How hormones affect zits and skin

Implicated in a wide range of conditions and illnesses, hormones also play a role in the development of acne - inflammation of the skin that causes blackheads, whiteheads, and red spots usually called "pimples" or "zits." Androgens, hormones that are secreted in different amounts by both men and women, play a huge role in most cases of acne. Androgens stimulate the hormone-sensitive sebaceous glands, which produce oil known as sebum. Sebum, in turn, has been labeled as "the fuel that feeds the flame of acne."

Due to the presence of androgens, your oil glands go into overdrive. They produce extra oil, which block your follicles and clump together with the dead skin cells on the top layer of your skin. When this sticky mixture works its way into your pores, it acts just like a cork in a bottle -- trapping oil and bacteria inside. Unfortunately, your oil glands cannot determine when to stop so they keep producing oil thus making the follicle swollen. Your body's natural defense system -- white blood cells -- rush to the area to produce an enzyme that damages the wall of the follicle, allowing the contents of the follicle to enter the dermis. This process causes an inflammatory response that results in either red, painful bumps (papules); blackheads and whiteheads (comedones); pimples or acne. Contrary to common belief, this condition has nothing to do with what you eat, or how often you wash your face.

Dermatologists point out that dietary factors neither cause nor cure acne. In almost all cases, the food you eat has almost nothing to do with your acne, except for those containing iodine and muscle-enhancing steroids. If you ingest a large amount of iodine like mineral pills, your acne will likely flare up. Steroids have also been known to cause a type of acne referred to as steroid acne.

Hormones affect acne but having acne is not a sign of a hormonal imbalance. Changes in hormones, such as the specific point in your menstrual cycle (ovulation vs. having your period), pregnancy, or menopause all are normal, yet all can cause dramatic changes in your skin condition.

Female hormone levels change and vary throughout the monthly cycle. These fluctuations do cause acne to flare and diminish depending on the time of the month. The most effective way to treat menstrual cycle acne is to treat the acne itself by applying topical medications, oral antibiotics, or even changing or adjusting a birth control pill since the hormones found in these contraceptives are also related to flare-ups of acne.

Several symptoms can help your dermatologist identify hormonally-influenced acne: adult-onset acne, or breakouts that appear for the first time in adults; acne flare-ups preceding the menstrual cycle; a history of irregular menstrual cycles, increased facial oiliness; Hirsutism (excessive growth of hair, or hair in unusual places); and elevated levels of certain androgens in the blood stream.

Technorati tags :Acne Treatment Acne Acne-Treatment Acne Care Acne Solution Cosmetics Skin Care Adult Acne Acne Care Acne Medication successful acne treatment

# posted by successful acne scar treatment : 9:32 AM  0 comments

The importance of dealing with Acne to avoid permanent scarring

Although it cannot be known for sure, there’s good reason to believe that none of the millions of people who have suffered or are suffering from acne has refrained from picking open or squeezing their pimples. In fact it seems to be one of the most common actions among those people whose faces or bodies are covered with unpleasant-looking red spots. It is also one of the worst possible ideas. Pimples should never be squeezed or picked open by you. This is a job for a doctor and to be performed only if he deems it necessary. The main reason is that a pimple that has been squeezed or picked open is practically an invitation to every bacteria around to enter your body and cause an infection through the tiny opening in your skin. If you think the danger is negligible, you’re wrong.

At the very least your action is a sure way of causing future pimples to emerge in the same spot. Most likely, by tampering with your pimples in less than sterile conditions will result in permanent scarring, as the damaged skin closes around the gaping hole formerly known as a pimple. While I may seem to joke about it, let me assure you that this issue is very important. I know that it’s very hard to resist the temptation to squeeze your pimples in an attempt to eliminate at least the worst of them, but you should try as hard as you can to resists.

Believe me, you don’t want to spend the rest of your life with the scars of past acne flare-ups crisscrossing your face. This is why it’s very important to deal with acne in a decisive manner and prevent the emergence of pimples. The best way of taking care of your problem is to use an acne treatment that can really help your body put an end to basic cause of acne: widespread clogging of pores. The best acne solution around is the ClearPores Skin Cleansing System, the three-part system that takes care of acne both from the inside and the outside and prevents future flare-ups. Try it and you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

Technorati tags :Acne Treatment Acne Acne-Treatment Acne Care Acne Solution Cosmetics Skin Care Adult Acne Acne Care Acne Medication successful acne treatment

# posted by successful acne scar treatment : 9:20 AM  0 comments

A Wrinkleless Existence

In the tradition of the “fountain of youth,” and the more modern human growth hormones, another miracle cure for aging has been discovered. In this regard, we need to ask ourselves the big blunt question: “Why do we have to cure aging?” With the countless measures with which man has come up in the recent decades, one would think aging is some vile disease from which we have to protect ourselves. Indeed, upon reading about these anti-aging measures, I realized that through the years, man has steadily replaced the attitude of treating age as a source of wisdom, to treating it with discomfort and even fear. Of course, the flipside also offers some valid arguments. I mean, hey, who wouldn’t want to stay young and beautiful forever?

