Acne Awareness Month: Dispelling Acne Myths

June is acne awareness month. As it is something I have had a personal struggle with I wanted to dedicate an entire post to helping our community understand acne better. 

Acne is a very common skin concern and we wouldn't be surprised if you have experienced it yourself or know someone close to you who has trouble with it. It affects over 80% of people in their lifetime, typically arising in adolescence but often affecting women right into their adulthood. About half of women between the ages of 20-29 experience adult onset acne, and over a quarter of those aged 40-49. Adolescent acne is more common in men (61%), while post-adolescent acne is more common in women (69%).

Sadly, acne is often dismissed as a cosmetic concern, when it is truly a medical condition that can be associated with significant psychological distress, self-image issues, and anxiety.  If left unmanaged it can lead to residual scarring.  All of this can significantly impact quality of life.

This week let us help you to understand what acne is and dispel some myths that we hear time and time again about managing acne prone skin.

What is acne?

Acne is a chronic inflammatory disease of the pilosebaceous (hair and oil glands) units in our skin. Acne can be mild to severe, and the spots themselves may appear in different forms. There may be blackheads, whiteheads, pustules or deeper cysts. Comedonal acne (whiteheads and blackheads) is more prevalent in adolescents, while cystic acne is seen more often in adults.

What causes acne?

There are four mechanisms in the skin that lead to acne forming in the skin.

1. Overproduction of sebum (oil) in the oil gland. This process is often hormonally driven.

2. Increased oil production leads to our skin cells becoming "sticky", thus obstructing the pore.

3. We believe the strain of bacteria that lives on our skin known as P.acnes is hyperactive in acne prone skin. The blocked pore leads to an overgrowth in bacteria.

4. Our immune system reacts to the growth of bacteria, causing inflammation in the skin

The most common areas we experience acne are our face, chest and back. Typically hormone sensitive oil glands are more densely populated in these regions.

Myths we wish to dispel

1.     Acne can be cured by cleansing.

While cleansing is an essential part of every skincare routine, a gentle cleanser is best suited in this case to help balance out the delicate inflamed skin. We often recommend and active cleanser and a gentle cleanser to help maintain this balance.

2.     Acne skin types needs to be treated with very harsh ingredients.

Acne skin is already inflamed and thus sensitive to more inflammation. It needs to be treated with care so as to maintain a healthy skin barrier. We incorporate active ingredients slowly and mindfully so as not to tip the skin into irritation. This is particularly true for female adult-onset acne where the skin is already more sensitive.

3.     Moisturiser should not be used.

Hydration is vitally important to help support the health of your skin barrier while it is battling inflammation. There are plenty of acne suitable options available.

4.     SPF will only make it worse.

Au contraire, sunscreen is essential for acne prone skin as with any skin. It helps to reduce the free radicals in the skin and thus reduces the inflammatory burden. Acne prone skin already has less of its own antioxidant levels so this support is essential. SPF also reduces post inflammatory marks. Interestingly, a recent study showed a positive acne fighting benefit of certain sunscreen filters on P.acnes populations. (more on this soon).

5.     Supplements will cure my acne.

This is what we know; Zinc is helpful. An antioxidant rich diet with omega 3s is supportive. Reduced high glycaemic foods may alleviate the hormonal drive in some people. Being mindful of dairy intake can be helpful. Beyond this we are unsure. What we recommend is a balanced, plant filled Mediterranean type diet for all as it is known to be beneficial for your health. When it comes to supplements if your budget allows, they may indeed help a little, but the evidence isn’t conclusive at this point.

Keep an eye out for our next blog post where we outline some of the helpful ingredients to add to your routine and why they can be useful in tackling acne and restoring the balance in your skin.