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“It’s well-known that people associate a healthy person with healthy skin,” says skin specialist and esthetician Emily Allen of Heaven Day Spa in San Francisco, California.

“There are the four different grades of acne,” Allen explains. “Understanding each is step one in creating a healthier complexion.”

Grade 1 Blackheads and open comedones.
“A comedone is like a blackhead with a hardened ball that looks like a yucky pearl which is comprised of bacteria and dead skin cells, and it accumulates in the follicle until it gets so big the follicle stretches open, commonly on your nose,” says Allen.

Grade 2 Blackheads and papules.
“Papules are raised red bumps, which are minor, and there’s no puss inside or a white head — a typical blemish,” says Allen.

Grade 3 Papules, open blackheads, and some pustules — typical teenage-type acne.
“It’s getting heavier at this grade, becoming chronic and can leave scarring. The face is red and inflamed.”

Grade 4 Cystic acne.
“This is a case where a dermatologist is needed,” says Allen.

“For all skin types, start with a foaming cleanser — nothing milky or creamy, and preferably one that is soap-free,” explains Allen. Next, Allen advises that you use a topical product with salicylic acid. Moisturizers, pore-openers, and blemish spot-treatments are all available at drugstores nationwide. “Salicylic acid is one of the most effective products for mild to moderate acne,” says Allen. “The key to acne is to keep the inflammation down, and salicylic acid not only acts as an exfoliant, it’s the only acid that’s an anti-inflammatory.”

“Finally, benzoyl peroxide is really great as a spot treatment,” says Allen. “Apply it right on the blemish. The reason that it’s so great is it puts oxygen in the skin, and it exposes that blemish-causing bacteria so it literally dies.”

Style Sessions Tip: Sulphur is a great drying agent, and also helps diminish redness that often remains when a blemish heals. “I like a good sulphur mask when I have a breakout,” says Allen. “Then I spot treat with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid at night.”

Two of the most commonly used chemical peels for acne treatment produced similar results in a small clinical study, but one led to more durable improvement and caused fewer side effects than the other.

Both salicylic acid and glycolic acid produced similar statistically significant (P<0.05) improvement after two treatments, Dee Anna Glaser, M.D., of St. Louis University, and colleagues reported in the February issue of Dermatologic Surgery.

But at two months of follow-up, there was more sustained improvement with the salicylic acid peel. Also, patients reported more adverse effects after the first treatment with glycolic acid.

“We expected to see a significant difference in effectiveness between the two peels owing to their different lipophilic properties, but out study did not prove this supposition,” the authors said. “Efficacy of chemical peels beyond a few weeks post-treatment is not well documented in the literature, but our study found that patients demonstrated significant sustained clinical improvement on the salicylic acid peel-treated side [of the face] at two months post-treatment.”

Inducing partial-thickness skin injury, superficial chemical peels are frequent adjuncts to treatment of facial acne vulgaris. Glycolic acid, a hydrophilic a-hydroxy acid, causes desquamation that reduces corneocyte cohesion and keratinocyte plugging, enabling extrusion of inflammatory contents. Salicylic acid, a lipophilic ß-hydroxy acid, also reduces corneocyte cohesion and works well on sebaceous areas of the face, the authors said.

To address a lack of comparative data, Dr. Glaser and colleagues studied 20 patients ages 13 to 38. The patients had mild or moderately severe facial acne, averaging 27 lesions at enrollment.

In accordance with the split-face, double-blind, randomized design, one half of each patient’s face was treated with glycolic acid and the contralateral side was treated with salicylic acid. The agents were applied every two weeks for a total of six treatments.

By the second treatment visit, both chemical peels had demonstrated similar and statistically significant decreases in acne lesions. The reduction in acne lesions continued through the first month of follow-up, averaging 43% with glycolic acid and 47% with salicylic acid (P<0.05). Blinded assessment revealed good or fair improvement on both sides of the face in 19 of 20 patients.

