Im 14 years old and Ive had mild to no acne for a couple years and over the summer it got very bad. Now really the only place I have a lot of pimples is on my cheeks. I use a very gentle cleanser as well as burts bees moisturizer. During the day I use a BB cream from lumene that helps cover it up but still redness and bumps still show through. I get depressed a lot but when I'm at school I really have no way to hide myself because Im friends with everybody and everyone talks to me even if I dont know them haha. Anybody have any idea what I can do to improve my skin? Thanks
Yep, see a derm!
You're a handsome young man and are going to do well in high school socially.
If your skin is oily, don't use moisturizer. Use 98% Aloe instead (I like Jason brand, it has tea tree.)
And even if your cleanser is gentle doesn't mean it doesn't have things in it that your skin doesn't like. What's the brand? For example, I can't use Cetaphil, which is for sensitive skin, but gives me and others bad acne.
1. A dermatologist might prescribe a topical antibiotic. These are almost universally not super effective and can make matters worse. Hormonal acne is far less an issue of topical treatments. To try something stronger on your face, Panoxyl 5% once every other day for a month can help kill some surface acne bacteria. But hormonal acne is inside, so you have to address it there.
2. Next step are oral antibiotics. I took these most of my life. After many years, they cause more harm than good by destroying normal flora in your intestines, which impairs your ability to fight acne.
3. Try eliminating dairy and refined sugar from your diet completely. If you drink juice, only drink apple and in small quantities. Cheese and yogurt are fine, in moderation. Limit your fat intake and try to get most of your fat and protein from fish. Fast food and food fried in oils or smothered in butter or sauce are your enemy.
4. Take a good multi vitamin with 100% DVA of D and A, plus minerals zinc and magnesium.
5. ONLY SLEEP ON CLEAN PILLOWS, Lay a fresh towel over your pillow if you can't have a clean pillowcase every night.
6. NEVER pick, scrape, rub, touch, pop, or dig your acne with your nails, or washcloths that aren't freshly washed. This is how bacteria spreads and mild acne turns severe.
7. Try this for three months before trying Accutane.