Get Rid Of Acne In 3 Natural Steps

Want to get rid of acne the natural way? It can be done. In fact, natural acne treatment is often more successful in the long and short term than taking medication. You just have to make some changes in your lifestyle and especially, your diet.

Step 1 - Planning

Read this article through then sit down and think about whether you are prepared to make all or some of the changes that we describe. Write down exactly which changes you plan to make, how and when. Then talk it through with whoever cooks your food, if you don't do that yourself.

Don't skip this step! It is the most important. The main reason for people failing to cure or control their acne, after they know what they need to do, is that they did not plan.

Step 2 - Diet

Here you will cut down or cut out processed foods, sugar, fatty foods and dairy products.

First, cut out soda completely, either sugared or diet. Drink fruit juice or water instead. Water is great for your skin. Aim to drink 4 pints of water spread through the day.

Then start to make healthy choices in other areas of your diet. Avoid french fries and potato chips. Choose steamed vegetables instead of stir-fried. Eat fresh fruit for snacks. Nuts are fine too in small quantities. Cut out or cut down on refined sugar. Buy some gum that is 100% xylitol to deal with any sugar cravings and give your teeth a break.

Cut out dairy products completely if you are sensitive to them - many people are. Have yourself tested for dairy intolerance by a dermatologist or run a 2 week no-dairy test to check. If you are sensitive your skin may break out worse than ever in the first week during detox, but it should be much improved by the end of 2 weeks. Take a calcium supplement to ensure you don't suffer from any deficiency.

Step 3 - Keeping It Clean

Although cleanliness is important in stopping acne from spreading, the main causes of acne are internal (diet and hormones). That's why this step comes last.

- Change your pillowcase often - every day if possible. Or turn it one day, and replace it the next, so you never sleep on the same side two nights.

- Try not to touch your face without washing your hands first. Itches will soon go if you do not scratch.

- Massage the face gently with clean fingertips. This will stimulate the skin and help it to clean out pores.

- For men who have acne in the beard area, use clippers to shave instead of a razor to avoid aggravating the skin.

- Use natural cleansing products such as apple cider vinegar (check for allergies first).

These 3 simple steps have helped many people to get rid of acne naturally. Will you be the next?

The Best Treatment For Deep Acne Scar Reviews

If you are looking for treatment for deep acne scar occurrences on your skin, there are several options to choose from. Which is best for you will depend on your skin and the type of scar that you have.

Dermabrasion And Chemical Peels

Dermabrasion is a technique performed by a plastic surgeon, sometimes in conjunction with a chemical peel. It removes the top layer of skin on the premise that the new skin underneath will be scar free.

The skin can take a long time to heal after this treatment and sometimes reacts badly to the process. Some people end off more badly scarred by the abrasion than they were by their acne. On darker skinned people it can cause pigmentation changes that will take a long time to fade. It is also very expensive.

Dermabrasion is very hard to control and can go wrong even in the most expert hands. Think hard before deciding on this treatment.

Microdermabrasion is a gentler technique that may be performed by a dermatologist or even a beauty parlor rather than a plastic surgeon. It is not so likely to cause new scars but will only be effective on scarring that was mild already.

Punch Grafts

This is a surgical treatment for pitted acne scars that involves removing the scarred area and inserting a graft, usually taken from behind the ear. Local anesthetic will be given. Removal is quick and even the placing of the graft does not take long. The treated area will be dressed for a week and then should steadily heal.

Punch grafts are sometimes used on deep scars before a chemical peel or dermabrasion is applied to make the area smoother.

This technique works best on deep but small ice-pick type scars. It is not so effective on large areas of scarring.

Collagen Injections

Collagen is a substance produced by the body when forming and repairing skin. It can be injected into scarred areas to help the process along. Think of it as being like Botox: it plumps out the flesh under the skin so the scar is hidden, but it is a temporary measure. Within 6 months the injected collagen will be reabsorbed by the body and if the scar has not healed by itself in that time, it will be visible again. You would then need another treatment.

Collagen may be human-sourced or cattle-sourced. Collagen from cows is cheaper but cannot be used on some people, e.g. if you have an autoimmune disease including type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and many other conditions.

