How can I treat Arm Acne?

Many young people have upper arm acne but do not realize it. Unlike face acne, arm acne is usually ignored until the problem is severe. In many cases, the acne is hidden under the sleeves or shirt and most people are unaware of it. Arm acne is just as common as face acne and both tend to occur at the same time. Arm acne is also a problem of young people. In general, arm acne tends to be more common in men than women. The only advantage of having arm over face acne is that the former can be hidden underneath the clothes.

How to treat arm acne

There is no difference in treatment of arm or face acne. The same over the counter products and prescription drugs are used to treat arm acne. Initially it is recommended that one try conservative means to treat arm acne. If the acne still persists or gets worse, then one may want to get prescription medication from a physician.

In addition to medication, one should also avoid wearing tight restrictive clothing. Excess sweating and the constant irritation of tight sleeves often makes arm acne worse. Moreover, if you exercise, change your clothes often.

Try to maintain good arm hygiene. Shower frequently and wash off the excess sweat. Wear loose fitting clothes and allow the body to aerate when home. Some people who get recurrent arm acne should try a change of fabrics. Some individuals are very sensitive to certain fabrics like nylon and thus cotton fabrics should be selected. In addition, keep the arm clean, change clothes often and avoid use of harsh soap products.

When you bathe, do not scrub excessively as this only worsens acne. If you have long hair, which is always falling on your shoulders or upper arm, get a haircut or keep your hair tidy. Having clean and tidy hair is also important when trying to get rid of arm acne.

There are many products on the market for acne but most are junk. If the above home care remedies do not help your arm acne, go and see a decent skin doctor. While these doctors are expensive, at least the advice and treatment you get will be safer than the majority of crap that is sold for acne in local pharmacies and health stores.

What is the best drug to treat acne?

Hands down- retinoids are the best drugs for acne. There is no better class of drugs that can erase acne like the retinoids. The majority of individuals do respond to retinoids; a few individuals may not. In these individuals, combination therapy with other drugs may be required

The majority of vitamin A derived products are good for acne. Retinoids are vitamin A derived drugs that have been around for more than 20 years.

Retinoids are not the first drugs for acne. A lot of studies exist which show the benefits of these drugs for acne sufferers. Retinoids are frequently used to treat moderate to severe cases of acne. Retinoids act by decreasing black heads and stopping the production of sebum or excess oil. Retinoids are available either as a pill or a topical lotion.

Retinoids are very potent drugs and besides acne, can help erase fine lines, and dry up oily skin. Because the drugs can cause excess drying and skin peeling, their use must be closely monitored. Retinoids should not be taken by females who intend to get pregnant or are breast feeding.

If you fail to respond to a retinoid, chances are you will not respond to any other drug.

Is oracea a good drug for my acne?

Let me make this clear- Oracea is the biggest rip off in all of medicine. Oracea is a tetracycline antibiotic and these drugs have been around for more than 50 years. All the claims about tetracyclines being a cure for acne are hogwash- tetracyclines are widely prescribed for acne but in 99% of cases the drugs do nothing. Many individuals who have used tetracyclines will attest to the fact that these drugs are a complete waste of money.

So what about Oracea?

Well, Oracea is just another fancy name for a tetracycline but it is useless for acne. The only skin disorder that may be improved by oracea is Rosacea.

Oracea should not be combined with any other medications for acne- it just increases the side effects and allergic reactions. Oracea is supposed to be taken every day as prescribed.

What to watch out for?

Avoid the sun if you take oracea as it can sensitize the skin to the UV rays and cause blisters.

Side effects of oracea include:

Mild nausea
Skin blisters
Swollen tongue
Vomiting or stomach upset
Others may develop candida in the mouth, vagina or rectal area.

Oracea is exorbitantly expensive and there is ZERO evidence that it can cure or prevent acne. There are no randomized clinical trials that have shown oracea works for acne.

Final point: Oracea is a drug that is just another tetracycline. It does zilch for your acne and costs a fortune. If you want to get rid of your acne, get your physician to write you a script for a retinoid. To date, these are the only drugs that work for acne.

Why do i have Acne? 101

If there is one skin condition that is more depressing than the economy, it has to be acne. Acne is a very common skin disorder and affects millions of individuals. Most individuals develop some degree of acne during their lives. Why acne occurs in some individuals and not in others is a million dollar question. The simple answer is bad luck.

Where does Acne usually develop?

While most people develop acne on the face, it can also occur on the neck, chest, back, and shoulders. Acne is most common after puberty and the adolescent years. Acne is usually mild soon after puberty but in a few cases can develop into real ugly inflamed pimples. In most individuals, acne clears up without much hassle. However, for some unlucky individuals, acne keeps on recurring and can cause permanent scars.

What causes Acne?

