Hey, I really wanted to reply to your post but wasn't sure if I should considering my Benzoyl Peroxide is a prescription based medicine.... But I guess here's my opinion.. Take it or leave it.... Wait that sounds mean... .. -_-

Anyways !.. I just turned 16 recently and have never used Benzoyl Peroxide for years because I went abroad and the skin specialists there used other ingredients...

I'm back in London and my GP prescribed me Duac which has Benzoyl Peroxide and Clindamycin Phosphate (an ingredient I LOVE )..

Now, my acne has DRAMATICALLY improved over the year and while in the waiting room I was worried she wouldn't really take my mild acne as seriously as I do. But I was surprised and glad she prescribed me Duac... Okay wait now I'm getting off topic....

ANYWAYS !.... Yes I believe that Benzoyl Peroxide is okay for even mild acne BUT you might need to take it every alternate day or if deciding to use it twice a day than just try it once a day for example at night and apply a good moisturiser in the morning.. Which by the way I will get to referring that...(not a doctor obviously but I believe it's common sense that one should be VERY careful when using Benzoyl Peroxide)

But may I recommend that you use it VERY thinly and gently... Try and see if that works... Cause if your pimples aren't really bad it MIGHT work with a kind of spot treatment procedure with the BP ....... ???

It's basically a trial thing in the end... If you feel it's REALLY bad... And I mean worse than the symptoms mentioned that BP causes than please do STOP IMMEDIATELY to prevent long term damage......

You mentioned that you hardly ever...like never?...... Get acne on your cheeks?... Than there really isn't a need to apply BP there cause it will just excessively dry and peel your skin for no reason !.... Right....

I believe Neutrogena oil free daily moisturiser is good..... Cetaphil daily moisturiser is even better... But I personally was prescribed Doublebase gel.... Which i still have to test try... Just thought I'd mention it...... Considering my Doc gave it to me to combat the dry, itchy and redness that Duac will cause to my skin !

Yes at this age it is hormonal... But seriously ? That is SO NOT a reason why we shouldn't apply treatments to our acne.... We understand that the pimples WILL keep coming at this age BUT at least we can CONTROL it and prevent scarring.... Helps our self esteem... Makes us feel better that we know we are taking action against it... And who knows... You may be surprised, you may have even cured (well kind of) your acne and will be able to enjoy the rest of your teenage years !,!

I've read MANY AMAZING reviews on jojoba oil... Have you tried it?.. Does it really work well?... Cause than if any other highly hydrating moisturisers fail you than at least you have an excellent back up.. Unlike some unfortunate people..... *tears* ....

Anyways hopefully someone more experienced can answer your questions perfectly but this is my opinion gathered by evidence, common sense...... And ripping off my doctors.... *cough cough* ....

I agree with the above poster. Because you're young an have only mild acne I would suggest delaying using the regimen. I'm not saying don't use Bp altogether but just not in the quantities that the regimen prescribes.

I second the suggestion above that you try duac or epiduo as you only apply a very small amount of these topical treatments to your skin. Why not go to you gp and see what they think?

Good luck with what ever you decide, but on a last note I bet that if you can get on top of your dry skin, the amount of acne may decrease purely because your skin will be less irritated.

Hey! I am going through what you are kinda.

Is Benzoyl peroxide something only used by people with moderate to severe acne, and something too strong and drying for skin that is already dry?

No. I had my skin under control to where I had a few zits. I wouldn't use it all over your face; just as a spot treatment. You can get it in a low percentage like 2.5 or something close to that. It won't be drying for you if you only rub it in on the zit. It does the same thing as 10% but less drying. So using BP can be used if you don't have severe acne.

Is Benzoyl peroxide somthing I should wait with using, since it might be unnecessary and harming for younger skin?

Not necessarily. My sister is 22 and has used BP and her skin looks lovely! Just don't apply it every time you use the bathroom. (Been there. Horrible idea.) I would also wait to use it once you get the drying skin controlled; or just use a small percentage and apply it once a day until your skin adjusts.

Will Benzoyl peroxide even work on hormonal acne, or is there even any "cure" for hormonal acne for that matter?

I have that now. I have acne on my cheeks only and my jawline. BP can help, but not cure it. I would go to your doctor and ask if you can get your hormones checked to see if they are balanced correctly. They will give you something for it. You can try taking Zinc, but also ask your doctor to determine the amount that is right for you. If that doesn't work, it'll go away eventually. You're 15 and it's totally normal.