Laser Treatment

Laser treatment for scarring can be very effective but it is probably the most expensive treatment out there. Expect to pay $300 to $500 per session. For some types of scars one treatment is enough, but for others you may need up to 10 sessions.

Laser treatments for acne scars vary in the type of laser that is used. Some aim to smooth the skin, others are for reducing redness. Carbon dioxide laser treatment actually removes affected tissue. The stronger kinds of laser treatment can cause redness that may last for several months.

When you understand your options, you should consult with a dermatologist to help you choose which treatment for deep acne scar is best for your situation.

Acne Scar Home Remedies

There are several acne scar home remedies that you will find discussed online, but are they just old wives' tales or do they really work?

Many people these days are looking for home remedies. If the worst of your acne is behind you, but you have been left with bad or even minor scarring, you probably want to get rid of those acne scars.

The mainstream dermatology solutions can be very harsh. Chemical peels remove a layer of your skin. If well done and if your skin is not too sensitive, a chemical peel can give lasting benefits. But for some people, something goes wrong and they are left with worse scarring than before.

Laser resurfacing uses light to remove or blur the signs of acne scars so that they are less noticeable. This can be a successful way to minimize scarring but it is expensive.

When it comes to home remedies, these are more effective on relatively light scarring. Natural remedies rely on the body's own healing process to heal the scars. The actual remedies that we use are therefore intended to help the body to get back to its normal condition in which it can heal itself.

This is a gentler and often slower way of removing scars but it can be more effective in the long term. It involves considering how you will look and feel in 20 or 30 years time, not only right now.

Many natural remedies for acne scars rely on food products. The nutrients that they contain can nourish the skin and help it to regain its natural beauty. In this respect you can either take the nutrients internally or externally, or both.

Taking a long hard look at your diet is one of the best things that you can do for your skin. Cut out refined sugar. Do not cook with oil or eat fried foods, because cooked oils contain free radicals that will suck up all the good antioxidants you are taking in, and stop them getting to your skin.

Add into your diet all foods that are high in antioxidants. These include raw vegetables, salad and fresh fruits. Try eating 'all raw' for breakfast and lunch - for example, a big fruit smoothie for breakfast, fresh fruit for snacks, and a big salad with nuts and avocado for lunch. Do this for 6 months and you should see an improvement in your skin.

You can also use face packs made with sliced or blended vegetables that are high in antioxidants. Tomatoes and cucumber are a good combination. Cucumber is well known as a skin remedy as it tightens and tones the pores. Tomatoes have a very high antioxidant component. However, do not use tomato on your skin if you are allergic to it.

Fresh aloe vera juice can be a very effective way to treat acne scars. Aloe vera is a succulent plant that you can keep in a pot indoors. You will need a leaf about 2 inches wide. Remove it from the plant and peel it. Put the flesh in a blender and puree it. Then apply it as a face pack twice a day for at least 5 minutes each time. The puree will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, but take it out an hour before using it to let it revive to room temperature. This is great for scars and also for healing and preventing pimples.

Tea tree oil is an antibacterial that can help prevent scarring and clean the skin to give it the best chance of healing scars that are already present. Use this in addition to other acne scar home remedies.

Acne Vulgaris: Is There A Dairy Connection?

Can a seemingly healthy and innocent product like milk cause acne vulgaris (common acne)? Surprisingly, the answer for many people may be yes.

Around 80% of American teenagers have acne, while in countries on traditional diets that do not include dairy products there are virtually zero cases of acne. However, as soon as a culture becomes westernized and starts including milk and cheese in the diet, acne appears. Japan is an example of this.

Of course there may be other factors at work, but there are two reasons why milk and other dairy products may contribute to acne.

First, many people do not digest milk products well and their bodies react by dumping many of the elements that they cannot digest through the lungs in the form of mucus and the skin in the form of acne vulgaris.

Second, even in people who can digest milk just fine, there may be a reaction to the hormones that are believed to be in milk. The main cause of teenage acne is said to be hormone imbalance, and milk these days probably contains a lot more hormones than it did 50 or 100 years ago. Here's why.

