Adult Acne, Teenage Acne-Why more people are suffering from breakouts than ever before.

According to a study presented at the American Academy of Dermatology’s annual meeting this past  March.  Even though over 50% of adults continue to get acne well into adulthood, if you are over 18 and have acne, it’s easy to feel like you’re the only one.  It’s mortifying enough to have acne as a teenager, but to have it as an adult is downright humiliating.  People find themselves hiding from the public or unable to compete for jobs or promotions with clear-faced peers.  

Professionals with acne are not taken seriously – a big problem for those who really need credibility not only with their peers, but with their own clients.  It is tough not to feel like a failure when you have adult acne.  And it’s not just women who suffer there are many adult men who come into our clinic looking for the answer to their skincare woes. 
 
What causes adult acne?
For most people who suffer from acne, they get to blame their family. It is an inherited tendency of the pores to clog up with dead skin cells too quickly, which causes a cascade or acne-forming events to happen. So, some people never “grow out” of their acne until much older.  Other people don’t have acne in their teenage years, but start breaking out in their twenties and/or thirties. Why their acne laid “dormant” for their teenage years is a mystery, but as adults, many things can contribute to the onset of acne problems.  Stress, medications, comedogenic (pore-clogging) makeup, skin and hair products, pregnancy, birth control pills and smoking are just some of the contributors to chronic breakouts.
 
Hormonal fluctuations caused by birth control, Plan B, pregnancy, pms, medications, and menopause can also affect your propensity for breakouts, sometimes causing severe acne flare-ups in women who never got a single pimple as teenagers. If you are acne-prone, choose a birth control method that won’t make your acne worse and learn about the relationship between hormones and acne so you can prepare yourself ahead of time for any changes in your skin that may arise.  A condition called pyoderma faciale which mimics acne is a sudden breakout that happens to women in their thirties. 

 Medical conditions like PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) or thyroid disorder can wreak havoc with the skin. 

Medications for bipolar disorder like lithium, thyroid medications, anticonvulsant medications, lo-dose birth control pills, corticosteroids, sobriety drugs, etc, can also cause acne. 

Pore-clogging makeup, skin care and hair care can be a culprit in adult acne.  Even if a product says “non pore-clogging” or “noncomedogenic” on the label you cannot trust it.  I have seen scores of products claiming this and look at the ingredient deck to see pore-cloggers. Even the prescribed acne medication, Retin A (the cream form) has a terrible pore-clogging ingredient in it called isopropyl myristate.  If a doctor is going to prescribe a retinoid for acne, it should never be the cream form of Retin A.  For a list of pore clogging ingredients, head to our website, utahacneclinic.com. 

The difference between adult acne and teenage acne
One of the challenges of adult acne is that skin generally becomes less oily and more sensitive. Acne products and treatments that worked well in your teen years may dry you out or cause severe irritation. If you had acne as a teen, you may have noticed that acne seems to travel down and across your face as you age. You used to break out on your forehead, and now you break out on your cheeks. Then it goes to the jawline and sometimes the neck.  This is because the sebaceous follicles mature in stages. For this reason, adult acne is most commonly concentrated around the cheeks, chin, and/or jawline. It is imperative to use the right strength of acne-clearing products on older skin.  Also, starting slowly with a routine allowing the skin to adapt to strong products is an important strategy.
 
The good news: acne products can also be anti-aging!
People who have had acne since adolescence, may be under the impression that their pimples are unstoppable. Adult acne sufferers have usually tried various prescription medications, over-the-counter products, systems such as Proactiv and Murad, and every spa treatment and facial under the sun. The reality is that effective acne treatments and products do exist!
By virtue of their exfoliating properties, some acne products and treatments can even be beneficial for anti-aging and lightening dark spots and acne scars. At Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic, we advise adult acne sufferers to work closely with our acne specialists for a period of four to six months to achieve a lifetime of clear skin. There is no need for anyone, teen or adult to be embarrassed and inconvenienced by the ravages of acne and the scars it can leave behind.  

