Did you know adult acne has increased over the past twenty years? Stress, clogged pores, medications, and certain foods are some reasons you may start noticing pimples past puberty.
Unfortunately, acne can cause scarring and make people feel self-conscious. Acne scars create several other cosmetic problems, and you may have to spend money on expensive treatments. So what are the best acne scar treatments?
Is this an invasive dermatologist procedure? Holistic Medicine? Or a combination of the two?
Fortunately, our full article below answered all your acne scar questions. Keep reading and learn more about how to prevent scars and how to treat stubborn acne scarring.
What Causes Acne?
Before diving into all the reasons for acne scars and how to find the best treatment for you, it's a good idea to do a little background on what causes acne.
Acne is a skin condition that experts believe is linked to inflammation. Often, you develop pimples because you are more prone to them, and preventative treatment is best. There are three main causes of acne, including:
- Increase in oil production
- Poor exfoliation of skin cells
- Bacteria
Genetics and hormonal changes can also affect how acne develops differently between people. Ultimately, these three causes make your skin environment more susceptible to the development of acne and scarring.
How Do Acne Scars Occur?
Your skin has three main layers: epidermis, dermis, and hypodermis. Your sebaceous glands, which produce oil and are known to increase your risk of acne, are most common along your face, chest, and back.
When you have acne, scars of inflammation can be left behind, resulting in blemishes or scars. The pores begin to swell, and the walls are damaged, causing more permanent blemishes.
If the blemish is shallow and in the epidermal area, you can heal quickly. You should see no visible scars in this area.
Sometimes, damage and inflammation penetrate the epidermis layers into your dermis. Most scar care products target this layer of skin because it is more visible. In the dermis layer, your body creates new collagen.
While this process is very useful for maintaining a youthful glow, it works too well for acne. As inflammation penetrates the deeper layers, your body fights back by forming collagen. When you see a raised scar, this is what's happening: excess collagen production.
Another form of scarring is when you lose tissue, and it causes an indentation. Luckily, you can get rid of scars once they form with some type of treatment!
How Food Affects Your Skin
While you can get vitamins C and E through skincare products, what you eat also plays a role. Vitamin D, vitamin K, zinc and calcium are other important vitamins and minerals that benefit your skin. You can find some of these important nutrients in green leafy vegetables, seafood, quinoa and yogurt.
The more you start incorporating these healthy foods, the better the results will be.
Acne Scar Prevention
When it comes to acne scarring, prevention is key! The more you can prevent scars from appearing, the more you can achieve healthier, younger-looking skin.
High-quality skincare products, a healthy diet and hydration are the three pillars for healthier skin. When you look at the media, most of the skin care products advertise beautiful women and target women-based groups.
Men are equally prone to skin conditions, including acne. Here are some helpful skincare suggestions for men to keep their skin looking and feeling healthy:
- Clean your face every day
- Shaving in the direction of hair growth
- Use single or double razors for sensitive skin
- Use daily moisturizer
- Use beard oil
- Wear sunscreen
It would be best if you also learned about your skin type as this affects which products you should buy. Oily skin can put you more at risk for acne, especially if you leave it unwashed. Look for a quality cleanser, and always wash your face before using moisturizer or other products.
Prevent Chin and Mouth Acne
One of the more popular areas where men break out is around the chin and mouth. Without adequate prevention, you can be at risk of developing acne scarring. Along with some of the helpful tips and tricks mentioned above, try some of these tools:
- Avoid oil-based products
- Test the cream before using the face
- Replace razors regularly
- Change your sheets
Often, this type of acne develops from an improper skin care regimen, stress, or a high-sugar diet. Replace some of your favorite snacks with healthy alternatives and spend five to ten minutes every morning and night taking care of your skin.
Acne Scar Treatment
Now that you know a few ways to prevent acne, let's dive into how you can treat acne scars. First, the sooner you treat your scars, the better they will be. Seeking treatment early can reduce inflammation and make scars worse.
Previous treatments emphasized invasive methods to reduce scar tissue. Even today, this invasive method is still commonly used in the form of micro-needling or other cosmetic procedures.
While some patients are successful, there are some downsides, such as:
- High cost
- Improved recovery time
- Requires multiple sessions
- Professional use only
This method is nearly impossible to do safely at home and requires you to schedule an appointment and visit a qualified professional. Current research shows that topical acne scar products are safe and effective for treating scars.
Also, seeking chemical peels or laser treatments may put you at risk for further skin damage, depending on your skin type. Along with precautions, try home products first.
The Best Acne Scars Treatment
Acne scars are stubborn, and no single treatment is best for everyone. One or a combination of the following approaches might improve the appearance of your skin, depending on your scar type, your skin type, and the severity of the scarring.
- Home skin care. Using sunscreen can help limit the contrast between unscarred skin and a scar. Some medicated creams, such as those containing azelaic acid or hydroxyl acids, might help too.
- Soft tissue fillers. Injecting collagen, fat, or other substances under the skin can plump the skin over indented scars. The goal is to make the scars less noticeable. Results are temporary, so repeat treatments are needed to retain the effect. This method has little risk of changes in skin color.
- Steroid injection. Injecting steroids into some types of raised scars can improve the appearance of your skin.
- Laser resurfacing. This approach is increasingly popular and is often used on scars that were once treated with dermabrasion. This technique has an increased risk of side effects for people with darker skin or a history of keloids.
- Other energy-based procedures. Pulsed light sources and radiofrequency devices help make scars less noticeable without damaging the outer layer of skin. Results are subtle, and you might need repeat treatments.
- Dermabrasion. This procedure is usually reserved for more severe scarring. Your doctor removes the top layer of skin with a rapidly rotating brush or other device. Surface scars may be completely removed, and deeper acne scars may appear less noticeable. Potential severe side effects include scarring and changes in skin color.
- Chemical peel. Your doctor applies a chemical solution to the scar tissue to remove the top layer of the skin and minimize the appearance of deeper scars. You can repeat mild and medium peels to maintain results. You can have only one deep peel. Potential side effects include changes in skin color, especially with deep peels used on dark skin.
- Skin needling. Your doctor rolls a needle-studded device over the skin to stimulate collagen formation in the underlying tissue. It's a safe, simple and possibly effective technique for acne scarring. It has minimal risk of discoloring the skin. Results are subtle, and you may need repeat treatments.
- Surgery. Using a minor procedure called punch excision, your doctor cuts out individual acne scars and repairs the wound with stitches or a skin graft. With a technique called subcision, your doctor inserts needles under the skin to loosen fibers below a scar.
- OnabotulinumtoxinA (Botox). Sometimes the skin around acne scars puckers. Injecting Botox relaxes the surrounding skin, which may improve the appearance of an acne scar. Results are temporary, so repeat treatments are needed to retain the effect.