At the two-month follow-up, blinded evaluation demonstrated 75% improvement on the glycolic acid-treated side of the face and 81% on the side treated with salicylic acid. However, patients had developed more new acne lesions on the side of the face treated with glycolic acid. In contrast, the lesion number continued to decrease on the side of the face treated with salicylic acid (P<0.01 versus baseline).

Patient self-assessment showed that 41% of the study group thought the glycolic acid peel had led to more improvement compared with 35% of the salicylic acid side of the face. The remaining patients thought both peels worked equally well or that neither side of the face had improved (12% each). Additionally, 53% of the patients though the glycolic acid side “looked the best,” compared with 47% for salicylic acid peel.

The two types of chemical peels were associated with a similar number of adverse events, occurring most frequently during the first two treatments and then declining thereafter. The most commonly reported adverse events were peeling, redness, and scaling. Patients reported more adverse events on the glycolic acid side of the face after the first treatment but the difference was not significant from treatment with salicylic acid.

“The different lipophilic properties of the peels did not appear to impact their clinical effectiveness,” the authors concluded. “Our findings suggest that either a- or ß-hydroxy acid peel may be effectively used to treat mild or moderately severe facial acne vulgaris.”

Facial skin care is not necessarily the first thing on the mind of a typical teenager. Yet the unexpected appearance of acne on a formerly clear complexion generally triggers intense interest in proper cleaning methods. Oily complexion, pimples, zits, and blackheads are all sadly, hallmarks of adolescence. While teens may be excited that their bodies are transforming in ways that

Children taking splashy, bubbly daily baths are thinking more of fun than cleanliness. As these children mature into adulthood, they must begin to master new personal hygiene cleaning habits and learn to follow them religiously. Doctors generally recommend washing oily complexions twice daily. Regardless of the severity of the condition, washing should always be quite gentle. Surprisingly, it is possible to be too compulsive about the breakouts on the face, washing one’s face too often or scrubbing excessively roughly. Rather than facilitating healing, this can literally make the problem worse. Read the rest of this entry »

Salicylic Acid is one of the real basic products when it comes to fighting acne. Many of the products that you will find on the market as creams contain Salicylic Acid just make sure not to put too much on your skin.

Salicylic Acid is best on acne-prone and sensitive skin types. The pore-cleansing properties of salicylic acid make it a more effective comedone fighter. Those with sensitive skin who cannot tolerate alpha hydroxy acids may find that they are able to use salicylic acid with good results. However, alpha hydroxy acid’s penetration into the deeper layers of the skin produce better anti-wrinkle and anti-aging benefits.

Look for concentrations of 1-2% in any salicylic acid product to assure on effective concentration. A 1% concentration would be better or sensitive skin types and a 2% concentration would be useful on stubborn acne.

Salicylic acid is an ingredient used in many over-the-counter acne medications. It is often found with pads as applicators (such as Stri-dex pads). It is also used to treat other skin disorders including dandruff, psoriasis, calluses, corns, warts, and more.

Acne is formed when skin cells inside hair follicles shed too fast and clump together, plugging up the follicle and causing a pimple. Salicylic acid helps slow down shedding of the cells inside the follicles, preventing clogging. Salicylic acid also helps break down blackheads and whiteheads.

Unless your doctor advises you otherwise, people should avoid the other over the counter medications I list: sulfur, resorcinol, or benzoyl peroxide, while using salicylic acid, as it may be overly irritating.

People often report a mild stinging when applying the product.

There are two very popular anti acne products on the market that are topical lotions (put directly on your skin) to get rid of your acne. Proactiv and Clearasil. Proactiv has become very popular over the last few years while Clearasil has been around for many many years.

Proactiv Solution

Proactiv is the new kid on the block. You have probably seen the infomercials, ads and kiosks in the malls all touting the Proactiv system and the nice tanned picture of Vanessa Williams or Jessica Simpson. Proactiv is a three step system consisting of a cleanser, a toner, and a repairing lotion. The cleanser has a main ingredient of Benzoyl Peroxide, the toners main ingredients are Glycolic acid and glycerine and the repairing lotion also has a main ingredient of Benzoyl Peroxide.

