart from the irritation and trauma that a sufferer has to face because of acne, there is yet another element which causes him as much, if not more, agony. This pertains to the scars that acne often brings in its wake. Trying to prevent these and then trying to eliminate them once they have appeared, is a cause of great concern to the concerned individual. The reason for so much concern is that while acne is thought to be a temporary condition, the lesions and scars which form are perceived to be of a more permanent nature.

There are, no doubt, treatments available these days which are quite effective, but some types of acne cause deep scarring which aren`t possible to cure. This is why, to avoid the psychological trauma and the expenses of trying to treat the lesions and living with the disfigurement, it is so important to avert acne scarring.

What I will try to do here is to talk about the various types of acne scars and to give you advice on how to treat them. But primarily, I will guide you on how to prevent these scars in the first place by eradicating the root cause of your acne.

The Causes and Types of Acne Scars and their diagnosis

Studies indicate that acne scars mostly come about as a result of severe acne which causes nodules and cysts to form in the deeper layers of the dermis. Other causes include damage caused to the skin by picking or popping acne, infection, cystic acne which works its way deep into the dermis and overgrown skin tissues.

It has also been found that some people, irrespective of the type of acne they contract, are more prone to the process of scarring. And acne scars sometimes occur because the body`s wound healing process sometimes goes askew, whether it be an improper deposit of collagen or the formation of new capillaries or a warped response to the inflammation or anabolic and catabolic phases: all these are meant to be part of the body`s natural healing phase.

Whatever the reason, the bottom line is that, if you do not wish to be permanently scarred by acne, treat the damage as soon as you can.

In essence, acne scars are of two types. Scars which have formed due to an increase in skin tissue formation and those which have formed because of a loss of skin tissue.

Scars which form because of an increase in skin tissue:

Where there are increased skin tissues, the most commonly found acne scars are Keloids scars. These scars are more likely to be found on people with dark skins and appear when an excess of collagen is formed by cells as part of the healing process. These scars are usually smooth and are shaped irregularly.

Scars which form because of the loss of skin tissues:

Acne spots: the skin surrounding these scars generally turn brown or red. In most cases they gradually fade away by themselves or after the application of some topical scar treatment. A similar fading away can be noticed in the case of post inflammatory hyper pigmentation but the use of MSM has often hastened the process.

Ice-pick lesions: as the name suggests, these acne scars look like ice which has been riddled with an ice pick. Most commonly they appear on the cheeks and the scars can sometimes be deep and sometimes superficial. These scars are more difficult to get rid of than acne spots.

Depressed fibrotic scarring: these scars mostly form as a result of deep nodules and are white and rigid. They are characterized by steep sides and sharp margins.

Atrophic scar macules: scars of this variety are generally soft, small and white and are distensible.

Other types of scars include rolling acne scars which come about because the surface of the skin gets stuck to the subcutaneous layer. Also, there are boxcar scars which are characterized by vertical edges and round indentations.

Treatment of Acne Scars

Just as the discoloration that accompanies an acne attack fades away slowly, so do most acne scars. However, some scars prove more difficult to smoothen away and require some manner of treatment whether it be topical treatment or surgical cosmetic intervention.

Different scars require to be tackled differently. And there are even scars which require to be treated using a combination of more than one elimination method. A large number of treatments exist for smoothening over scars and these include: pulsed laser technology, dermabrasion, chemical peels, laser resurfacing, punch techniques, collagen injections and creams.

Collagen injection involves injecting collagen or fat under the skin. This treatment is generally administered in the case of soft scars, whether deep or shallow. However, the effects of collagen are not long lasting and injections have to be repeated every 6 months. Also, it should be noted that collagen has some adverse side effects and allergic reactions could also develop.

Microdermabrasion is where tiny particles are passed through a vacuum tool with the purpose of scraping the external top layer of the skin. This process, which is only effective with mild scarring, acts as a stimulant and enhances the growth of new cells.

Laser resurfacing is a treatment involving the flattening and resurfacing of the skin layer by the use of laser thus making the scars more even with the surface of the skin. This, to an extent, camouflages the scars. However, this method often causes undesirable side effects such as infection, a reddening of the skin and can sometimes even aggravate the scars. Studies have indicated that laser treatment works better on newly formed scars rather than on old ones.

Punch grafting means slicing open the acne scar right up to the fat layer and stitching it up by means of a small skin graft.

We give you the recommended treatments for the various types of scars acne brings in its wake. Post hyper pigmentation marks are best tackled with MSM or Alpha lipoic acid acne cream. Dermabrasion or laser resurfacing is the suggested treatment for ice pick scars. Flat or thin scars should be dealt with by administering Collagen injections, which should not be used for ice pick scars. Keloids acne scars can be brought under control with steroid injections, silicone gel dressing, crytotherapy or pulsed laser treatment combined with carbon dioxide laser vaporization (where the keloid scar is not too red or too thick).

Prevention of Scars after Acne

Ideally, acne scar treatments should be tried as a last resort because they are highly expensive and have too many side effects. The best approach would be to first try and get rid of the acne. This will work only if you identify the imbalance in your system which is causing the acne. Try to cure it by using natural methods and avoid taking topical acne treatments, medication that is available over the counter or steroids.

Once you have corrected the internal symptoms that caused the acne, you will notice the acne disappearing gradually without leaving any scars.

Moreover, you will be saved the expenses and harassment of taking treatments that cannot cure the acne permanently.

We already know that acne and its resultant scarring are not a skin problem but are caused by internal imbalances. Once that is fixed there will be no acne and consequently no acne scarring.

If you succeed in nipping the acne forming process from its roots then you will not have any acne scars to deal with either. In this way you will be permanently free from acne and acne scars and enjoy a flawless complexion forever.