No one really knows, but everyone including your grandma has an idea. There are a lot of myths associated with acne. Acne is not caused by dirt, excessive masturbation, bed wetting, eating crap, changes in the environment or personal hygiene. No matter how many times you wash or take good care of your skin, one can still get acne. Acne has no relationship to any type of food that you eat. However, once acne is acquired, there are some spicy and hot foods that can worsen the appearance.

What happens during Acne?

In Acne, the pores that secrete oil get plugged with dead skin and some debris. The excess oil collects in the pores and leads to development of white heads, blackheads or pimples. Sometimes bacteria on the skin start to grow in these oils and cause an inflammatory reaction, thus leading to a red rash which surrounds the pimple.

The exact cause of acne is not known but has been related to excess oily skin, too much male sex hormones, and a lot of bad luck

Blue light therapy and Acne- a newer version?

If a therapy was great for acne, then one would leave it alone, market it and make a lot of money- right? Well, in my last article I wrote that intense blue light was as good as garbage. Despite claims by physicians that it works, less than 5% of individuals ever see any benefit. Even individuals who responds to blue light soon develops acne recurrence. Therefore, spending a fortune on blue light therapy is at best considered a waste of money.

Anyway, now blue light therapy for treatment of acne has been modified. At the recent meeting in San Francisco, the skin doctors got together and discussed all the new therapies for acne. The latest is combining intense blue light with a photo sensitizer. A photo sensitizer is simply a chemical that has the ability to attract light. For example if you have a small skin lesion, you apply the photo sensitizer on skin followed by light. The photo sensitizer will attract light only to the painted area and the skin lesion will be destroyed by intense localized heat. Photo sensitizers have been used to destroy various cancers- the results are not always great or reproducible.

In this study, researchers combined blue and red light to treat acne. Only 10 patients with mild to severe acne were followed. The photo sensitizer used was amino levulinic acid (ALA). This chemical was painted on acne lesions one hour prior to light therapy. Then a numbing cream was applied and both red and blue light were used to zap the acne lesion.

Can the South Beach diet prevent Acne?

Acne is an agonizing disorder for young adults and teenagers. Why the darn skin disorder occurs in some individuals and not in others is a puzzle. There are a few theories as to why acne occurs but there are hundreds of treatments for acne- and none is ideal. One area that has been debated for many years is whether acne is related to diet. Can a change in diet reverse acne?

At a recent meeting by skin doctors, there was some hint that perhaps the South beach diet may be beneficial to people who have acne. The south beach diet is essentially a low sugar diet that first originated in Florida. In essence, the south beach diet is unlike any western diet and is free of processed foods, cereal grains, dairy products, refined sugars, and saturated oils. The diet is basically entirely unprocessed fresh fruits (those without sugar), vegetables, lean meat, fish and sea food.

In the study presented at the meeting, people with acne who followed this diet revealed that their skin texture and outlook was much improved. The improvements in skin were observed within 3 months. Further, many individuals on this diet mentioned that they had been able to cut down on conventional acne medications because of skin improvement.

Can acne be cleared with antibiotics?

The first thing most skin care health professionals do for your acne is write you an antibiotic prescription. Many doctors ask no questions, never look at the face, and kick you out of their office in a few minutes (a quick $ 75-$100 consult). There are more antibiotic prescriptions written for acne than the common cold. Antibiotics were one of the first medications used to treat acne. Both oral and topical antibiotics have been used for more than 50 years to treat acne and one would think that after all this time, skin doctors would know a lot more- but the truth is antibiotics do very little for acne. It is the rare individual with acne that has ever obtained a cure with antibiotics.

Do topical antibiotics cure acne?

Actually topical antibiotics are a waste of time and money. They do nothing. You could get the same result by simply washing your face with a soap and water. There are several topical antibiotics, which are given to patients, but all of them fall into the category of rubbish (or JUNK). Less than 1 percent of individuals with acne ever respond to antibiotics. Even this response is neither reproducible nor reliable. Why health care professionals continue to write prescriptions for antibiotics for acne is difficult to explain (perhaps stupidity and/or ignorance about the literature!)

Do oral antibiotics cure acne?

Yes but in a very few patients. Overall, pills are just as bad as the topical gels. The antibiotic pills only work for the acutely inflamed acne characterized by red pustules. It is postulated that the antibiotics kill bacteria that cause redness, pain, and inflammation. However, in reality most individuals have a poor result with antibiotics. It does not matter which antibiotic is used the result is the same- NADA.

Testimonials on cyberspace indicate that effectiveness of antibiotics is worse than a sugar pill. The consumer should know that there are many antibiotics hyped up to cure acne- whenever so many antibiotics are used to cure one skin disorder; it generally means that none of them works.

