Frequent washing Cause of acne?

Care tips for skin blemishes

25/01/2013

Excessive washing aggravates acne
Acne - a problem that affects most adolescents more or less strongly and against which there are apparently countless creams, lotions and gels to buy. However, most of the products on offer hardly help, instead the ugly pimples and blackheads often remain stubborn and only disappear again at the end of puberty.

Avoid excessive hygiene
But even if there is no "magic bullet" against the blemishes - who takes care of some care tips, which can at least achieve that the skin is not additionally irritated. Because often impure skin is considered by outsiders as a result of inadequate hygiene, which causes many young people to wash themselves to an excessive extent. But this is exactly where the problem lies: In puberty-related acne, the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) says that excessive washing with "nourishing" substances is rather counterproductive and often even worsens the appearance of the skin.

Use soap-free cleaners
Because normal soaps have a high pH (8 to 10) and can irritate the skin. On their health portal "Gesundheitsinformation.de", the experts therefore recommend in their "leaflet: Acne" to use soap-free cleansing agents that are adapted to the pH value of the skin (5.5). In addition, antibacterial washing lotions could improve the condition of the skin with mild acne, but also irritate sensitive skin - therefore less is more, otherwise it could come through frequent use to skin irritation and dehydration of the skin.

According to the information provided by the institute, the use of "light oil-in-water emulsions or moisture-retaining gels (hydrogels) is basically sensible for skin care in acne, since greasy substances can additionally clog the pores."

Do not express pimples and blackheads yourself
The experts also advise against expressing pimples or blackheads. Even if the appearance of the skin improves in this way, it can lead to a nasty surprise at the end: "Because of this, the pus can penetrate deeper into the skin, causing the skin to become more inflamed. Although a few expressions do not immediately lead to scars. However, if you overdo it with expressions and do not let go of deeper pimples, it can increase discomfort and promote long-term scarring, "the experts warned.

Instead, sufferers should choose to go to a medical beauty salon or dermatologist's office to have their pimples treated professionally and under hygienic conditions. Here, the facial skin would normally be prepared first with warm water or a steam bath to dilate the pores, to open and express the pimples in the next step, which is often done with a special small instrument (comedone squeezer). In severe acne, according to the Institute, this treatment may even be covered by the statutory health insurance.

Acne is sometimes found in children and in middle age, but most often adolescents and young adults are affected. The medical term for the so-called "puberty-related acne" is "acne vulgaris" ("common" acne). During adolescence, the infantile body evolves to that of an adult, and this development is accompanied by hormones, e.g. Androgen is controlled, a male sex hormone, which is formed during puberty by the female body reinforced and, among other things, stimulates the skin to produce fat.

The skin fat, also known as sebum, is produced by the sebaceous glands and is important for the skin, as it keeps the epidermis supple and protects. However, if a horny layer forms at the exit of the sebaceous gland, the sebum can not drain away and instead accumulates in the skin - as a result, a blackhead develops, which - when ignited - develops into an acne pickle. Acne develops especially where there are many sebaceous glands: on the face, chest, back and shoulders.

How pronounced the acne is is individually different. In medicine, a distinction is made between mild, moderate and severe acne, there are also inflammatory and non-inflammatory acne. Non-inflammatory acne is a relatively mild form in which most people would not speak of "acne" but merely "pimples" or "blackheads". (Sb)