 Life is full of enough problems… don’t let acne be one of them.

One of our clients shares her experience.  "I’m 30 years old and have struggled with Acne since I was in high school. I’ve been to a few dermatologists, which continued to prescribe antibiotics. One by one they quit working and I worried about my long-term health since I was continually on antibiotics. I’d been looking for a more natural  approach. I stumbled upon Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinics website and am so glad I did. They cleared my face up within 10 weeks and I’m now acne free. It’s a miracle. Jil taught me how to manage my acne. I’m a nursing mother and she has always been careful to use safe products. I have more confidence at work now and don’t wear much makeup anymore because I don’t need to."

Antibiotics and Acne - More Harm than Good?

At Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic of Salt Lake City, we fight acne with an individualized program of product use, lifestyle changes and safe extractions. It is usually a 12 week process to get clear and then continued product use keeps your skin clear. We see continued success with this process and often times we help people who have tried many other techniques without ever seeing clear skin. One of the most common and failed treatments for acne we see in our clinic is prescription antibiotics. In our experience, it is extremely clear that antibiotics do more harm than good when treating acne. Please read on to learn more about the dangers of antibiotics

A quick background on acne and antibiotics: Antibiotics have become an extremely popular treatment for acne. Dermatologist and doctors have been prescribing antibiotics for decades and about 90% of my clients have been prescribed antibiotics as an acne treatment at one point or another. Some of the most popular are erythromycin, tetracycline clindamycin, and doxycycline.

What is the original logic behind prescribing antibiotics for acne?
The whole idea behind antibiotics is that they fight bacteria, so if bacteria is your problem (strep throat, a bacterial flu, etc.) an antibiotic will work to kill that bacteria in your body and ultimately make you feel better. The thought behind using antibiotics to fight off acne is based on the assumption that acne is just caused by bacteria. 

So why aren't the antibiotics working to control breakouts?
Many of my clients who have used antibiotics in the past saw little to no results at all. In some cases folks had seen a change at first, but their acne came back over time. The problem with this entire idea is that acne isn't only caused by bacteria, it is a problem in the pores of your skin. If you are acne prone, your pores are over producing and shedding skin cells at an extremely quick pace. Your body cannot keep up with this excessive shedding and your dead skin cells are mixing with your natural oils to cause growth in bacteria. Your pore becomes the ultimate breading grounds for micro-comeodones. These are the beginning of zits.

If antibiotics are not treating your acne, what are they doing to your body?
The worst part about prescribing these antibiotics for acne is not that they actually don't work in clearing your skin, but that they can cause harm to your body. Some side effects of taking antibiotics include, stomach and intestinal problems, continuous vaginal yeast infections in women, permanently stained teeth, nausea and diarrhea. We are also seeing new, serious bacterial infections that are resistant to antibiotics. Staph infection and MRSA are becoming more common and harder to treat because of over prescribing antibiotics.

Ultimately, you do not need antibiotics to clear your skin. We see results with every one of our clients and we highly suggest staying away from antibiotics. We would love to
help you clear your skin in a safe and healthy manner. Please visit our website to schedule a consultation UtahAcneClinic.com.

Pore Clogging Products: Why you can’t use just any blush or bronzer.

photo credit fashiontribes.com

Guess what? Checking the ingredients in your blush and bronzer is just as important as checking the ingredients in your foundation. If you suffer from acne, you simply cannot get away with putting anything on your face before ensuring there are no pore-clogging ingredients involved in your product. 

Some might argue that bronzers or blushes do not go directly on your face, they are a second layer after your foundation and therefore do not need to be completely acne safe. This argument is incorrect. 

We know, NARS, MAC, Laura Mercier and Bare Minerals all make really beautiful shades of blush and bronzers. Trust us, we defiantly understand why you want to wear them, but you simply cannot. The pore-clogging ingredients will find their way into your pores and cause breakouts no matter how many layers of other products lie under them. 

