The Ultimate Guide to a Beach-Body without Acne

It's Friday night. Summer is in a full bloom, and your friend just called about this great beach party tomorrow. Instead of being excited, you get that sinking feeling...and the only think you can think about is how you're going to handle taking your shirt off with all of those pimples on your body.  

Body acne is similar to facial acne in both symptoms and general treatment rules, but it may be more difficult to control and get rid of, and therefore will require some special attention. Body acne is most commonly found on the back (and is also sometimes called "bacne"), chest and neck but blemishes can appear anywhere with exception of the feet and palms. Back and body acne affects both men and women, teens and adults, but body acne is much more common, and often more severe, in males.  

Most often, acne begins on the face. As acne progresses in range and severity, it begins to affect other areas of the body as well. Not everyone with acne will experience breakouts on the body, but those with body acne nearly always have acne on their face as well.  Like the face, the back and torso have more sebaceous glands per square inch than other areas of the body, so the hair follicles are more likely to become plugged with excess sebum and dead skin cells - the same factors that trigger facial acne: overactive oil glands, excess dead skin cells, and a proliferation of acne-causing bacteria. Sebum and dead skin cells become trapped within the follicle, or pore, and create a blockage. This blockage becomes a blackhead and may progress to a pimple if bacteria invade the clogged pore and start the inflammatory cascade.

So how do you get that ultimate beach body and not have to worry about taking your shirt off?

• A Shower a Day Keeps the Pimples at Bay. Since sweat can also irritate body acne, this is of particular interest to the guys who play sports and work out. To minimize irritation initiated by sweating, shower as soon as possible after exercising. Do not scrub the skin, even with a loofa or body puff. Simply use your hands or a soft washcloth to cleanse your skin. Remember, you want to avoid friction and irritating your skin.  A thorough, but gentle cleansing - preferably with moisturizing cleansers and with dabs of witch-hazel and a chamomile astringent - is better than a vigorous scrubbing.

Showering is especially important for people with acne mechanica, a type of acne caused by heat and friction. This type of acne breakout is quite prevailing in athletes that wear thigh uniforms but may also occur under headbands, backpacks or bike helmets. It is essential that those whose lifestyle includes those risk factors shower immediately and thoroughly after athletic activities.  

• Dress For Success. Since sweat and rubbing the skin may cause more abrasions followed by more inflammation, your "dress code" should focus more on looser garments, and more "breezy," natural fabrics. Also, change your clothes whenever you sweat, and try not to use shoulder bags or backpacks if you have back or shoulder acne.

• Eat your way to clear skin. Even though there is no scientific evidence that food CAUSES over secretion of sebum, we know that a wrong diet may make acne worse. Food rich in "good fats", fish oil and antioxidants, low in sugar and carbs (watch that beer intake!) and free of grease and excessive spicing will help to keep your skin in better shape. Drink plenty of water and avoid sugary drinks too. Excessive alcohol consumption is also bad for your skin as alcohol is a diuretic and will dehydrate your skin, and may increase peeling and inflammation.

• Control Stress. Easier said than done, yes, we know. Stress may worsen your acne as it affects the hormone production. When you are stressed, your adrenal glands produce more cortisol that, in addition to mobilizing your bodily functions to deal with stress, also stimulates the production of more androgens, which affects the sebaceous glands and their sebum production.   We know that a stress free life is not a reality, but you can control the level and duration of stress at least to the certain extent. Exercise, a healthy sexual life, a good night's sleep (minimum 6 hours per night) and hobbies are just some of the effective ways to reduce stress. 

• The Safe and Not-So-Safe Treatments. Unfortunately, the current common treatment rationale for treating acne is focused on the treatment of existing pimples rather than on preventing acne pimples from forming, which represents the ideal treatment approach. This particular point was cited in the most recent guidelines from the American Association of Acne and Rosacea, which emphasizes that the prevention of "microcomedones" (precursor to pimples on the surface of the skin) is critical in the treatment of acne. 

So do you use topical over-the-counter creams, gels or lotions containing the popular salicylic acid, or prescriptive retinoids and topical and systemic antibiotics or selected oral contraceptives (OC)? If so, you will ONLY address the symptoms of acne (mostly growth of bacteria) and may temporarily reduce inflammation (with OC's, you will also temporarily change your hormone levels), but rarely will you get rid of acne for good. Additionally, with most of those products, you also pick up a lot of possible adverse effects such as amplified sun sensitivity, stomach and GI issues, penicillin resistant bacteria and even potential blood clots (some OC's) and counter-indication for pregnancy.    

Finally, and unfortunately, the only prescriptive drug that impacts the production of sebum is Isotretinoin (known under the brand of Accutane or its generics), which has been a subject of class action suit for its severe side effects and is only recommended as a last resort for most severe or refractory acne.

AcnEase® is a botanical product that has all the essential ingredients needed to help return sebaceous glands to a "normal" state of not over-producing sebum, and PREVENTS ACNE PIMPLES from coming without side effects and health hazards. It is also gluten, sugar, and phytoestrogens free and is clinically validated for its efficacy and safety.

With a promise of clear skin,
Dr. A