Acne care dos and don’ts For swollen pimples, gently apply ice for a minute or so. It doesn’t work for everyone, but there’s no harm in trying. Just don’t keep the ice on so long that it irritates your skin. Don’t squeeze When a whitehead seems to beckon, “Squeeze me,” it’s best to resist. If you squeeze pimples, they take longer to heal, and you raise your risk of infection and scarring. An opened-up pimple is also harder to cover with makeup because you’re dealing with a ragged surface instead of a smooth one. Apply a sulfur-based cream Look for over-the-counter acne remedies with benzoyl peroxide or sulfur and resorcinol that can reduce your blemish. You may not get immediate or dramatic results, though. Acne treatments may dry or irritate the skin. Check with your dermatologist before combining products or using more than the product label recommends. Don’t apply toothpaste Save the toothpaste for your teeth. Although some ingredients in toothpaste might help dry out pimples, toothpaste can trigger acne. To make matters worse, the fluoride and whitening ingredients could cause an allergic reaction when applied to the skin. Try tea tree oil Tea tree oil can kill bacteria. Some people use it to treat minor skin irritations, including acne. There isn’t much research on how effective it is, but tea tree oil is safe to put directly on your skin in a diluted form. Try it on a small area first to make sure you don’t have an allergic reaction. Be careful with facials Although facials, light chemical peels, and other spa treatments can sometimes improve acne, the results are not immediate. In the short term, your skin may look more irritated. A special occasion is not the time to try a new treatment. If you have a big event coming up, schedule your facial several weeks ahead. WebMD
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 11:00:03 +0000
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