I recently made a little video for my social media channels, and I thought it might be helpful to put it on the blog. I am a certified acne professional through Face Reality, and their training is amazing. I learned SO much about acne. Here are some very quick tips. If you're struggling with acne, I am here to help! More info about my Clear Skin Club here!
If you're suffering from inflamed acne, never use any exfoliator with a scrub, a face brush, a silicone vibrating face brush, or anything that causes friction. It will only irritate it more. You cannot scrub the acne away. Your skin needs gentle exfoliation only!
Dryness is your enemy. This one was the hardest to wrap my head around. I grew up stripping my skin with Sea Breeze and my cleanser and tanning beds to "dry the acne out"! Dryness is only going to make the inflammation worse and stall your clearing. You need to hydrate with non-pore clogging products.
Stay away from biotin if you have acne prone skin. It's a known pore clogger. It works well for some people, but if you've got acne prone skin and you're trying to clear, it's best to stay away! I've tried to use it countless times for my hair and nails, and I instantly break out.
Try switching to a salt without iodine. Iodides are pore cloggers. I use Redmond Real Salt and I absolutely love it! It tastes much better than regular table salt, and it's acne safe. I always get mine at Cleta's Health on Godfrey Road, I love supporting local businesses!
Check your current face products for pore cloggers! Comedogenicity is not regulated. A company can make the claim "non comedogenic" but still contain pore clogging ingredients. There is an app called Acne-Safe where you can copy and paste the ingredients of your products to see if they're really acne safe!
"Ice" your inflamed acne! Don't put ice directly on your face, but use a facial ice mask, an ice roller (gently, and slowly)(I sell these in my studio, and at A&A Boutique in Alton), or simply a plastic dixie cup with a bit of frozen water in the bottom. Ice for a couple of minutes in the morning and the evening. It's extremely important and really helps with inflamed acne! If you have non-inflamed acne, no need for this step!
Say no to Dairy.
Dairy is terrible for you and your acne. If you're using milk in your coffee, try a non dairy milk alternative, like almond or coconut milk! Dairy causes a lot of inflammation in your body, even if you don't have an intolerance.
I hope this helps in some way! I have a lot more tips and tricks up my sleeve! Again, if you're struggling with acne, check out my Clear Skin Club! Acne clients are my favorite and I would LOVE to help you!