It is possible to maintain healthy skin by being careful with what you put on your hair and face, and what you eat.
Moisturise, moisturise, moisturise
Bav Shergill is a consultant dermatologist from Sussex. “A lot of my patients with acne think that because they have oily skin they can’t use moisturisers. However, if your skin is stripped of its oils, it will produce more oil to compensate. You can moisturize your skin to make it more oil-free than if you try to remove the oil.”
Don’t block your pores
Erica MacCallum, a facialist at Eve Lom in New York, says that sunscreens are the “usual suspects”. If you are using one every day, make sure it is non-comedogenic (nonclogging) and oil-free. “Never sleep with your makeup on.”
Sandy Skotnicki is a Toronto dermatologist who says even hair products, “in particular argan oil and coconut oil” can cause facial acne. “It is important to wash these out before going to sleep.”
Exfoliation can keep pores clean. Shergill suggests skin products with 2% Salicylic Acid and a little more Glycolic Acid, which can exfoliate dead skin cells that might cause blockages.
Antibacterial lotions for zap spots
Shergill says that many people mistakenly believe that acne is an infection. It is an inflammation of the skin that causes bacteria to grow. The body attempts to kill the bacteria and creates the “red reaction,” which is the area. If it lasts more than 10 days, it may scar. Shergill says, “We must get on with treating spots as they arise.” “We frequently use drugs like benzoyl peroxide. Tea-tree oil is an alternative option. It can kill germs and has anti-inflammatory properties. Shergill suggests diluting the oil in water to make it 5% to avoid irritation.”
Take care of your skin
Shergill says, “Never squeeze any spot.” “The spots will show themselves when you wash your skin,” Shergill says. And pinching “blind spots”, which are areas where the skin has grown too high, can cause scarring.
Minimize the sweet treats
You are more likely to produce insulin if you eat cake or other high-glycaemic index (GI) foods. Shergill says there is evidence that insulin spikes and high-GI diets are linked to increased oil production. A low-glycaemic load diet reduces the number of lesion count. A low-glycaemic index diet appears to be very effective.