What causes Acne? part 2

Overall, acne is worse in males compared to females and has been lined to the male sex hormone, testosterone. Testosterone is known to stimulate sweat glands increase production of oil (Sebum) and can also enlarge size of pores. When oil secretion in increased, this leads to plugging of skin pores and eventually to acne.

Acne usually starts after puberty in males. This is believed to be due to increased levels of the hormone testosterone. In females, acne tends to start later. After the surge in testosterone at puberty, the level starts to drop and in most males, acne also disappears. Acne is also more severe in males and females who use anabolic steroids.

Estrogen, the female sex hormone, on the other hand counteracts effects of testosterone and can improve acne. This is one reason why most young females have a smooth, clear, and pretty face, especially in middle of the menstrual cycle. Women who take the birth control pill also never develop acne (they do gain weight, though). Sometimes, for recalcitrant acne, physicians do prescribe a short course of birth control pills. Birth controls pills usually can clear acne in 3-6 weeks.

What causes Acne ?

No one really knows why acne occurs. However, we do know that acne is more common in families with a history of the skin disorder. If you have a parent or sibling with acne, then chances are that you are also likely to develop acne. The actual gene that causes acne has not been identified. Further, even if there is a history of acne in the family, not all siblings develop the skin disorder.

Other factors linked to acne include:

Stress of any type has been linked to acne. Both physical and mental stress can worsen acne. One should note that stress is not a cause of acne

There are hundreds of creams, lotions, and oils that people use to apply on their skin. Many of these synthetic products contain a large variety of chemicals that can irritate skin. For individuals with acne, one should avoid use of such fragrances and oil based products

The role of foods in acne is puzzling. Some experts claim that foods do not cause acne but numerous testimonials indicate that certain foods can at least worsen acne. Foods, which have been known to trigger acne, include chocolate and certain spices. Individuals who notice flare-ups of acne from such foods should avoid them.

For some unknown reason, pregnancy also worsens acne. This is believed to be due to high levels of testosterone and fat in the body.

Individuals who are constantly applying topical steroids on their skin are also prone to more skin irritation and acne.

Acne vulgaris 101 part 2

Myths about Acne

- It is due to environmental dirt, smog or pollution
- It is not related to stress
- It is not related to certain foods
- Gets better with herbs
- Does not require medical treatment
- Is due to deficiency of certain nutrients
- Is due to an inherited skin disorder
- Is best treated with cosmetic surgery
- Is best treated with expensive soaps
- Is best treated with exotic herbs
- Is best treated with colonic hydrotherapy

The majority of myths about acne have arisen because of falsehoods created by people who sell products for acne. Many vendors of anti acne treatment make exorbitant claims about their products. In truth, 99.9% of all acne treatments are garbage. The sad fact is that many health care professionals have also been promoting “sham” or “scam” treatments for acne just to make money.

Causes of Acne

No one knows why acne occurs but there are hundreds of speculations

Does acne run in families?

Yes, in some cases acne tends to be worse if a parent or a sibling has had prior acne. The exact genetic link is not known.

Can emotions affect acne?

Yes, emotions can trigger acne but are not a cause of ace. Individuals who are under moderate mental and physical stress often develop acne during this time period

Can foods cause acne?

This is still a hotly debated topic. Almost every food has at some point in time been linked to acne. Foods that are strongly linked to acne include excess consumption of chocolates and certain spices. Some experts claim there is no relation between foods and acne, but a lot of people who consume chocolates claim otherwise.

Can hormones cause acne?

Most definitely. Men who have excess testosterone or those who take anabolic steroids develop some of the worst acne and oily skin. Testosterone is also present in small amounts in females. Testosterone has been shown to increase size of sweat glands and increase oil production. The oils secreted tend to plug up the sweat pores that eventually results in acne. Males tend to develop acne just after puberty when there is a surge in levels of testosterone.

On the other hand, the female sex hormone, estrogen can improve acne. This is the reason why women tend to get acne at the end of menstrual cycle when hormone levels are low. Further, women who take the oral contraceptive generally have smooth clear skin. There are instances when women are prescribed oral contraceptive to help treat severe acne.

Acne vulgaris 101

The common skin disorder, acne, is also sometimes known as acne vulgaris. Acne is a very common skin problem and affects close to 80% of young teenagers and adolescents. While acne can occur anywhere on the body, it is most common on the face and back. Most people start to develop acne in the 2nd decade of life. Young teenagers notice oily skin and pimples soon after puberty. The early the acne occurs in life, the longer is the course.

Some individuals also identify acne by the terms blackheads, whiteheads, pimples, or zits.

Where else can acne occur?