Please read on to see why these products are likely to cause breakouts. 

NARS: Unfortunately all of NARS blushes and bronzers are a no-no for acne suffers. The Bronzers contain Ethyhexyl Palmitate, which is on the pore-clogging list. NARS blushes contain Laureth-4, which will make you break out. 

MAC: MAC pressed Blush is made with D&C Red #30. Don’t waste your time hunting through the pore clogging list to see if this is safe, it’s not. D&C Red #30 will aggravate your acne.

Bare Minerals: Now this is probably going to come as a shock to most of you, because Bare Minerals have long been considered pretty close to completely acne safe. In fact, before the arrival of our favorite make up line - Priia Cosmetics, we recommended all Bare Minerals products to our clients. Now, we know that the Everyday Minerals Blush and READY Blush both contains Lauroyl Lysine, which is a pore clogging ingredient. You can also find Bismuth in some Bare Mineral blushes and bronzers, this will irritate acne suffers skin. 

The most important thing to understand about your blushes and bronzers is that they need to be acne safe products before you put them on your face, this means you need to ensure that they do not contain any pore-clogging ingredients. Do this by consulting our pore clogging ingredient list every time you buy a new product. 

If you want to skip the hassle of all that, use Priia Cosmetics. These products are made specifically for acne sufferers, so you never have to worry about ingredients. Priia really is a saving grace for those of us who tend to breakout, you can trust these blushes and bronzers. Visit priia.com to learn more about all of their makeup or

If you would like to learn more about managing your acne and ultimately achieving clear skin, please call SkinTherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic of Salt Lake City. We would love to see you for a consultation.

The Rundown on Clear Skin: Lifestyle Changes to Deal with Acne / Part 2

In our last post, we introduced the first set of lifestyle changes that you will need to achieve clear skin. In this post, we will go over the last 4 changes you need to make in your everyday program to keep your pores clean and skin clear. We urge you to start practicing these habits every day, as soon as possible - but we do warn you that these lifestyle changes are not enough to clear your skin. You also need to start a guided regimen of extractions and product use right away. When you pair these lifestyle changes with our clearing program, you will achieve clear skin.

1. Make sure you are using the correct birth control.

While many people assume that birth control will automatically clear your skin, the reality is that many birth controls can actually cause your skin to break out. Overall, it is best to avoid low-estrogen birth control pills. Please see our post on Acne and Birth Control to learn more about the safest birth control methods for acne sufferers. In general, we suggest staying away from IUD’s, implants and birth control shots. Please consult our list of safe birth control methods before choosing your pill. 

2. Always, always, always check the ingredients of your cosmetics.

If you suffer from acne, you cannot use cosmetics OR hair products that contain pore-clogging ingredients. Products that contain pore clogging ingredients will absolutely make you break out. Please see our list of pore clogging ingredients and make sure to check the products you are buying every time you purchase them. 

3. Wear your sunscreen!

While the best way to keep your skin safe from the sun is to limit your exposure, we do understand that sun exposure is just a part of life. Really though, the sun is great and the best things happen outdoors, so if you can’t limit your time in the sun - make sure to wear sunscreen every day. We ask you to do this because sun exposure damages the follicle, causes hyper pigmentation, skin cancer and premature aging. Too much sun exposure can also cause “solar acne” later in life. Acne sufferers also see more breakouts in warm climates with heat and humidity.

4. Protect your skin when you swim!

When swimming in pools make sure to protect your skin with Aquaphor. Most pools will contain Iodides and Chlorine because of their disinfectants. The Iodides and Chlorine can remain in the water and cause breakouts for swimmers. If you protect your skin with a layer of Aquaphor, you are less likely to breakout and irritate your acne prone skin.

