My New Dermatologist and Some Updates

Early this January, I decided to visit a new dermatologist. I had previous experiences with a dermatologist. Although I saw a lot of improvements after those visits, I realized how costly it could get for maintenance. Simply put, my original dermatologist caters to well-off patients. Each tiny bottle of skin care product costs 300-400 pesos. His cleaning sessions alone costs 800. I just didn't feel I was getting a great value for my money.

This time, I found a new dermatologist who doesn't demand much from my wallet. He doesn't require me to use his clinic's products. It's fine for him that I use my store-bought products as long as they work well on my skin. The only products I got from his clinic are skin medications that require prescriptions, namely: retinoic acid and clindamycin.

Meanwhile, I had promised in my earlier post (Acne, Air Pollution, Poor Diet, and Suggested Solutions) to give an update about the results of my new skin-friendly lifestyle. I would be lying if I said I strictly stuck to my do's and don'ts list. Taking care of the skin can indeed take a lot of effort! Despite not being strict down to the last letter of the list, I managed to see results on my skin health.

Shortly after starting my new regimen, I went to Tokyo for a vacation. The cool and dry weather there had immediate results on my skin. My pimples dried up and my Alba Botanica sunscreen provided ample protection against the weather and the sun. My skin loved the Tokyo environment and during my week-long stay there, I noticed my skin to be slowly clearing up.

It's quite funny that it was after that period that I decided to see a dermatologist. Well, I wanted to maintain a clear skin, especially since it's already a new year. Here's a rundown on his treatment:

He gave me a cleaning, that is, he manually pricked my pimples. He told me that I inherited my oily skin from my dad, and so it is expected that my acne will flare up again. I can visit him once a month for a cleaning session, to maintain my skin. He told me that my problems are mostly the whiteheads and blackheads. He told me I could keep using my facial wash, and gave me a toner with clindamycin, which I should use twice daily. He also gave me a retinoic acid cream which I should apply every night after cleansing and toning.

Do you visit a dermatologist too? How was the treatment?

Acne, Air Pollution, Poor Diet, and Suggested Solutions

Source: Danilo Rizzuti | Freedigitalphotos.net

Lately, I've been having serious acne flare ups on the face and I am not proud of it. It must be the air pollution or the poor diet I'm having. For some reasons, the vehicles passing by our neighborhood has increased, making dark smogs to be a frequent sighting whenever I go outside home. Ice cream and dairy products have also become more frequent in my diet.

So, after much scouring on the Internet, I decided to construct a list of skin care do's and don'ts. I will be putting these suggested solutions on my smartphone to remind myself constantly of the proper skin care habits. I hope that after observing the list diligently, I will finally find some improvements on my skin. Below is my list and I promise to update you as soon as I see some progress.

Suggestions to Get Rid of Acne:

Don't touch the face.
Do apply sunscreen everyday to protect skin from UV (UV becomes more harmful when combined with air pollution).
Do moisturize everyday to stay hydrated and to create barrier against pollution.
Don't eat too much sugary foods.
Don't take too much dairy products.
Do take supplements including Vitamin C and Omega-3 to protect the skin.
Do exfoliate the skin twice a day (check though for signs of irritation).
Do apply acne medications such as benzoyl peroxide.
Do change the pillow cases every other week.
Do lie on the back while sleeping.
Do clean the laptop's keyboard, tablet, and cellphone everyday.
Do sleep earlier so as not to worsen acne.
Do eat more nutritious foods beneficial for the skin.

Note: This is actually a late post and I will publish the results soon.

The Danger Triangle of Your Face

I have a habit of popping my pimples despite hearing and reading several warnings against this. It is said that the act may infect the pimples and or leave permanent scars.

When the news about a boy getting hospitalized due to an infected pimple was relayed to me, at first I couldn't believe it. The "danger triangle of the face" sounds absurd and illogical. But research made it clear to me that it does exist.

Yes, there is a danger triangle or triangle of death found on the face. It starts from the bridge of the nose between the eyes and widens down toward the base of the mouth, forming a triangle. Pimples that get infected within this area can lead to serious illnesses and even death.

To make the explanation as simple as I can, the reason behind the danger is that the blood vessels are in close proximity to the brain. There are no valves present to control what goes through the vessels. Thus, when the pimples in the area gets infected, the bacteria may travel freely through the blood vessels and toward the brain.

While death due to a pimple may be rare, it is best to avoid getting risks of infection. It's a good reason enough to stop the habit of pimple popping. I hope I too can finally stop the urge to manually extract my zits.

