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Disillusioned with acne products or procedures?

You are not alone. Millions have been burnt out on so-called acne cures.

The fact is there simply is no specific cure for acne because acne is not a disease.

So does that mean you are stuck with big bumps popping out of your face forever? No .. not by a long shot. Acne for the most part is the result of bacteria that finds an opening in the skin to invade.

Once it enters the skin it begins to multiply (colonize) creating an area of alert to the body's protective white cell army that sends billions of white cells to destroy the invader.

The result is that millions of white cells die in battle, which creates an inflamed swollen area of dead cells (pus). If the battle last too long it will push and spread to create an area of damaged skin cells creating a scar best known as a pockmark.

Of course, the medical profession has a list of terms to express each of these conditions but regardless of these technical terms, the end result is acne breakouts that can and will permanently damage your skin with small and large pockmarks.

HOW THE MEDICAL WORLD SEES ACNE

Acne has been around since the beginning of time. Therefore, the medical profession has had ample time and plenty of subjects of which to investigate the process of acne formation. Yet, to this day, the entire group of methods for ace control is still very basic.

ANTIBIOTICS: It makes sense that acne bacteria should respond to various antibiotics. In most cases, an antibiotic simply aids the body in identifying an intruder that activates the body's defense system to attack and destroy.

However the acne bacteria has had thousands and thousands of years to grow an intelligence that allows it to adapt (immune) its self against the antibiotic chemicals most often used. So the effectiveness of any one (or combination) of antibiotics are limited as to how long they will be able to help control the acne bacteria before it becomes ineffective as the acne bacteria adapts.

The results of antibiotics is that with each change the doctor prescribes you are building a stronger and stronger immune resistant acne bacteria that eventually becomes invincible to almost any form of acne remedy.

Keeping in mind that there really IS NO CURE for acne then it is easier to pick out what will work best and safest for you.

First, you need to eliminate any product that you might have an allergic reaction to. Which means you must know the ingredients that make up a medication. Many folks react to sulfur, acidic chemicals and some herbal products, which are commonly used in acne remedies.

Next, you will need to decide what is actually the main objective you are looking to overcome. Is your skin oily? Dry? Does it have major damage (scars and pockmarks)?

If you have oily skin then a product that creates a drying effect such as Pro Active, can be beneficial. If your skin is dry then you would want to avoid these types of products.

If you have skin damage then you might consider topical products that aid in healing of damaged skin cells such as Oxzit, oxygen based product.

In most circumstances, one of the main concerns is skin oil balance.

Although you could go back and forth with many types of products to attempt this balance the easiest way is to let nature take its natural course.

Meaning, don't do anything to cause the imbalance such as over-washing your face with soaps and cleansers that eliminate all the skin oils.

Why? Because this alerts your body that the skin oil protection is missing and triggers the body to increase skin oil production.

The added skin oil production means more pores will be forced open to bacterial invasion as the oils push to the surface. Resulting in more infected areas and more acne breakouts.

OVER-THE-COUNTER ACNE TREATMENTS:

These products are usually available over the counter from a pharmacy, some supermarkets and throughout the cyberworld. Creams, lotions and cleansers are used for mainly mild to moderate cases of acne.

Benzoyl peroxide is a common ingredient found in many over the counter acne treatments. It works by reducing the amount of P.acnes (acne causing bacteria) as well as removing dead skin cells, which prevent pores from becoming blocked. (Adverse effects is drying skin)

Salicylic acid is another ingredient found in over the counter products, it helps to correct abnormal shedding of skin cells as well as helping to unclog pores. Like, benzyl peroxide, it needs to be used continuously otherwise pores will become blocked when you stop using it.

Tea tree oil is a good natural antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiseptic and anti-microbial agent which can be purchased over the counter. It can either be applied directly to blemishes with a cotton bud or diluted with water and splashed over the face.

Molecular oxygen is a new acne-fighting agent that has two distinct advantages. It naturally destroys the P-acnes bacteria while providing natural oxygen to skin cells for faster tissue healing at the cellular level.

ELUSIVE BACTERIA

If there were anything that truly gives acne the edge, it would be its ability to adapt rapidly to almost any form of medication or antibiotic.

The "Propionibacterium Acnes" bacteria has the versatility to immune its self against most any form of medication in very short order. This makes most antibiotics ineffective after several treatments.

This results in continual changes in antibiotics being used until there are finally no available antibiotics that have any effect on the acne bacteria.

A recent medical report states that the "baby boomers" of today that are now in their 50's, 60's and 70's are all suffering from the overuse of antibiotics during their growing years.

Repeated use of antibiotics interfered with the development of natural antibodies while also causing various diseases to gain new strength as they adapted to the antibiotics.

So what is to be learned from this? That often we create our own problems by being too quick on the trigger in using medications instead of allowing the body to develop its own defense system.

The minute a simple pimple shows up, we begin to try various treatments that tend to backfire by increasing the power of the acne bacteria.

This forces us to try stronger and stronger remedies that only help the acne bacteria to become even stronger and more stubborn to eliminate.

Along with these vigorous treatments, we attempt to overcome the bacteria by over-washing and repeated cleansing of the face which eliminates the natural skin oils.

Again, this causes a backfire effect as the body senses the need for skin protection and increases the sebum (skin oil) production that forces open more pores to bacterial invasion.

So what is the real answer to overcoming acne breakouts?

Here are the absolute facts.

No one medication, method, product, diet, vitamin, herbal remedy or system is going to help everyone.

I repeat, "No one medication, method, product, diet, vitamin, herbal remedy or system is going to help everyone."

There are way too many variations of genetics, lifestyles and acne conditions to be controlled under one magical program.

That is why someone can swear to you that they found the only product that really works and yet it does absolutely nothing to help you.

It is extremely necessary for you to accept the fact that you are a total individual with little in common with any other acne sufferer.

Once you have done this, you can begin your quest to overcome your particular acne problem.

In addition, your first step should be to allow your body to do its miracle work first to see if it is able to overcome the problem as it develops its antibodies in defense of bacterial invasion.

Cut out the harsh soapy washings and use warm water to clean your face whenever possible. This helps to keep your skin oils in balance.

Maintain a quality diet so your body has all the necessary nutrients to build the healing blocks required to create a good defense system against the "Propionibacterium Acnes" bacteria.

Consume proper quantities of water daily. At least 8 glasses of water daily to help eliminate the buildup of body waste accumulated each day.

This is critical to the proper operation of your liver, which works to continually purify your body.

Schedule your days and nights so that you have adequate amounts of natural exercise along with quality times of rest.

Do not cheat on sleep. You will cause many problems doing so.

Probably the hardest part of all is to control your stress and anxieties. However, this too is extremely necessary to control the natural hormonal body balance that has a direct effect on skin oil (sebum) production.

And finally, test every product you use on your face individually to assure that it does not aggravate your acne situation.

If you follow the above steps and possibly add some milder safe acne remedy to help control bacterial buildup, you will more than likely see the clearing results that can make life bearable.

Don't expect miracles because they are just unlikely to happen.

Your system is prone to acne, which is why you are dealing with the problem. Whether it is from lifestyle, heredity or any of a 100 other reasons you must deal with the acne situation.

If you find a product that helps without causing side effects or future increased acne or other health problems then stick with it.

Do not bounce from remedy to remedy in hopes of the perfect cure. Controlling the breakouts to any degree is worth the effort. However, spending your money and time trying to find the Silver Bullet acne cure is only going to add to your frustrations.