What is the most effective non-prescription acne medication?
Helen of Troy asked:
I am a teenager and I get the normal whiteheads and the painful, long-lasting under-skin pimples as well. I have tried many types of acne medication and they have either been useless or made it worse. I have oily skin. My acne is not really severe, but it is still painful and embarrassing. What would be the best thing for me to use? Thank you so much!
I am a teenager and I get the normal whiteheads and the painful, long-lasting under-skin pimples as well. I have tried many types of acne medication and they have either been useless or made it worse. I have oily skin. My acne is not really severe, but it is still painful and embarrassing. What would be the best thing for me to use? Thank you so much!
Not sure
Here are some ways to care for skin if you have acne:
Clean skin gently. Use a mild cleanser in the morning, evening, and after heavy workouts. Scrubbing the skin does not stop acne. It can even make the problem worse.
Try not to touch your skin. People who squeeze, pinch, or pick their pimples can get scars or dark spots on their skin.
Shave carefully. If you shave, you can try both electric and safety razors to see which works best. With safety razors, use a sharp blade. Also, it helps to soften your beard with soap and water before putting on shaving cream. Shave lightly and only when you have to.
Stay out of the sun. Many acne medicines can make people more likely to sunburn. Being in the sun a lot can also make skin wrinkle and raise the risk of skin cancer.
Choose makeup carefully. All makeup should be oil free. Look for the word “noncomedogenic” on the label. This means that the makeup will not clog up your pores. But some people still get acne even if they use these products.
Most of the over the counter meds have the same chemical active ingredient in the same percentage of strength because that’s all that is allowed – otherwise it becomes prescription strength.
Sometimes it’s best to see a dermatologist who can take you to the next level and give you something stronger if your skin warrants that kind of treatment.
It might be worth considering.
My own daughters follow the ProActive regime if you can afford that and it seems to be working for the general annoying kind of acne you’re talking about.
good luck.
Have you ever heard of ‘witch-hazel’? It is non-prescriptive and works well on acne. It can be found at any store- even the dollars stores and it’s very effective. just wash your face with soap or cleanser, dry it, and then apply witch-hazel like a moisturizer.
Toothpaste no joke it cleared mine in two days
it’s alot to type out so here is a site which explains everything about acne, how to prevent and treat it and also which products would work best.
it also has a few home made remedies.
lifestyle is just as important as medication. proactive is really a genuinely good product, but in addition to taking that.. make sure you eat healthy. eating excess sugar upsets your hormones. eating oily foods can also be problematic (i know eating “bad” food has not been proven to cause acne, but it also hasn’t been proven to not be a cause). maintain healthy sleeping habits. aim for 8 hours a day (under-sleeping can have a drastic affect on your skin). try a zinc tablet (“nature made” brand) in the morning. zing helps to neutralize free radicals. if you do all this, i am pretty confident your skin should clear up. once i followed this “program”, my 4-year plague of acne has disappeared.
I used this program and it worked great…It’s all natural and I saw results in a couple days:)
Hope this helps…
Helen. I know exactly what you’re going through. I’ve wasted $100s of dollars on products that don’t work only to be left even more frustrated, aggravated, embarrassed and upset.
I tried creams, lotions, proactiv, clean and clear, mud packs, and every other overhyped garbage.. let me save you some time… THEY DON’T WORK!
Here’s the problem. While everyone and their baby mama can sit around and argue the causes of acne, we all can agree it is tied in with bacteria. Your pores get clogged and sebum (oil) and bacteria get trapped beneath it.
When the trapped sebum and bacteria stay below the skin surface, a whitehead is formed. And that’s the basis of how acne works.
98% of acne medications fail. Why? Because they treat it topically (only the skin), and neglects to do ANYTHING about the bacteria/hormones that were responsible for causing it in the first place. This means that while Proactiv and these other store medications might work for a day, a week, or even a month.. Guess what?
You will be seeing it again and again! It’ll keep coming back just like that unwanted neighbor down the street who keeps showing up to all your party no matter how many times you “forget” to invite them. They can’t take a hint.. well neither can acne.
This is why if you truly want to eliminate acne for good then you need to treat the source, not the symptom.
The problem is, I could not find ANY that treated the source. I spent hours searching the net a few months back and couldn’t find ANYTHING besides the normal BS that I already tried and didn’t work.
I was just about to give up until I found Clear Pores.
This worked for me! It cleared my acne and I have NOT had it since (it’s been 7 months). I ordered the 4-month complete system from there and it worked miracles.
Clear Pores is the only natural herbal acne treatment that combines three different products to fight acne from ALL sides.. so acne doesn’t stand a chance.
It treats the root. Not the symptom.. My best friend bought this recently and it completely eliminated her acne.. She went from hiding at home to a social butterfly! Got her confidence back, and is smiling a hell of alot more!
And FYI I think someone mentioned earlier about washing your face a whole bunch.. DON’T!
If you wash your skin hard and frequently, you WILL make your acne worse. Acne is not caused by dirt or surface skin oils. While excess oils, dead skin and a day’s accumulation of dust on the skin don’t look glamorous, they should NOT be removed by hand scrubbing.
Vigorous washing and scrubbing will actually irritate the skin and make acne worse.
The best approach to hygiene and acne: Gently wash your face twice a day with a mild soap, pat dry–and use an appropriate acne treatment
for the acne.
Hope that helps!
Regards,
Jarrett