What is Teenage Acne? #ClearasilMom #sponsored #MC

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Acne is fairly common in pre-teens or teenagers who are going through puberty. As your child enters puberty, their body is going through some major changes as they transform into an adult. Part of their transformation includes getting pubic hair growth, hair under their arms, menstruation(girls), facial hair(boys), and acne. During puberty, your child’s body releases hormones that trigger acne.   As a parent you might notice acne on their face, back, or chest. The good news is that most of the time acne will go away once your child finishes going through puberty. However, it can continue as an adult or it will come back.

What Is Teenage Acne?

The technical term for teen acne is acne vulgaris. It just means that your child has a common form of acne. It can be found on your face, neck, shoulders, upper back, and on the chest. The acne forms because your sebaceous glands (oil glands) start producing more oil (sebum) that will cause your pores to become blocked. Typically, your body will produce a sufficient amount of oil to protect and lubricate your skin; however, during puberty your body produces extra oil. The extra oil causes the pores to become clogged with dirt, oil, dead skin, and other contaminants.

Whiteheads and Blackheads

A whitehead is formed when your pore is clogged up and a small tiny white pimple ends up forming just under the skin. A blackhead is caused when the pore remains open and oxidizes with air. It causes the pigment in the sebum to darken. A blackhead isn’t a reflection of dirty or unclean skin. Don’t try to scrub them away because it will only irritate your skin and cause it to produce more oil.

These two types of pimples usually aren’t painful and they can easily be popped or taken care of using a special tool called comedone extractor. It is important that you wash your face before using this tool to rid your skin of any bacteria, dirt, and debris from potentially causing an infection. Then hold a warm wash cloth over the area for a few minutes and pat dry. Then use the tool to gently apply a small amount of downward pressure as you are pulling up. Never use your fingers to squeeze your pimples.

Pimples

Painful pimples happen when the pore remains closed and the oil gland deep under the skin gets infected. The oil gland will swell and fill up with pus below the skin. If you have a painful zit, you need to monitor it to make sure that you don’t have a larger problem like cystic acne or a boil that is caused by a staph infection. Continue washing your face and try not to squeeze the pimple. Squeezing the pimple can cause a deeper infection and potential scaring.

Cystic Acne

Cystic acne is very painful and is characterized by painful, red, and large bumps under the skin. This type of acne happens when your oil gland ruptures and causes a major infection deep under the skin. Sometimes your skin will itch or be red before you are even aware that you have a pimple forming. If your child has cystic acne, you should see a dermatologist to help treat your child’s skin.

Treating Mild to Moderate Acne

If your child suffers from mild to moderate acne, it is important that they learn how to take care of their skin. You will want your child to stop using a regular bar soap when washing their face. Most bar soaps causes your skin to become dry and makes your body produce more oil. Also, it is important that your child doesn’t use OTC acne products that are filled with irritants that can make acne worse.

Our Thoughts on Using Clearasil Daily Clear Hydra-Blast Oil Free Face Wash

The goal of acne treatment is to help balance your skin and reduce oil production. If your child has mild to moderate acne, you should try using Clearasil Daily Clear Hydra-Blast Oil Free Face Wash. The face wash is dermatologist tested and it contains salicylic acid. It is gentle enough to reduce your acne symptoms in as little as 4 weeks to keep your skin feeling clean and clear. You can use this face wash up to two or three times a day.  I highly suggest that you start using it once a day and to make sure that you don’t have a reaction first. The good thing about this face wash, it keeps working even after you wash your face.

My daughter and son started getting mild acne at the end of the summer because they were spending time outside. They both had white heads along their hairline and on their nose. As a mom, I wanted to teach them to take care of their acne before it was out of control. I don’t want them to have to deal with lifelong acne. My daughter has been using the Face Wash once or twice a day on her face for several weeks and I have noticed that most of her acne has gone away. (see her before and after photo above) She usually washes her face in the morning if she has time and again in the evening after she takes off her make-up.

I also wanted to try this product on my face as well because I have suffered from acne most of my adult life. I even went to the dermatologist several years ago and have tried quite a few over the counter products without any success. I have to brag about this face wash.  Since, I have been using it I have noticed a major reduction in my own acne symptoms. I have only been using it for two weeks. Normally most of the products that I have tried in the past have dried out my skin and make it burn. I would end up ditching the products after several uses. This cleanser doesn’t dry out my skin and leaves it feeling soft. I am currently using it once a day and it is working well to control my acne.

Dealing with Breakouts Can Be Embarrassing

As a teenager, I always hated having breakouts. It never failed because acne flare-ups usually happened at the most inconvenient time ie dance, prom, awards ceremony, day of a presentation, etc. I got fairly lucky and didn’t have a major problem with acne until after my older son was born. For me it is very embarrassing to have a breakout and to walk around with acne scars on my face. Over the years, I have had some of the very painful acne and I noticed that the only time that my face used to clear up fully was when I was on a strong antibiotic for some other type of infection.

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Does your tween or teenager deal with mild or moderate acne? If so, how does your child treat their acne?