The New Face of Acne Care

Acne, a common yet unwelcome visitor especially to our teens, is caused by blocked pores in the skin. No one knows why these pores get blocked and why some people have severe problems while others show no signs or symptoms of this dreaded "teen" disease.
In normal skin, Sebum (oil) normally drains to the surface. With acne, since the pores are blocked, this sebum is trapped below the surface and bacteria can form in the trapped glands.
There are two basic types of acne - inflammatory and non-inflammatory.
In non-inflammatory acne, pimples (microcomedones) can exhibit as either whiteheads or blackheads.
With whiteheads, the sebum stays below the surface but pushes it up. Blackheads are formed when a small amount of the oil breaks through the skin then turns black due to the reaction of the melanin in the skin with oxygen.

When there is a break in the wall surrounding a hair, white blood cells rush in and create inflammation. A red bump called a papule is born. Papules can be quite small, or they can be large and be very tender. The papule may remain beneath the surface and ultimately heal, or it can break through the skin and become a pustule.
Pustules are formed usually several days after a papule is discovered. They are caused by white blood cells that make their way to the surface of the skin to help fight off the infection.
This is what people usually refer to as a "zit" or a "pimple".
Acne can become even more complicated and painful in many people if the zit becomes infected and the inflamed lesion completely collapses or explodes, severely inflaming the surrounding skin, and sometimes overrunning and involving neighboring follicles. These lesions are called nodules or cysts.
As you can see, acne is more than just a few pimples. It is a recognized disease state. However, there are MANY myths and tales surrounding acne. We will examine some of these the next post.