Oily, acne prone skin dos and don'ts

I had oily skin for many years and came up with this list of dos and don'ts with oily, acne prone skin. Oily acne prone skin is one of the hardest skin types to care for because of excessive oil production on the face and constant breakouts. A lot of people have the wrong idea of how to manage acne prone skin which will make the problem worse. Anyways, here is the list and I hope it will help out others with oily, acne prone skin.


Do wash your face twice a day, once in the morning and once before going to bed with a suitable face wash designed for oily or acne prone skin. Twice, no more no less.

Do use foundation with oil production control and acne treating ingredients.

Do use a deep cleaning mask once a week to properly clean out the pores and any dirt, oil left on your face.

Do use products from Neutrogena which is gentle on the skin but tough on acne (I know it sounds like I am promoting their products, but Neutrogena does actually work. In fact, my skin is both acne prone and sensitive, Neutrogena is one of the best brands out there for my case at least.)

Do carefully choose your makeup and skin care products and make sure they are non-comedogenic (do not clog pores).

Do use a light moisturizer when you have combination skin.

Don't wash your face when you feel excessive oily, stick with the twice a day routine that I mentioned above. Over washing will cause excessive oily production which will make your acne prone skin even more likely to have acne.

Don't use oil blotting papers. Your face will compensate for "oil loss" by producing even more oil and faster.

Don't use cosmetics that are full coverage but not designed for oily or acne prone skin. This can cause really bad breakouts because your pores are clogged. Again, look for non-comedogenic.

Don't use a harsh soap bar for washing your face.

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What to expect from Accutane, Roaccutane, Isotretinoin (deriviative of vitamin A, most effective prescription acne medicine)

If you suffered from severe acne that would almost disfigure your face, chances are that you have heard about the prescription medicine that is a derivative of vitamin A, Accutane or Roaccutane or Isotretinoin. I had suffered from moderate to severe acne all over my face at one point. And Accutane definitately "tamed" my acne for the most part. It didn't get rid of it completely, but made it much more managable.


You will have to suffer from moderate to severe acne before the dermatologist is willing to prescribe it for you. Most dermatologists here in the United States will only prescribe it to you when all other treatments and medicine failed So, it might take a while for you to get the medicine. If the doctor still refuses to prescribe this medicine to you, you should seek another doctor in your network that is willing to prescribe it to you.

Because the drug has some undesirable side affects, the dermatologist will verify with you about your medical history. If you are a woman, they would want to do a pap smear and check for pregnancy. No pregnant woman should take the medicine as Accutane causes severe birth defects. The doctor would also want to know about what other medicine you are currently taking. When everything checks out, they will most likely prescribe Accutane for six months.

Once you start taking the medicine, a lot of people experience side affects and clearing of the skin at the same time. You will notice that you face is a lot less oily and pores are visibly getting smaller. What I noticed with my course is that my blackheads all disappeared. This has never happened in my life before. Anyone suffering from oily skin usually cannot successfully get rid of their blackheads no matter what they use. But Accutane is extremely effective at controlling the amount of oil production on the face. Accutane dissolves in animal fat so you will have to eat some fatty foods for it to properly work. It worked almost instantly for me as I noticed less oil production and a decrease of the new pimples. By the time that I finished my course, people with really good skin commented on how nice my skin is.

Here are the side affects that you will experience over the course of accutane treatment. Everyone experiences very dry lips that cracks and bleeds. You will have to find a very good lip balm to keep your lips in okay condition (re-apply throughout the day). Some people experience joint pains due to the drug as well. While on the drug, the dermtologist would require you to do some blood work to test liver functions. It is important to stop drinking while on the drug because you don't want to add extra burden on the liver. There are very few people that suffers from severe side affects which include serious damage to the skin. You must carefully consider your situation and decide for yourself if accutane if worth a try.

I experienced almost instanteous results from taking accutane. My acne was so bad that it seems like nothing will ever work; so many pimples and redness made me desperate. Within a week of taking accutane, I noticed that there are no new pimples and my older ones are healing as well. By the end of my course, my skin was almost perfect and even my blackheads are gone. Ever since I finished the course of Accutane, I get very few pimples that disappear within a few days. Nowadays, I am older and my acne is pretty much a thing of the past with my acne skin care routine and products that I have been using. I am actually happy that I took the drug because I didn't have a lot of side affects other than very dry lips. My skin is near perfect and I am sure it would not be possible without Accutane.

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Another Effective Acne Skin Care Routine

In my previous post, I talked about my own acne skin care routine which worked very well for my skin and kept constantly inflamed acne under control. But you will have to understand that my acne skin care routine does not work for everyone and every skin type. I am here to talk about another very effective acne skin care routine that worked very well for my co-worker and kept his skin acne free for many years. There is no one medicine that takes care of every problem; one will have to spend the time to try different products or combination to find one that will effectively keep their skin in good conditions.

Here are the products that he uses: Proactiv renewing cleanser, Proactiv revitalizing toner, Proactiv repairing treatment, Proactiv refining mask, and Proactiv green tea moisturizer. I believe he purchase all of these products in a package called Proactiv Plus Total Solution. This package is very effective with those with very oily skin. We all know that excessive oil production on the face causes lots of breakouts. He told me that this package from Proactiv controls the amount of oil on the face. Here is how he uses it: the renewing cleanser, revitalizing toner and repairing treatment is used twice a day, once in the morning and once at night. The refining mask is usually used once a week in the winter because he is not as oily in the winter. In the summer, the refining mask is used twice a week for deep cleaning. And the Proactiv green tea moisturizer is uesd once every three days or so.