Can Benzoyl peroxide only be applied to areas of the skin that are prone to acne (forehead, nose, and chin in my case), and is it fine to avoid areas on the face such as my cheeks that are pretty much never affected by acne? Or should Benzoyl peroxide always be applied evenly all over the face?

I would only apply to the pimples, not all over. If your skin is dry, it'll make matters worse. Don't apply to your cheeks because if they don't break out there is no point to put that on that area.

Are there recommendations for very intensily hydrating moisturizers for people with dry skin following the Regimen? Or is it best to only stick with oil-free moisturizers and jojoba oil?

I use Ponds Dry Skin Cream. It does not clog pores and it gets rid of flakes really good. Oil sometimes can clog, and cause acne to appear. But if you have dry spots or patches, only apply jojoba oil lightly to the dry areas. Otherwise Ponds is really good, especially in winter.

I used to use acne wash with acne treatment in it, but my skin has been dry. So maybe try Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser? It isn't specifically for acne, but I've seen improvement in 3 days. My cheeks are less dry and my inflamed zits went down. Maybe try that out!

Thank you so much for your help guys! >w<

Also, I definitely agree with you, GoshDammit! I just hate it when people say: "you have hormonal acne, don't worry, it will go away eventually." I mean, nobody thinks "oh, I have horrible acne that causes me pain, gives me scars and completely ruins my selfesteem, but there's nothing to worry about since it will go away in 5 years." Sorry, that's not how things work. D: If possible, I believe it's good to solve your problems, not only acne related as soon as possible. :'D

Right now I will try to wait with the BP. I just started my new "regimen" yesterday, it's pretty much the same as The Regimen on Acne.org, but instead of using BP, I am applying tea tree oil to my affected areas, forehead, nose, and chin. c: Even after one day, I feel that it has helped, my acne spots are smaller, and they aren't as red! I think I will try to go with this for a week, and if I don't see any additional improvements, I might grab some BP from my local pharmacy and only apply it to my affected areas. - w -

Thank you so much for your help guys! >w<

Also, I definitely agree with you, GoshDammit! I just hate it when people say: "you have hormonal acne, don't worry, it will go away eventually." I mean, nobody thinks "oh, I have horrible acne that causes me pain, gives me scars and completely ruins my selfesteem, but there's nothing to worry about since it will go away in 5 years." Sorry, that's not how things work. D: If possible, I believe it's good to solve your problems, not only acne related as soon as possible. :'D

Right now I will try to wait with the BP. I just started my new "regimen" yesterday, it's pretty much the same as The Regimen on Acne.org, but instead of using BP, I am applying tea tree oil to my affected areas, forehead, nose, and chin. c: Even after one day, I feel that it has helped, my acne spots are smaller, and they aren't as red! I think I will try to go with this for a week, and if I don't see any additional improvements, I might grab some BP from my local pharmacy and only apply it to my affected areas. - w -

🙂 Exactly !! So true !!! Unfortunately I hit puberty rather early compared to other girls I know so for YEARS my self esteem took a real hit!.. So that hormonal crap is not enough to survive by for YEARS untill our hormones calm down... I mean seriously and what if we start getting adult acne !!?? Thanks for your advice!???!! Yeah.. No.... Honestly most of the people who say that either don't have to suffer like us at the time OR they did suffer once but it's more like an echo of a memory that they can look back on and laugh.... I do it all the time "hey don't worry I'm sure the blood test won't hurt!" .... Few months later I needed to take a blood test and FAINTED IN THE BLOODY CLINIC !!... So... Well... :/ if u get what I mean !

OMG I forgot !!.. Yes! been using tea tree oil a lot after washing my face in the morning ! Oh but a word of advice! If your doing an all over routine than you gotta dilute the TTO with a carrier oil or water (I use water) !! But spot treatment is fine undiluted as long as your ONLY applying it to the effected areas !!... Unfortunately you MIGHT notice severe drying but than again I suppose it would also happen with the BP which is more artificial compared to the BP .. right ? 🙂

Kinda wimped out myself on using the BP but will try to use it now and again as a spot treatment if I feel it's better than the TTO on occasions !!

Anyways.. Babbling again... Your welcome ! And good luck... ,!!!