With man’s technological advancement, various cosmetic treatments have sprouted proclaiming to reverse the manifestations of aging. The most popular of these treatments are the surgical procedures. This latter method is probably the reason why Hollywood suddenly became replete with unrealistically beautiful people. Movies and television shows began to showcase a world of perfect, skinny, smooth-skinned “regular” people. The problem with this is the tiny fact that real “regular” people have to save years of paychecks in order to achieve such glorious transformations.

Because of surgery’s financial inaccessibility, new, more natural, and cheaper anti-aging measures have been developed. One such measure in anti-aging medicine’s vast collection is the Perricone System. This was instituted by Dr. Nicholas Perricone and contained in his book The Perricone Prescription. Basically, the Perricone program consists of a stringent dietary regimen that is guaranteed to remove the manifestations of aging, such as wrinkles, flabby body sections and sagging skin. According to the strict diet Dr. Perricone “recommended”, protein is the key ingredient in the body’s anti-aging arsenal. Protein, as we all know, is the source of our body’s cellular building blocks, which helps in the regeneration of damaged body tissues. Thus, it is easy to perceive its benefits to anti-aging.

The reason for the high-protein intake is the fact that all the hassles of aging are rooted to what Perricone calls “inflammation.” This phenomenon is brought by years of unhealthy lifestyle, poor diet, stress and artificial cosmetic treatments, and is actually the primary cause of undesirable aging. This implies, of course, that along with protein, a person under the Perricone regimen must also remove unhealthy habits, such as smoking, lethargy, alcohol and even the all-important coffee. I guess yuppies like me must now resort to other methods of inducing productivity in the wee hours of the morning.

The Perricone plan’s high protein diet must include a substantial ration of fish and eggs, which are the most popular sources of protein. More specifically, Perricone recommended that we start our day with a breakfast of four eggs with three of the yolks removed. For the rest of the day, fish, preferably salmon, must be the dominant element in every meal. Perricone also prescribed a healthy dose of berries, cantaloupe or macadamia nuts and lots of spring water. Probably the most important feature of Perricone’s diet is its heavy restraint on chocolates, potatoes, butter, past and pizza, every single one of which are daily staples for people who are too busy to prepare complicated daily menus.

The diet, when accompanied with his exercise and skin maintenance programs, would result in noticeable changes in as early as three days. It does sound like magic, doesn’t it?

While part of my brain is rebelling against the restriction of coffee and chocolates and all the other “good things in life,” another part raced through the chapter titles like “It Gets Worse,” which made vampires and werewolves from the food in which I previously indulged. For quite a while, I began to stay away from the junk food section of the supermarket, with Perricone’s words buzzing in my head. With all the allusions to Carbohydrate monsters, it became difficult to eat pizza. However, with my diminishing bank balance, I realized that Perricone’s diet presented various difficulties. The main problem with Perricone’s treatment plan is the fact that the recommended protein-rich diet is not only difficult to live on, but also quite expensive and inaccessible. Local grocery stores would not normally have heaps of macadamia nuts, blueberries and cantaloupes waiting for people in every corner. Moreover, as I recently and with some regret, found out, salmons are not very easy on the budget. As I mentioned earlier, surgery has never really been accessible to persons with low to medium income. While Perricone’s diet is inexpensive compared to these surgical procedure, it would still make quite a huge dent on people’s long-term savings.

Nevertheless, I began to search for cheaper alternatives to Perricone’s plan because I was trying to convince myself that it still offered more practical, and more painless, solutions than the countless cosmetic surgeons’ artistic aptitudes. Compared to being sliced open, I realized that a harmless dietary regimen is a very attractive option. Moreover, to appease my rebellion against the restriction of my favorite poisons, I began to consistenly remind myself that youth and beauty must come with some sort of sacrifice. In fact, giving up chocolates and coffee for tasteless egg whites does not really seem such a huge sacrifice. Perricone did say that we should never venture far from his recommended food. This, of course carries the implication that we may make the venture as long as it is not far. Then again, maybe I’m just rationalizing.

Technorati tags :Acne Treatment Acne Acne-Treatment Acne Care Acne Solution Cosmetics Skin Care Adult Acne Acne Care Acne Medication successful acne treatment

# posted by successful acne scar treatment : 9:17 AM  1 comments