Acne Treatment And Products Depend On Your Kind Of Skin
The human skin comes in five different flavors (so to speak): dry, oily, combination (oily and dry), normal, and sensitive. For your acne treatment to be effective it must adjust to your particular type of skin. People suffering with acne usually have oily skin, while those with sensitive skin often have dry skin.
Unfortunately, there's no one single acne medication that we can call the holy grail. The only way to find out what products work best for you is through trial and error. Even though today's topical acne medications and cleansers are fantastic and come in a variety of active ingredients and strengths (per cent concentrations), they still require 2 to 4 weeks to take effect. Lots of patience is required at the beginning of any skin treatment, but without doubt, there's one or two products out there that can do wonders in controlling your mild to moderate acne breakouts.
Let's take a quick look at what experts in the field consider a good acne treatment regimen based on your skin type.
Oily: Oily skin in particular needs washing twice or three times a day with a cleanser or sulfur soap to make sure oil doesn't build up and hardens inside the pores. Always wash carefully though, avoid over scrubbing. If you clean your face long, hard, or more 3 times daily it may result in oil glands secreting even more oil than usual in order to compensate for any dryness created from the excessive cleansing. Another good idea is to do a facial steam every week.
Acne products containing either benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid are best for this type. Avoid products containing coconut oil, cocoa butter, or cinnamon. It is also recommended to exfoliate your skin a couple of times per week. Pimples on oily skin require the constant use of medicines, pads and peel-off or facial masks to maintain the skin healthy and prevent future breakouts.
Dry: It's difficult to keep dry skin clean without removing essential natural oils that lubricate and protect. Wash your face twice a day with a mild cleanser, but when the skin becomes overly dry, use the cleanser at night only, not in the morning, and apply moisturizer afterward.
The use of plenty moisturizer on dry skin is indispensable, especially right after cleansing to retain as most moisture as possible.
Facial scrubs containing glycolic or lactic acid can be used once every other week. Apply acne medication only to zones affected by pimples as some active ingredients may be too harsh for other areas of dry skin.
Combination: This type of skin is tricky to deal with. If your cheeks are dry or normal and the nose, forehead, and chin oily, you are stuck with combination skin. Use a light cleanser twice daily, and apply a water based moisturizer after patting your face dry.
Keep acne medication to areas where acne is present. Medicated pads come handy with combination skin for maximum control and efficiency. Pore strips are also very effective in removing oil and dirt particularly if you are experiencing just blackheads or whiteheads around nose and chin with no pimples present.
Normal: Skin that is neither too dry or too oily is a blessing. If you are dealing with mild acne, try facial or peel-off masks and pore strips weekly to get rid of hardened oil instead of applying daily astringents. Strips and masks are most effective right after a facial steam which softens and loosen the sebum.
For moderate acne, try medications labeled "for normal to oily skin", but do not apply more than once per day to preserve the natural balance of moisture and essential oils which are critical for proper lubrication. Altering such balance is bad news, it may even make your acne worse.
Sensitive: Sensitive skin tends to be dry. Wash you face delicately and no more than once daily. Only apply organic or herbal products on it, which are free of alcohol, fragrances, or acids. Moisturizer should be applied morning and night.
The moment your pimples turn large and painful indicating infection deep inside the pores, you have to visit a skin specialist as soon as possible or risk permanent scarring.