Any female human or animal that is pregnant naturally has more of certain hormones in her body. In the wild, this doesn't matter because milk is not used until after the baby/calf is born, when the excessive hormones are no longer there. But in present-day commercial milk production cows are kept pregnant almost constantly, to make them produce more milk. Because of this, the excessive female hormones are believed to get into the milk that we drink, probably contributing to acne and possibly other problems such as obesity, breast tissue forming on men, and even breast cancer in older women.

So if you have acne, consider staying off dairy products completely for 2 weeks. This takes some planning because dairy products can be hard to avoid. You will have to check the ingredients in every food or drink that goes in your mouth. Milk powder can appear in places you would never expect it.

If you are a teenager and your mother says that you need milk, explain that this is just a 2-week test, and why you are doing it. She was young once and she probably understands more than you think! Tell her that you can still have eggs, and you can take a calcium supplement, but for these 2 weeks you will have no milk, butter, yogurt, cheese or anything containing them.

During these 2 weeks be prepared for your acne to get a little worse before it begins to get better. You may be detoxing for the first 3-7 days. You may also develop a cough or cold symptoms.

After 2 weeks, has your skin improved? Very likely the answer will be yes.

Now you can informally test your dairy tolerance by drinking a glass of milk or eating a normal portion of cheese. If you are dairy intolerant you may have an immediate reaction such as blocked or runny nose, or a headache soon after. You may have diarrhoea or a very loose BM the next day. Or you may have no immediate symptoms but if you go back to eating dairy regularly your skin may break out worse than ever. If as a result of this informal test you believe that you may be milk intolerant, have your results checked by taking a food sensitivity test with a nutritionist.

If you had a reaction, stay off dairy for another 5 days and then test yogurt. Some people can digest yogurt but not other milk products.

If there was no reaction, you are probably not sensitive to milk. You may still want to cut down your consumption to avoid the hormones that it is believed to contain, but don't stress out about little bits of milk or cheese in foods that you eat.

Be sure to get enough calcium through other food sources or supplementation, and consult a doctor or dermatologist about treatment for severe acne vulgaris.

Stop Cystic Acne In Its Tracks

Cystic acne has got to be the most painful and disfiguring form of acne. Also known as nodulocystic acne, it creates cyst-like lumps under the skin that are in fact inflamed nodules. These are bigger than the small whiteheads or pimples of other varieties of acne vulgaris (common acne) although like those pimples, they usually contain white pus.

Cystic acne is rarer than other types but still it is fairly common.

Contrary to popular belief, acne is not caused by a lack of personal hygiene. The direct cause is an excess of sebum or oily fluid in the pores of the face, neck, chest, or back. The sebum blocks the pores which then become inflamed or infected.

Acne usually begins at puberty. It is believed that hormonal changes or imbalances in adolescents are the reason why there is an excess of sebum in the first place.

Even though hygiene issues are not the cause, if you have acne it is important to keep the area clean and try not to touch the pimples, to prevent the infection spreading.

Probably the worst feature of cystic acne is the scarring that it leaves behind. If a nodule or cyst is not treated immediately with medication it can leave a scar that in some cases will be permanent. In other cases it leaves a 'macular scar' which is not a true scar but an area of redness that will slowly fade within about 6 months.

It is better not to try to pop the pimples of cystic acne, especially when they are deep. You will often fail to extract the pus, making the cyst look worse and probably creating a bigger scar.

There are some medications that can have a remarkable effect on cystic acne in up to 90% of cases. The main one is Isotretinoin. This is a product that is derived from vitamin A. It is marketed under various brand names - one of the most common in the US is Accutane, but there are many other names for it.

You can also get an Isotretinoin product that is not taken internally but is used as a topical cream applied directly to the cysts. Brand names for this include Isotrex and Isotrexin.

These products can act very fast to clear up cysts and prevent scarring if taken quickly enough. However, always take medical advice before beginning to take a product like Isotretinoin. It is not safe for everyone, e.g. pregnant women should not take it. Consult with your dermatologist or doctor to find the best product for your acne.

Vitamin A is found in many fresh raw fruits and vegetables including most of the ones that are colored red, orange and yellow - for example, carrots. Increasing these in the diet may help to prevent future breakouts. Be careful if considering supplementing with vitamin A for cystic acne, however. It is possible to overdose with this vitamin.


To You Skin Success

David & Radical All Natural Team