What is acne?
Acne is a common skin condition where the pores of your skin clog. Pore blockages produce blackheads, whiteheads and other types of pimples. Pimples are pus-filled, sometimes painful, bumps on your skin.
The medical term for acne is acne vulgaris.
What are the types of acne?
There are several types of acne, including:
- Fungal acne (pityrosporum folliculitis): Fungal acne occurs when yeast builds up in your hair follicles. These can be itchy and inflamed.
- Cystic acne: Cystic acne causes deep, pus-filled pimples and nodules. These can cause scars.
- Hormonal acne: Hormonal acne affects adults who have an overproduction of sebum that clogs their pores.
- Nodular acne: Nodular acne is a severe form of acne that causes pimples on the surface of your skin, and tender, nodular lumps under your skin.
All of these forms of acne can affect your self-esteem, and both cystic and nodular acne can lead to permanent skin damage in the form of scarring. It’s best to seek help from a healthcare provider early so they can determine the best treatment option(s) for you.
SYMPTOMS AND CAUSES
What are the symptoms of acne?
Symptoms of acne on your skin include:
- Pimples (pustules): Pus-filled bumps (papules).
- Papules: Small, discolored bumps, often red to purple or darker than your natural skin tone.
- Blackheads: Plugged pores with a black top.
- Whiteheads: Plugged pores with a white top.
- Nodules: Large lumps under your skin that are painful.
- Cysts: Painful fluid-filled (pus) lumps under your skin.
Acne can be mild and cause a few occasional pimples or it can be moderate and cause inflammatory papules. Severe acne causes nodules and cysts.
CAUSES
Clogged hair follicles or pores cause acne. Your hair follicles are small tubes that hold a strand of your hair. There are several glands that empty into your hair follicles. When too much material is inside your hair follicle, a clog occurs. Your pores can clog with:
- Sebum: An oily substance that provides a protective barrier for your skin.
- Bacteria: Small amounts of bacteria naturally live on your skin. If you have too much bacteria, it can clog your pores.
- Dead skin cells: Your skin cells shed often to make room for more cells to grow. When your skin releases dead skin cells, they can get stuck in your hair follicles.
When your pores clog, substances plug up your hair follicle, creating a pimple. This triggers inflammation, which you feel as pain and swelling. You can also see inflammation through skin discoloration like redness around a pimple.
Triggers of acne
Certain things in your environment contribute to acne or they can make an acne breakout worse, including:
- Wearing tight-fitting clothing and headgear, like hats and sports helmets.
- Air pollution and certain weather conditions, especially high humidity.
- Using oily or greasy personal care products, like heavy lotions and creams, or working in an area where you routinely come in contact with grease, such as working at a restaurant with frying oil.
- Stress, which increases the hormone cortisol.
- A side effect of a medication.
- Picking at your acne.
Foods that cause acne
Some studies link particular foods and diets to acne, like:
- Skim milk.
- Whey protein.
- Diets high in sugar.
While high-sugar diets may lead to acne outbreaks, chocolate isn’t directly linked to acne.
To reduce your risk of acne, choose to eat a balanced, nutritious diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, especially those rich in vitamin C and beta-carotene, which helps reduce inflammation.
Hormones and acne
Acne is largely a hormonal condition that’s driven by androgen hormones (testosterone). This typically becomes active during teenage and young adult years. You might also notice acne forming around the time of your period as a result of hormone activity. Sensitivity to this hormone — combined with surface bacteria on your skin and substances released from your body’s glands — can result in acne.
How severe can acne get?
Dermatologists rank acne by severity:
- Grade 1 (mild): Mostly whiteheads and blackheads, with a few papules and pustules.
- Grade 2 (moderate or pustular acne): Multiple papules and pustules, mostly on your face.
- Grade 3 (moderately severe or nodulocystic acne): Numerous papules and pustules, along with occasionally inflamed nodules. Your back and chest may also be affected.
- Grade 4 (severe nodulocystic acne): Numerous large, painful and inflamed pustules and nodules.
MANAGEMENT AND TREATMENT
How is acne treated?
There are several ways to treat acne. Each type of treatment varies based on your age, the type of acne you have and the severity. A Homoeopath might recommend taking oral medications, using topical medications to treat your skin. The goal of acne treatment is to stop new pimples from forming and to heal the existing blemishes on your skin.
How do Homoeopathic Treatment treats acne?
Homoeopathic medications target the cause of acne and restricts the growth of bacteria.
PREVENTION
You can’t completely prevent acne, especially during hormone changes, but you can reduce your risk of developing acne by:
- Washing your face daily with warm water and a facial cleanser.
- Using an oil-free moisturizer.
- Wearing “noncomedogenic” makeup products and removing makeup at the end of each day.
- Keeping your hands away from your face.
OUTLOOK / PROGNOSIS
Acne often goes away in early adulthood, though some people will continue to experience acne throughout adulthood and even later.
A note from Dr Hemant Malik
Acne is the most common of all skin conditions and it can have an impact on your mental health and self-esteem. If you have stubborn acne take proper treatment to treat your acne. Sometimes, your acne needs a little extra help to go away with a medication if at-home skin care treatments don’t work. While it may be tempting, try not to pick at your acne or pop pimples to prevent scarring. Remember that acne is not temporary and will go away with the right treatment designed for your skin.