Why Do I have Adult Acne?
As I drifted through my teen years I dreamed of the day when acne would no longer be an issue for me. I tried everything under the sun, from prescriptions to over the counter treatments and nothing seemed to help. I had come to believe that eventually someday I would have to grow out of it, and until that day, I would just have to deal with it.
Flash forward 8 years, and you guessed it, my journey with acne hasn’t gotten any easier. As all my friends have grown and really blossomed into their clear, perfect skin, I have continued the struggle. I still experience breakouts and painful cystic acne… you know the kind that you can feel coming in days before they even show up? Yeah, those. So why do adults still struggle with acne, and should they use a different approach to treating acne than teens?
Causes of Acne
There are 3 main reasons why you get acne, whether you’re a teen or an adult, it doesn’t matter. The first comes from your family tree. Did your parents have acne, oily skin or larger than life pores? If they struggled with it, chances are you will to. So call mom, thank her for that giant pimple on your forehead, and let your children know what they have to look forward to. Kidding, sort of.
Another factor that contributes to acne in both teens and adults is your hormone levels. As if being a teen isn’t awkward enough, your hormones are surging and that imbalance often causes embarrassing breakouts. The good news is many find they experience less breakouts into their adult years because their hormone levels have finally evened out. However, women often see issues with acne well into their adult years due to surging hormones during pregnancies and with the starting and stopping of birth control.
Lastly, you might be experiencing breakouts because you are not taking good care of your skin. Natural oils on your skin mix with dead skin cells and other bacteria which can clog your pores. If you go to bed with makeup on your face or don’t wash off after a workout, then you aren’t taking as much time as you should to care for your skin, and it’s likely lashing out because of it.
I know it doesn’t seem like there is a rhyme or reason to why you might still be struggling with acne well into your 40’s, but acne is an inflammation of a pore and your bodies way of telling you something isn’t right. Listen to the warning signs and take the proper steps to get your skin clear and healthy again.
Acne Treatment
Both teens and adults can benefit from a daily skin care regimen that works for their individual skin type, and should include cleansing once to twice daily. Unlike teens, adults need to be more careful with their cleansing routine because as your skin ages, it loses moisture and is harder to retain it. This means some acne treatments you used as a teen might be too strong and over-drying as you get older. You will need to look for more gentle formulas and incorporate a moisturizer into the mix to keep your skin glowing and happy. And if topical treatments have never worked for you, then maybe it’s time to consider other alternatives like vitamins and treat your acne from within.
Find out how TrueClear is helping other adults like you treat their acne...
