Have a look around the aisles of any pharmacy or drug store next time you are in and you will find shelf after shelf of various acne skin care products, all promising to not just cure your acne but also to give you beautiful clear skin. Since they all claim to do the same thing, how can you make a decision as to which of these acne skin care products actually do what they claim to and how can you be sure you are using them the correct way to get best results?
It’s best to have a good understanding of these products because some of the ingredients used in these medications can be serious and potent and almost all of them contain ingredients that are very strong on the skin. While this does mean that they can actually help your acne, it also means they can do damage when overused or used improperly. Most acne skin care products have an ingredient named benzoyl peroxide and all girls know what peroxide is used for and when you know it can turn your hair bleach blonde, it doesn’t take much imagination to realize it is going to be harmful to your skin.
The reason Peroxide is used in an acne treatment is because it is good for drying up the oil that is caught inside a pore or hair follicle that becomes acne. Like other acne skin care products with Peroxide as an ingredient though, too much of it on the skin is going to damage the healthy skin cells. Just think of when you apply peroxide to a cut or open sore; it does the job on the open wound but using too much on your skin means that it gets dry, irritated and reddens. That’s what happens to your face if you use too much of any of these acne skin care products that contain benzoyl
Astringents are common acne skin care products and these usually contain alcohol which helps to dry up the excess oil on the face. But keep in mind that your skin needs those oils if it is to remain healthy. If your face did not have any oil it would become scaly and leathery. Te reason we get wrinkles as we get older is because our body slows down the amount of oils it produces.
Again, over using acne skin care products that rely on alcohol as its active ingredient can cause your skin to become irritated, dry, itchy and even scaly. Another annoying side effect of these type of acne skin care products is that because they dry up your oils, your bodies oil glands go into over time mode and start producing even more so you end up in a vicious circle of having to apply even more cream!
When it comes to choosing acne skin care products you need to tread very cautiously. Many do treat the problems that cause acne but most of them are very harsh as well. It’s usually a good idea to start with a product that has a very small percentage or concentration of any of these ingredients and see how you get on with that for 4 to 6 weeks. You should also never use more than of these acne skin care products at a time as this can lead to even more problems.
One last thing, when you are next in the drug store and checking out the ingredients like I suggested, pick yourself up a good quality moisturizer as well and that means you too boys! It will help replace all that moisture those harsh acne skin care products remove.
You can learn much more about the many harsh active ingredients found in acne skin care products such as Glycolic acid, Sulfur and Resorcinol in our ebook and we’ve even included a chapter on making your own cleansers. Click here for more details.