Even with this acne skin care routine, he still gets one or two pimples every once in a while. But it is so much more manageable than before. Anyone that is affected by moderate to severe acne knows that big pimples are extremely red, painful and takes a week or longer for it to heal. Now he get small pimples once in a while that is much easier to take care of. I had told him that Neutrogena's benzoyl peroxide on the spot treatment and his acne disappears in a day or two. What a difference the Proactiv Plus Total Solution has made on his skin. This acne skin care routine works really well for those with extremely oily, oily or combination skin.

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Lupus and Snoop Dogg: An Unlikely Spokesperson?

In the July 19 issue of People Magazine, I was surprised (and happy) to see an article profiling Snoop Dogg called "Lupus United Our Family". His daughter was diagnosed with Lupus five years ago (when she was six years old).

Lupus is a chronic autoimmune condition that can damage any part of the body (skin, joints, and/or internal organs). The condition cycles through remissions (symptoms improve) and flares (symptoms worsen). There are several types of Lupus and its severity can vary from person to person.

According to research cited by the Lupus Foundation of America:

-At least 1.5 million Americans have Lupus.
-Lupus strikes mostly women of childbearing age (15-44).
-Women of color are 2-3 times more likely to develop Lupus.

Celebrity spokespersons are widely used in public health education campaigns. Lance Armstrong and the fight against Cancer...Michael J. Fox and the fight against Parkinson's Disease. But we don't tend to hear about Lupus. The only public face that I remember in the last 10 years is Mercedes Yvette. She was a contestant in Cycle 2 of America's Next Top Model (2004). As the stress of the competition increased, viewers were able to see the toll it took on Mercedes. She was increasingly fatigued and her hair started falling out. We also caught a glimpse of her large pill organizer as the girls packed up for their trip to Italy. Mercedes went on to become a spokesperson for the Lupus Foundation of America.

Since then, I have only begun to hear about Lupus within the past two years. Just as the Snoop Dogg article came out, a microsite was launched on Oprah's website (July 15, 2010). The site with the tag line "Don't let Lupus sneak up on you" includes a self assessment and stories from patients who delayed diagnosis. Back in March 2009, a campaign called "Could I Have Lupus?" was also launched by the US Department of Health and Human Services. This is a more extensive site which includes diaries of women with Lupus and a discussion board.

In addition to these campaigns and websites educating the public about symptoms, I would encourage them to get celebrity spokespeople (like Snoop Dogg). They could reduce the stigma around help seeking for this condition and some of the daily struggles that can affect lifestyle (e.g., joint pain and sensitivity to sunlight). And of course, diagnosis is not as easy as knowing the symptoms (many of which are non-specific, like fatigue). Lupus is notoriously difficult to diagnose. So it can take time, money, and many doctors/tests to figure it out. It usually requires referral to a Rheumatologist to monitor the condition and medications properly. Will those reached by these campaigns have access to such resources? Raising awareness about symptoms and reducing stigma around help seeking to diagnosis is just the first step...but thanks to Snoop for speaking out!

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Acne Alternative Treatment - Tanning Booths Are Not Recommended

As teenagers, pimples and acne are high up on the list of things that cause great distress to them. Unfortunately, acne during puberty is something that some have to face - no thanks to the changing hormones in their developing body. Though there are others that are spared the headache of getting acne during puberty, the majority must go through this ordeal. Many teenagers try to deal with their acne problems by applying acne creams, while some go to the extreme by using tanning booths as a method of acne alternative treatment. The latter, however, is absolutely not recommended.

Trends come and go. While it was fashionable years ago to look pale, nowadays having a tan is the way to go for women. Tans have become increasingly popular in the last few decades and it helped trigger the mushrooming of tanning booths in the country. Some teenagers feel that they could hide their acne by getting a tan.

While this sounds silly, it does have some science backing. When the skin is exposed to sunlight, the melanin in the skin will trigger the color that resembles a tan. The production of melanin will temporary cancel out oil glands, which have been known to be the culprit behind acne. Also, blemishes and scars caused by acne would seem to disappear under a dark tan.

However, be warned that this treatment is not at all safe. Though having a tan might look fashionable, repeated usage of tanning booths and exposure to UV rays can result in greater problems than acne. Teenagers who are overexposed to tanning booths and UV rays will get more than just a tan - they could end up having orange complexion. This is a sign of damage to the epidermal layers of the skin. When you decide to have a tan to hide your acne, understand that you are not dealing with the core problem. The acne will still be there once the effect of the tan disappears.

Sometimes the acne problem would be so severe that no amount of tanning can hide it. Teenagers that are faced with this problem would usually end up with a lot of freckles and puffiness in the eye area. The multiple visits to the tanning booths could also increase the chance of getting skin cancer.

To conclude, understand that going to the tanning booths will not solve your acne problem -- as it may even cause far greater problems. Instead, consult with your dermatologist to get the best available treatment that is safe.

Helen Tanady has been writing articles, online and offline, for more than 4 years. This author often writes on health and fitness, dating, weight loss and fat loss related. Read her latest articles at hunter hepatech which explain and review about filtrete air filters.

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