Meanwhile, if you want to delve deeper about the danger triangle, here are some articles you may find useful:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/25/popping-pimples-kill-you-infection_n_3961886.html

http://thepost.ohiou.edu/content/science-dan-popping-pimples-can-prove-deadly

http://www.sharecare.com/health/healthy-nose/where-triangle-of-death-face

Hormonal Acne and Diet

Image Source: Simon Howden | Freedigitalphotos.net

Although the myth about eating chocolates can cause acne has already been debunked, other foods can still trigger acne breakouts.

Recent studies show that foods high in glycemic index (simple carbohydrates that are high in sugar content) can worsen acne condition. 

Insulin is a hormone responsible for the breakdown down of sugar. The presence of too much sugar in the blood increases the level of insulin needed in the blood, a condition called hyperinsulinemia. Hyperinsulinemia can encourage overproduction of oil. Too much oil can lead to the formation of acne.

It is suggested that eating the right kind of diet can control acne that is caused by hormones. 

So if you believe your acne is mainly due to your hormones, instead of mainly relying on topical medications, try incorporating a low glycemic index diet as part your treatment plan. This will not only be for the benefit of your skin, but also for your overall health.

To find out more about acne, visit related posts.

Sources:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/acne/basics/causes/con-20020580

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/820700

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/747823

How to Prevent Acne

Nothing is worse than waking up in the morning to 

find out a large pimple on your face!

Source: Illustration by cheerfulnuts

We all get acne at some point in our life. The breakout of acne is often noticeable during puberty, but adults may have acne problems too. It’s hard to pinpoint the real cause of acne.  Genetics, hormones, and some dietary factors yet to be determined might play a role.

 

What is Acne?

Before I go into details how to prevent acne, you should first understand how it develops. Our skin has pores with hair follicles. Our skin naturally has oil to act as a natural barrier. The sebaceous glands are responsible for the oil or sebum production. Sometimes, these glands produce more sebum than necessary. The sebum, plus the dead skin cells, gets clogged in the pores. A trapped sebum leads to the formation of whiteheads or blackheads. Sometimes they go away by themselves, gradually releasing the trapped substances. At other times, rupture occurs along the follicular wall, leading to inflammation. Red bump starts to appear around the pore. A bump on the surface that gets infected is called a pimple, whereas a blockage that occurs deep in the pore becomes a cyst.

According to the Mayo Clinic website, there are three factors responsible for acne development:

1. overproduction of sebum,
2. irritation
3. build up of bacteria.

Apparently, if you want to prevent acne, you should watch out for these three culprits. I’ll elaborate on these later.

Treatment for Acne

Topical treatments such as benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid address to acne problems by dealing with bacteria and sebum. These medications dry out excess oil and remove dead skin cells. Benzoyl Peroxide prevents the build up of P. acnes bacteria whereas Salicylic Acid cuts through grease and promotes skin peeling. They are available over-the-counter and are often included in cosmetic products such as soaps and facial wash as active ingredients. 

How to Prevent Breakouts

Dealing with acne can start at home. Follow a proper skin care 

regimen and choose your products carefully to help prevent acne.

Source: Photo by Adam Borkowski/Dreamstime

Dealing with acne can start at home. By just adapting proper skin care methods and some good habits, you can help prevent or lessen your acne. Let’s first take a look on the three contributing factors of acne development:

Overproduction of sebum

Some people have oily skin. If you are one of them, you should follow a good skin care regimen. Wash your face with a mild cleanser twice daily (washing more than needed could do more harm than good). After washing, use an alcohol-free toner to remove excess oil and dead skin cells. Slather on a light moisturizer afterwards. Remember that despite having an oily face, you still need to do this step as this will help retain the needed moisture for your skin. Other than this routine, watch out for your stress level too. More stress equals more sebum production. Learn some stress management techniques to avoid compromising your skin and prevent acne.

Irritation

Follicular walls rupture when irritated. Vigorous rubbing and scrubbing irritates the skin. So avoid rubbing your face while towelling after wash. Instead, pat it dry. Be gentle to your face, it is delicate. If you have extra sensitive skin, aggressive mechanical exfoliation might be too harsh. Consider using products with alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) or beta-hydroxy acid (BHA) ingredients for a gentler peeling method. Be aware where your breakout tends to occur. If it occurs on one same spot, it may be due to your habits. Do you rest one side of your face on the pillow while sleeping? Are you frequently using the telephone? Resting your skin against these things causes irritation too. Watch out for your beauty products. Products with fragrances usually irritate skin. Fragrance-free, non-comedogenic, oil-free, and water-based are the labels you should look for in a product to prevent acne breakouts. Check your hair products labels as well, especially when your hair is always in contact with your face. Make sure they have no oil and no irritants.

