I don't know what to do anymore. I'm 27 years old and have had acne since I was 13. It basically destroyed my social life. But anyways...
I'm very thankful that my acne isn't nearly as bad as it was when I was younger, but it still hurts my confidence. My problem is I will get whiteheads around my mouth and chin constantly. There are some periods where my face looks perfectly clear and free of whiteheads, and I wish I knew why this is so I could keep it that way.
So I'll have those clear periods, but a majority of the time I'll have whitheads popping up. It's always around my mouth/lips and chin. I use Jason toothpaste, so no SLS. I can't figure it out. I dont use a cleanser anymore (Which helped my face overall as far as redness) and I use Paula's choice bha. I also exfoliate weekly. I can't seem to get these damn things under control.
It has been pretty bad recently and the only thing I've done differently is eat more apples. I would hate to think that apples cause whiteheads, but apparently they are high in fructose so they could be making it worse.
It's not my shaving cream, toothpaste, or any other product I'm using that is causing my whiteheads (I've experimented over and over to make sure), so I'm not sure what else it could be. From my research it seems that acne around the mouth and chin area is hormonal, so I recently purchased some zinc to help balance my hormones.
Any other ideas? I feel that exfoliation helps tremendously in keeping these under control, but I really haven't found anything that isn't irritating. The best I've found so far is a plain old washcloth, but I'm always looking for better ideas. I've tried microfiber towels and while they feel more gentle when I'm using them, my face feels irritated after.
I would appreciate any input. Thanks.
hmmmm, I don't know what the cause would be, aside from the same stuff that causes acne in general, but I would say, in my opinion, that the exfoliation is probably doing more harm than good. I think you might want to stop manual exfoliation and go with an aha lotion over your 2.5% benzoyl peroxide. I stopped all manual exfoliation and it's made quite a difference.
Is it definitely acne and not a food-related rash? I have a friend who gets a rash around his lips whenever he eats mango
the thing that has made the biggest positive difference for me is following the regimen. I use store brand products: cetaphil gentle cleanser, neutrogena on the spot, and alpha hydrox enhanced lotion. after three months of this, my skin is clearer than it's been in many years, and I no longer get hormonal outbreaks.
hope this helps!