 Remember that you should be making these changes while working with a Skincare and Acne Specialist who can guide your journey to a clear complexion by implementing deep cleansing treatments and finding the right product for your acne type. Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic in Salt Lake City can help.  Give us a call

How to Safely Get Rid of Whiteheads

            In our last post, we talked about what whiteheads are in comparison to other types of breakouts and pimples. In this post, we’d like to take some time to talk about the basics of clearing up whiteheads and how to do that in the safest way possible.

            Whiteheads can be one of the most difficult types of acne to maintain a clear complexion with and the most effective way to rid yourself of whiteheads for good is to be super aggressive. The aggressiveness that is needed to maintain a clear complexion can often be dangerous for your skin.

            If you are an acne sufferer, who deals with whiteheads you’ve probably had reoccurrences with your breakouts many times with many different products. Whiteheads often come back after about 3 weeks or so of using new products. This is because your skin gets used to products and then you loose all of your acne stopping powers.  

            The truth is that getting rid of whiteheads can be a more difficult process than you think and it takes a lot of work. This is why using an acne specialist is so crucial. To ensure that you are maintaining clear skin, without whiteheads - you need to follow an aggressive treatment plan. This plan includes habitual use of strong ingredients like mandelic acid, glycolic acid, vitamin A and benzoyl peroxide. At the Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic of Salt Lake, we can help you use the best products in the most beneficial ways. The key to banning whiteheads is to ensure that you are using the strongest products that your skin can tolerate. This is where we see danger in clearing whiteheads - using these products in the wrong way can severely dry out your skin. With many years of experience we are confident that we can create a treatment plan for each of our clients that is both safe and effective for clearing whiteheads.

            Although these products are effective in producing and maintaining clear skin, they can cause major irritation to skin if used in the wrong way. While we do suggest an aggressive approach in treating whiteheads, we do not suggest going it alone. Please let us help you achieve clear skin the the safest and most effective way possible.

 Call Skintherapy Skincare and Acne Clinic of Salt Lake City today!

     

A General Guide to Men and Acne:

Adult Male Acne

According to a study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, the median age of people with acne had risen by almost 23% in 1999. Before 1999 the median age of people with acne was 20.5 years old, after the study - the median age went to 26.5 years old. This study was not subject to either men or women, but rather included both genders. While the general public can tend to categorize acne as a young women's problem, it is important to remember that acne can happen to all ages as well as genders.

Suffering from acne can be just as distressing for men as it is for women and male acne is surprisingly common. Between 25% and 40% of adult men have acne.

Let’s talk about what men should watch out for if they suffer from acne.

Bodybuilding/Bulking up

Anabolic Steroids and Protein Supplements

Anabolic steroids can absolutely cause acne to flare up. These flare ups can be fast-onset and very hard to treat. We recommend staying away from steroids or supplements. Also watch out for pre-workout/post-workout powders and pre-made drinks. Lots of iodides can be found in these products and they will create more acne. Protein shakes are very popular with men, be advised to stay away from Whey and Soy protein supplements. Hemp and egg white protein supplements are a safe way to go.

Body and Neck Acne

Males experience more incidences, as well as more severe cases of acne on the back, chest, and neck. This is because men grow more hair in these areas and tend to get irritated follicles from shaving, aftershaves and sweating. Make sure to shower immediately after sweating. This will keep the bacteria and dirt from getting into your pores. Shave with a single blade razor and don’t use a rotary shaver that rips the hair out of the follicle. Skip the aftershave, it’s mainly alcohol anyway and will just dry out the skin.

Sun Protection

Males are generally less sun savvy than females, but sun exposure and sunburns are just as damaging to acne prone skin in males as they are in women. Make sure to keep your skin protected in the sun. The sun can breakdown your pores which are already compromised by acne and this creates more problems; scarring, dark spots and thicker - tougher skin.

If you are a man that suffers from acne, your best bet in achieving clear skin is to work with an acne specialist. We have over four years of experience treating male acne at SkintherapyAcne Clinic in Salt Lake City, we would love to help you.

Call us today to learn more about our options!