I don't have acne (or haven't had serious acne since my last few years of high school, I'm now about to turn 24), but I did have mild/moderate acne (whiteheads primarily) concentrated especially in my T-Zone between the ages of 12 and 16. I also still deal with bacne, especially in the Summer. This is all anecdotal, so please take it all with a grain of salt.
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[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> My skin had cleared up considerably by age 16 or 17 - which was probably a combination of hormones (my entire body went through massive changes in early puberty, but the ones right at the end easily matched it), cutting out red meat, and washing my hair everyday. (I was actually completely veggie for a good 6 or 7 months. I still rarely, if ever, eat red meat, but I have introduced fish & poultry back into my diet). I know hairstylists and gurus are all about having the natural oils coating your hair scalp, but I had a very oily scalp and dealt with dandruff for a while. Exacerbated by very fine hair. Now, I can get away with going a couple of days, but during the week when I've used hair product, I do make sure to wash it probably more than average. While my acne was never cystic or serious, it did take a toll on my confidence and skin. One of the worst things I ever did - and which I'm probably still paying the price for - is going overboard, I have sensitive skin, and using astringents might've gotten rid of the acne, but I'm also convinced it also made any redness and dryness I have now, even worse. I notice my skin gets angry - clogged - even now, when I go too far with product. Harsh, abrasive 'acne control' cleansers do not work; it's been at least 3 or 4 years since I used a foaming cleanser, and my skin has cleared up considerably. Now, I just stick to lotion/milk cleansers (at night. LRP's Toleraine is one of my favourites for makeup removal, and Caudalie's Gentle Cleanser is another favourite in Winter), oil cleansers (if I've used foundation - Lancome's and Laneige's Moisturizing are my two standbys), and cleansing waters in the AM (w00t, Bioderma!). I think going too far with acne-prevention does double damage for my skin - dries it out, causes it to produce more oil, and then, I'm breaking out. The only acne product I have is generic Rx tretonin gel, for the odd time I break out around my period. I do
not use this everyday. Brands that have really helped have been the sensitive, pharmaceutical brands - the aforementioned Bioderma & LRP, as well as Avene. While I can use products from some other more commercial brands (Caudalie, Cetaphil moisturizers, Lancome, Clarins, Kibio), I really have to do my research. I also tend to stick with the products formulated for dry skin in these lines. The internet has truly been a great help. I also found it was impossible, when dealing with acne, to find a lot of acne-control lines that dealt with sensitive skin. Likewise, it's a bit annoying (even as someone with dry skin) to see all the cheaper, sensitive skin lines (Nivea, Olay) to assume that if you're sensitive, you must also be dry. Anywho, if you need more specifics, feel free to ask. And I apologize for the mountain of text...
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