Build Up of Bacteria

Bacteria are not dirt. Dirt does not cause acne, although it may worsen it. Washing too often does remove dirt, but harms the skin. Benzoyl peroxide kills P. acnes bacteria responsible for acne growth. You might want to add products with this ingredient as part of your skin regimen. The medication, however, might cause over dryness, peeling, and sensitivity to sun. Lessening the application, applying moisturizer, and applying sunscreen are ways to deal with the side effects. If irritation persists, stop using the medication.

For more information about acne, see related blog posts.

Last Updated: August 22, 2015

Acne and Hormonal Imbalances

Acne is a skin condition that most people suffer from. It comes and it goes. To some people, some acne just won't go away. If you have acne that are very stubborn despite following a quality skin care routine, then you might just have a hormonal imbalance.

As I've mentioned in an earlier post, acne develops mainly due to three contributing factors: oil, bacteria, and genetics. To be able to control acne, you have to address to these culprits. However, when your acne is caused by hormonal imbalances, the problem wouldn't be completely solved by simply applying skin care products. When your hormones are in chaos, your body responds by producing too much oil. Oil clogs the hair follicles and traps dead skin cells, producing the much hated pimples.

Controlling the excess oil by washing the face and applying oil-free products might help. But since the cause is rooted far beyond the skin, then the acne would just keep coming back. Dealing with the hormonal imbalances is a far better approach.

Stress is one of the main factors of hormonal imbalances. Your body responds to stress by producing too much hormones that lead to too much oil production. As one hormone increases, an imbalance occurs, and this imbalance is reflected by the skin. Besides stress, diet and synthetic products (such as some plastics) also disrupt the hormones.

So the solution to better skin health does not only lie on topical products. Lifestyle, health, diet, and stress all contribute to skin health. Here's a useful article that teaches about how to deal with hormonal imbalances in order to fight acne:

http://www.highonhealth.org/suffering-from-hormonal-acne-here%E2%80%99s-what-you-can-do-about-it/

Beauty Products and Acne Breakouts

©Stuart Miles | Freedigitaphotos.net

Do you still struggle with breakouts? One factor of developing acne is bacteria. You might wonder, you are cleansing your face twice a day and applying acne medication to keep bacteria away, and yet you still develop acne? How is that possible? Well, check your skincare products and cosmetics. They might be the culprits.
It's nice when you know which skin products to choose from. Many ingredients from these items may irritate your skin and clog the pores and thus promote acne development. Preventing breakouts doesn't end at choosing the right kind of products with the right ingredients. Once you open the seal of the container, the product is already a prospective breeding ground to bacteria, and thus acne breakouts. Be extra careful with water-based products. The moisture of these are particularly inviting to the bacteria. Remember your sweaty socks? Bacteria just love damp areas! Once they invade your beauty products, so would they migrate to your skin.

Read more about skincare product ingredients that can clog the pores.

So basically, liquid products have short life spans because they attract bacteria faster. Dry products last longer, but they are still going to spoil in due time. Different kinds of products last for a certain period of time.

Eyeshadow - 3 years
Eyeliner - 3 years
Mascara - 3 months
Lipstick - 1-2 years
Foundation - 12 months (water-based), 18 months (oil-based)
Powder - 2 years
Concealer - 1 year

Here are some articles about cosmetics products' shelf life for more information.
http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/CosmeticsQA/ucm167568.htm
http://beauty.about.com/od/makeuptrickstips/a/shelflife.htm

Do you always keep track of your products' shelf life? Share your thoughts by posting a comment below.

Lip Care Products and Acne

Photo by Ohmega1982 via freedigitalphotos.net

Choosing the right skincare products takes time and patience. You have to check the ingredients as well when it comes to safeguarding your skin from possible breakouts. Is your face cream oil-free? Check. How about face powder? Check. Sunscreen? Blush-on? Foundation? check! Check! Check!

Wait. There is one thing you must be missing. Your lipstick/lipstain/lip gloss/lip balm. Don't forget that your lips are also part of the skin. Whatever you put onto your lips would migrate to the skin around the mouth area. Using the wrong kind of product would lead to breakouts. So when choosing lipsticks and other lip care products, don't forget to look for the noncomedogenic kind.