While face is the most common area, acne can also occur on upper arms, neck, front chest, and back. Teenagers all over the globe develop acne during the teenage years. In most individuals, one may develop a few pimples here and there and life goes on. However, in some individuals acne can be an agonizing painful ordeal. It may affect the entire face, with big red blotches. Acne during teenager years can lead to isolation, depression, and withdrawal. It can lead to loss of self-esteem. There is nothing great about acne.

Young women also get acne but the condition is generally less severe than in men. Acne occurs in women just before the onset of the menstrual cycle, when estrogen levels are at the lowest.

Despite the fact that a lot as been written about acne, treatment of acne has been an abysmal failure. Almost all individuals have gone through many products on a trial and error basis. The truth is that majority of products for acne do not work. Many of these creams, lotion, potions, pills, capsules, and herbs are a waste of money. However, in the last decade, there have been a few decent products introduced into the market. The Retinoids do work but not everyone gets the same cosmetic benefit. Why there is so much variability in response to Retinoids is not well understood.

What is a good topical treatment for acne?

The problem

There are hundreds of acne treatments available with or without a prescription. No one seems to know what works and what does not. Even the doctors write the same prescription for everyone. The majority of consumers have a bad or negative experience with acne medications and with the people who provide them.

Fact one- almost 99% of everything out on the internet is GARBAGE. The consumer has to understand that acne is big business and the majority of treatments have been taken over by charlatans who offer a new remedy every week. Lots of false promises with no cures. The best advice I can give to all acne sufferers is not to rely on the internet to get your medications or any other product.

Now to the question, is there a decent or excellent topical medication for acne? Yes, there is. The one problem with topical medications is that they do not always work in all individuals and even when they do work, the effects are moderate at best. However, of all the topical medications, Retinoids are the most effective.

Retinoids are derivatives of Vitamin A and today are the best anti acne medication. Retinoids come as a cream or a pill. All consumers have to know that routine acne care starts at home. Only when acne is recurrent or persistent should one seek treatment.

Acne Scarring 101 part 2

Acne scars do not only occur on face but also on neck, upper arms, shoulders, and chest. It is difficult to know who will develop acne scars. In many cases, acne scars develop and generally resolve spontaneously.

There is one observation about acne scars, - individuals who develop the inflammatory type acne, those who muck around with mechanical devices to squeeze the pimples or those use harsh chemicals are prone to scars.

The only good things about acne scars is that unlike the past, we do know more about it today and there arse also some good treatments.. Fact one- there is no ideal treatment for acne and fact 2, no presently available treatment works in everyone. All the available treatments work to some degree but you will never get your beautiful, smooth, soft skin back. There are a lot of physicians and health care workers who hype up lasers and dermal fillers as great treatment for acne. Sure, these treatments work but only in some individuals and not everyone gets the desired result. Some cosmetic physicians do have a tendency to exaggerate things (some call it lying), just like car mechanics.

For all individuals with acne scars, there are some decent treatments available that can help improve aesthetics of your face, the most difficult part is finding a physician who excels at these treatments. Treatment of acne scars requires an excellent physician who knows what is going on and is truly interested in helping your skin then filling his/her pockets with your heard earned money.

So before you go rushing for the latest laser treatment, talk to people, get referrals, read about the disorder, ask questions and above all choose your provider well. Acne treatment is not a cheap undertaking. The amount of money you will pay for acne scar treatments is just about the same as putting a down payment on a decent car/house. Times are tough today- be wise and go slow. If ever in doubt, get a second opinion.

Acne Scarring 101

Acne is a very upsetting skin disorder but what is worse is the development of acne scars. Many individuals develop acne and then it disappears without any hassles. However, a number of other individuals (the unlucky ones) develop acne and it leaves the face with ugly scars. Why one person develops acne scars and others do not know is not fully understood. Acne scars are never nice and can severely compromise beauty of the face.

Whenever injury occurs to the skin, the body attempts to repair the damage. The healing process goes quite smooth in most cases, but often the body does crazy things and scars develop. Whenever the balance between healing and repair is altered, acne scars occur. In general, scars occur because of too much healing by the body.

African Americans and individuals with dark skin often develop evidence of exaggerated healing by forming keloids. This same principle applies to acne.

There are two basic types of acne scars- in some cases the skin is thick and raised like a keloid and in others, the scar is depressed and looks like an ice pick. Individuals with acne generally develop one of these scars. Acne scars are most common in Orientals, Asians African Americans and individual with dark skin. However, even those with fair skin can develop acne scars.

Analysis of acne scars has shown that in most cases it is excessive deposition of a certain tissue that causes scars. This is fibrous tissue. That is why acne scars appear hard, woody and rough- typical characteristics of fibrous tissue. The fibrous tissue is often quite deep and very difficult to treat. For any acne scar treatment to work, it must be able to penetrate deep in the tissues and get rid of fibrous tissue.