The thing that I really like about the Proactiv system is the fact that it is a very integrated system and should treat your skin properly by having a system that looks after each of the aspects of skin care and using the proven power of Benzoyl Peroxide. The problems that I see with the Proactiv system is firstly the price, it is a very expensive system to buy and secondly this a product that is built on a marketing message and not just sound medical advice. Look critically at the products before you buy them.

Clearasil

Clearasil is a large family of products that are mostly based on using Triclosan and Salicylic Acid. The company sells everything from face washes and overnight gels to Cleansers and wipes. Triclosan is an antifungal agent and is used in many products not just for acne products. Salicylic Acid slows down the cells in the follicles from cracking which prevents blockage. It also assists in breaking down the whiteheads and blackheads.

Clearasil has a fantastic breadth of a product line, I am really in favor of an integrated skin regimen of a toner, cleaner and overnight cream and Clearasil offers them all. The price for Clearasil products is OK, they charge more than the product is worth but lets face it Clearasil have the market and a proven product. The one drawback is a little bit of product confusion, Clearasil tries to have every product possible and your really do not need more than three. If you buy the Clearasil products then make sure you think of when you will use each one every day and what it will cost you.
Read the rest of this entry »

I just ran across this list of active ingredients that are common to different acne treatments. Most of us are used to seeing Clearasil and Proactiv but to know what these products contain is at least as important as the ads that they have on TV

Used to treat mild, moderate and severe acne, the effectiveness of over-the-counter medications lies in the product�s active ingredients. The active ingredient benzoyl peroxide reduces acnes; whereas, salicylic acid helps correct abnormal skin shedding. To choose what to use look at what the ingredient is expected to fix. I have included common active ingredients used in over-the-counter acne medications sold in the United States. Check with your dermatologist or pharmacist before combining acne products.

Alcohol and acetone
Found together in some over-the-counter medications used to treat acne, acetone works as a degreasing agent and alcohol has mild antimicrobial properties. When used alone, acetone tends to have no effect.

Benzoyl peroxide
The mainstay of over-the-counter acne treatment, benzoyl peroxide works to clear up acne by reducing acne and removing dead cells from the skin to prevent comedones. Use of benzoyl peroxide should be continued after acne clears to prevent new lesions from forming. It was one of the first agents found to be effective in treating mild acne and has been used in acne treatment for decades. The principal side effect is excessive dryness of the skin, so be sure to follow directions and not use more than stated unless otherwise instructed by a physician. Care should also be taken when applying it to avoid the bleaching effect. Benzoyl peroxide has been known to bleach hair, sheets, towels and clothing. For this reason, an old shirt should be worn after applying benzoyl peroxide to acne on the back or chest. Benzoyl peroxide is available over-the-counter as a lotion or gel.

Herbal, organic and natural products
Over-the-counter products labeled �herbal,� “organic” or “natural” are marketed as acne treatments but their effectiveness has rarely been tested in clinical trials. The value of such treatments is generally unknown.

Resorcinol
A popular ingredient in over-the-counter acne medications, resorcinol controls small acne lesions and is frequently combined with sulfur in products at the drugstore.

Salicylic acid
Salicylic acid is effective in treating non-inflammatory acne lesions, salicylic acid helps correct the abnormal shedding of skin cells and unclog pores to resolve and prevent lesions. Salicylic acid does not have any effect on sebum production or P. acnes. Like benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid must be used continuously. Once stopped, pores clog and acne returns. Salicylic acid is found in many over-the-counter acne products, including lotions, creams and pads. It may be irritating to the skin.

Sulfur
Sulfur has been used for more than 50 years in combination with other agents, such as alcohol, salicylic acid and resorcinol and is found in many over-the-counter acne medications. While long used to treat acne, it is not known how sulfur works to clear acne. Due to its unpleasant odor, sulfur is not frequently used alone as an acne treatment.