Sadly, not all lip care products include an ingredients list into their packaging. Always go with the safe side, by choosing products that show you what's inside. Jojoba oil and petroleum jelly are two ingredients that are good lip moisturizers that are also noncomedogenic.

When applying the lip care products onto your lips, make sure that your lips are clean. If you've just finished eating or drinking, wipe your mouth first before reapplying. This way, you lessen the likelihood of catching the bacteria with the product. Don't let your products be the breeding ground of germs. Not only do bacteria make your product unhygienic, they also encourage more breakouts.

Take care of your lips! By that you are also doing your skin a favor!

Skincare Product Ingredients that Won't Clog Pores

I have an acne-prone skin and a very oily face. I guess it runs in the family. In the morning after washing my face, my skin becomes rejuvenated, clean, and glowing. However, as soon as midday arrives, my face starts to become very shiny. The sebum that appears of course makes my skin even more prone to acne breakouts.

Do you know that oil is one of the major contributing factor to breakouts? Oil blocks the skin pores and therefore leads to breakouts. That is why oily-skinned people need to control their excess oil production. Choosing the right skincare products is even more important, as you don't want to add more oil to your already oily skin. Take note though, that not all oils or fats or lipids are comedogenic or pore-clogging. Some are in fact very good moisturizers that act not only as lubricants but also as a barrier between your skin and the harsh entities from the environment.

However, it is not that simple to just list down all the acne causing ingredients in order to completely avoid breakouts. In addition, it is often difficult to determine an ingredient's comedogenic potential, as researches often show inconsistent results. More so, the combination of certain ingredients changes the comedogenic potential of the final mixture of the product. Even skincare products having no comedogenic ingredients at all may possibly cause breakout.

The verdict? Well, more research is needed, but for now, learn all you can about the ingredients' current information. You may not correctly predict a certain product's comedogenicity based on the ingredients alone, yet there are certainly some ingredients that you definitely need to avoid. These are the heavy and penetrating oils or fatty acids such as cocoa butter, isopropyl myristate, and lauric acid. For cosmetics, avoid mica (a mineral that adds shimmer to your skin) and coal tar derivatives as they are highly irritating to the skin. Here's a helpful link I've found that lists down all the ingredients that are comedogenic and irritating.

Of course, the bottom line is to use your common sense. If you notice that your skin breaks out after using a certain product, discontinue usage. To be on the safe side, always try a new product in a small area behind your ear and wait three days to check for any sign of irritation. If you find no bad effects, then go ahead and use the product!

UPDATE: In my latest post, I've listed the highly comedogenic ingredients commonly found in skincare products. It is a summary of a study conducted by James E. Fulton.

My Dermatologist

I used to have a lot of pimples. My lack of knowledge on skin care had worsened my acne condition. I rubbed and scrubbed my face and overused topical medications. My skin was peeling so badly. But I endured all these unsightly marks thinking that acne is normal for teenagers. High school passed then came college. My skin became a bit better, as a friend suggested me to use Likas Papaya Soap which has salicylic acid ingredient. However, my skin was still flaky and dry. Breakouts would still occur from time to time as college life was quite stressful. Now that I’m way beyond those teen years, I still get breakouts. It was only a few years ago that I decided to see a dermatologist.

My dermatologist gave me a facial. Every session he would manually tweeze my pimples using his special equipments, a procedure called extraction. It wasn’t that painful. He gave me a skin care regimen to follow daily. So there, I would always buy those skin care products from his clinic. Those bottles didn’t have any brand names. Only the active ingredients were included in the label. I had no clear idea what products I was using.

I painstakingly did my research. I learned about the ingredients found in personal care products. I also learned how to read the labels. I stopped buying products from my dermatologist and started switching to store-bought products. I realized that by doing this, I could save more money. Of course this is not something that you could simply do especially when you have severe acne. If you have controllable acne, you could just rely on good personal care products for better skin. Of course, research thoroughly and see which works best for you. Read my article Skin Care 101.

Of course, my dermatologist was good. After a few sessions, my skin became smoother and clearer. The only problem I had was the brandless products. For me, it would have been better if he just suggested some personal care product brands that were suitable for me instead of selling me his own. Recently, a friend passed by another skin care clinic only to find out some of the dermatologist's employees filling out dozens of empty plastic bottles with a certain skin care product. Now that might be what my own dermatologist was doing.