A Guide to Managing Acne Prone Skin

Acne is a skin condition that can be difficult to manage, affecting both teens and adults alike. At MYSKIN Shop UK, we understand the importance of achieving clear, healthy skin. This blog post offers in-depth information on acne, its triggers, and essential tips for different skin types. Plus, discover our recommended products and personal top tips for maintaining clear skin.

Understanding Acne

Acne is commonly caused by clogged hair follicles with oil and dead skin cells, leading to pimples, blackheads, and whiteheads. The development of acne can be influenced by several factors, including

• Genetics Family history plays a role in acne susceptibility.
• Diet Foods high in sugar and dairy can contribute to breakouts.
• Stress Levels Hormonal imbalances triggered by stress can lead to acne.
• Hormones Hormonal fluctuations, particularly during puberty, menstruation, and pregnancy, can cause acne.

Understanding these triggers can help in managing and minimising breakouts effectively.

Types of Acne

1. Comedonal Acne Characterised by blackheads and whiteheads.
2. Inflammatory Acne Includes papules, pustules, and nodules.
3. Cystic Acne Severe form of acne causing cysts and nodules.
4. Hormonal Acne Often appears around the jawline and chin.

Essential Tips for Clear Skin

1. Maintain a Consistent Skincare Routine

A tailored skincare routine is crucial for managing acne. Here’s a routine to get you started

• Cleanse Use a gentle, non-comedogenic cleanser twice a day. Avoid harsh scrubbing which can irritate the skin.
• Tone Apply a toner containing ingredients like salicylic acid to remove leftover impurities and balance your skin’s pH.
• Moisturise Use an oil-free, non-comedogenic moisturiser to keep your skin hydrated without clogging pores.
• Protect Use a broad-spectrum, lightweight, and non-oily sunscreen daily to protect your skin from UV rays, which can worsen acne scars and pigmentation.

2. Avoid Touching Your Face

Your hands pick up dirt and bacteria from various surfaces throughout the day. Transferring these pollutants to your face can cause breakouts. Avoid touching your face and resist the urge to pop or pick spots as this can lead to scarring.

3. Keep Hair and Products Away from Your Face

Hair products such as hair spray, oils, masks etc can irritate the skin and block pores, causing acne on the forehead and hairline. Avoid using heavy hair products that can get on your face and keep your hair clean and tied back, especially when working out or in hot weather.

4. Watch Your Diet

Even if you have oily skin it’s so important to keep the skin hydrated on the outside and on the inside, drinking plenty of water throughout the day can help detox the skin.

Additionally, a food allergy test can be very useful to identify food triggers that may be contributing to acne, breakouts and poor gut health.

5. Manage Stress

Stress can cause hormonal imbalances, leading to acne breakouts. Incorporate stress-reduction methods like yoga, meditation, or regular exercise to help maintain clear skin.

Top Tips for Acne Prone Skin

• Change your flannel and towel every 2 days to avoid bacteria buildup.
• Wash make-up brushes weekly to prevent bacteria transfer to your skin.
• Change pillowcases every 2 days and use a silk pillowcase where possible to reduce friction and irritation.
• Avoid picking spots as it releases P. acne bacteria, causing more spots and potential scarring.

6. Common Misconceptions for Acne

A common misconception is that the sun and sunbeds improve acne, but they can actually dry out the skin, increase acne scarring, and cause pigmentation. SPF is essential for acne-prone skin, but it must be lightweight and non-oily.

Beneficial Ingredients for Acne-Prone Skin

When looking at skincare products it can be overwhelming on what products to choose, what will be the right ingredients to help clear and reduce breakouts and inflammation. There are some key ingredients to look for when searching for acne skincare:

• Niacinamide Reduces inflammation and sebum production.
• Azelaic Acid Fights bacteria and reduces inflammation.
• Zinc Regulates oil production and aids healing.
• Salicylic Acid Exfoliates and unclogs pores.
• Mandelic Acid Gently exfoliates and has antibacterial properties.
• Azeloglycine Combines azelaic acid and glycine for anti-inflammatory effects.
• Pyruvic Acid Exfoliates and reduces oil production.
• Vitamin B Maintains healthy skin.
• Vitamin A / Retinol Promotes cell turnover and reduces inflammation.

 

Acne Skin Supplements

Sometimes skincare alone is not sufficient to help rid acne and breakouts completely from the skin, the skin may need to repair, heal and balance from the inside. This is when skin specific supplements can really help, as they can work on acne triggers that topical skincare can’t be as effective, by helping to balance hormones and improve gut health, both are key factors to consider for clear skin.

Our skin expert at MYSKIN Shop UK has been working with acne prone skin for over 15 years, she discovered the Advanced Nutrition Programme (ANP) skin supplements 10 years, they provide a wide range of skin supplement support to skin health. The skin clear duo to help clear acne prone skin is:

• ANP Skin Accumax: A synergy of vitamins A, C and E plus phytonutrients to clear breakouts from chin to chest.
• ANP Clear Biome: An unbalanced gut can impact skin health. Feed healthy bacteria to accelerate skin-cla

Recommended Products from MYSKIN Shop UK

Here are some of our top recommendations for acne-prone skin:

Top 5 Cleansers

• iS Cleansing Complex – For All Skin Types Gentle gel that cleanses without stripping natural oils.
• Environ Skin EssentiA Low Foam Cleansing Gel – Combo/Oily Skin Removes excess oil and impurities while moisturizing.
• Environ Focus Care Clarity + Sebu-Wash Cleanser – For Oily Skin Deep cleanses and removes surface oils and debris.
• Juliette Armand Clarifying Face Foam – For Normal Skin Balances oiliness and removes residue.
• SVR SebiaClear Cleanser – For Combination/Oily Skin Exfoliates and unclogs skin with a non-drying formula.

Top 5 Acne Treatments

• SVR SebiaClear Serum – treat adult acne, Inno Purifying Serum – treat adult acne,
• SVR Sebiaclear Ampoule Azelaic Acid Serum – inflammed Acne, combo/oily,
• Innoaesthetics AKN Day and Night Cream – all types of acne dry/combo/oily
• iS Clinical Active Serum PMand iS Clinical Pro Heal Serum AM – both treat normal/dry/combo acne prone skin
• Environ SebuLotion and Environ Sebu ACE Oil – combo/oily skin

For a great weekly treatment we recommend the Environ Sebu Clear mask can be used on all skin types of acne prone skin or the Sebiaclear Micro-Peel to help exfoliate, unclogging pores suitable for combination to oily skin.

Conclusion

Achieving clear skin requires patience, there is no one solution that fits all, you have to investigate what works best for your type of acne, skin type and condition. By following some of our acne skincare tips, using targeted skincare products in your daily routine, monitoring diet triggers and even considering skin specific supplements, you can manage acne and improve your skin’s health. Remember, consistency is key, and taking care of your skin is an investment in your overall well-being and skin confidence.

If you still need more help and advice, then you can book a free 15 minute phone consultation with our professional skin expert to go through your skin in more detail and get a personalised skincare routine for you. Help is at hand, your journey to clear, radiant skin starts here!