Information on acne

The best time to research safe acne medication during pregnancy is before you’re pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant. Obviously, you can’t control the unexpected and planning isn’t always exact. But it helps to be prepared so you can avoid using harmful medications.

Some medications still linger in the body even after prescriptions have ended. This is important for expecting mothers to know since the greatest risk to a baby is during the first month or two. This is the stage when his or her organs are still forming.

Many women are uncertain what acne treatments are pregnancy safe. Make sure you discuss all medications with your doctor before using anything.

Safe Medication During Pregnancy for Acne

Acne medications considered safe for expecting mothers include erythromiycin, clindamycin, azelaic acid, and oral contraceptive pills.

Erythromycin and clindamycin can be used in both topical creams and oral prescriptives. The oral forms of these are antibiotics for severe acne. Since bacteria are able to build resistance to antibiotics, however, erythromycin and clindamycin, though safe, may not be very effective.

Azelaic Acid (Azelex, Finacea, Finevin) is a topical cream for moderate acne with antibacterial properties. There is little risk to the fetus, but there haven’t been any human studies to provide any useful information.

Despite general belief that oral contraceptive pills for acne will harm the baby if continued, there is no evidence showing women to be at a higher risk for defects.

Unsafe Medication During Pregnancy for Acne

Acne medications to avoid during pregnancy include topical and oral retinoids, various antibiotics, and other prescription medicines.

Topical Retinoids like tretinoin and adapalene are derived from Vitamin A and should be avoided during pregnancy. Tretinoin is related to isotretinoin (accutane). There is risk of these ingredients being absorbed into the skin and bloodstream and causing birth defects.

Oral retinoinds like isotretinoin (accutane, roaccutane) are extremely dangerous and should be avoided like the plague during pregnancy. Isotretinoin is commonly used to treat cystic acne. It is banned during pregnancy because it causes malformations to the fetus. Besides a slew of fetal defects, this drug increases the chance of miscarriage and infant death.

If you find out you are pregnant and on this drug, stop taking the drug immediately. If you’re trying to get pregnant, you should stop the drug a month before you start, as recommended by the Organization of Teratology Information Services (OTIS).

Oral Antibiotics

As a general rule of thumb, oral antibiotics are generally not safe medication during pregnancy, with the exception of oral erythromycin.

Both tetracycline (Sumycin, Achromycin V) and Doxycycline and Minocycline are oral antibiotics for acne that are frequently prescribed for acne. However, they should be avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding because of the risk of interfering with bone growth in fetuses.

Other Prescription Medication

Sodium Sulfacetamide is a topical anti-infective medication used to treat acne and seborrheic skin conditions. If taken orally it can affect the fetus. Topically, it likely won’t harm the fetus, but its risk in pregnancy is unknown.

For more information check out www.your-best-acne-treatment.com, a complete information resource on acne.

Yvette Chau is a freelance writer based in Edmonton, Canada. She provides carefully researched information about acne treatments on http://www.your-best-acne-treatment.com/

Tags: safe acne medication during pregnancy, safe medicine during pregnancy

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Twenty-one year old Lydia Garcia faces an imminent dilemma- poverty or acne. Lydia religiously uses three herbs to keep her skin clear and she’s always on the prowl for supplements to augment her health. Just last week she read that the Chinese herb astragalus enhances the immune system. And now, Lydia ponders, “I think I want to take dandelion root and ginseng to ease my menstrual cramps.” Yet Lydia’s salary as a receptionist barely covers her fanatical consumption of supplements.

You don’t have to spend a fortune on supplements when food provides all the nutrients you need to have clear skin. Herbs and supplements that provide support for clean skin typically offer the following benefits:

Boost the immune system

Aid in skin repair

A well-chosen diet can prove just as advantageous as supplements and herbs.

Foods that boost the immune system

Vitamin C

Oranges, grapefruits, papaya, green peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, broccoli

Vitamin E

Almonds, sunflowers seeds

Zinc

Wheat germ, black-eyed peas, lean beef, crab, oysters

Foods that enhance stress management

Vitamin B6

Legumes, whole grains, chicken, pork, bananas

Foods that cleanse the blood and liver

Garlic, onions, turmeric, cayenne pepper, aloe vera juice, watermelon

Bulk-producing foods

Oatmeal, apples, oranges, bran cereals

Foods that aid in skin repair

Protein

Nonfat dairy, beans, meat, poultry, fish, nuts

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Sardines, herring, salmon, tuna, walnuts

Selenium

Onion, garlic

Although herbs and dietary supplements offer a broad spectrum of benefits to the skin, it’s no fun looking fabulous if you can’t afford to go anywhere. So, save some cash and eat you way to clear skin.

Health author and Stanford University graduate Naweko San-Joyz lovingly writes from her home in San Diego. Her works include “Acne Messages: Crack the code of your zits and say goodbye to acne” (ISBN: 0974912204) and the upcoming work “Skinny Fat Chicks, Why we’re still not getting this dieting thing” (ISBN: 0974912212) for release in June of 2005. For useful acne self-help articles visit http://www.Noixia.com

Tags: acne, acne supplements, natural acne cure, zits, herbs for acne, pimples, clear skin, acne remedy

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To get rid of acne, you have to understand what causes it in the first place. All in all, the formation of acne pimples a pretty complicated process that even scientists and dermatologists don’t fully understand. What is known though, can be summed up in a fairly simple manner - Acne bacteria (p. acnes) get trapped inside a pore (hair follicle). The bacteria then feed upon the sebum (oil) trapped inside the pore, and multiply, causing an infection. The body spots this infection, and tries to protect itself from it, leading to inflammation, which makes for a huge, red, inflamed “spot”.

Using this basic information, we can come up with three to-the-point ways to combat acne.

1.) Kill the bacteria. If there’s no bacteria to cause an infection, then there will be no acne.

2.) Reduce the oil on the surface of the skin. Since oil can clog pores, and gives “fuel” for the bacteria to thrive off of, less oil means less acne.

3.) Stop the pore from getting clogged in the first place. If you can keep dead skin cells from clogging up a pore, you’ll reduce the number of spots.

With that said, we’ll move on to the basic regimen.

Step 1 - Washing your Face

In this step, we will be trying to accomplish two goals - Removing excess oil from the surface of the skin, and killing the bacteria on the skin.

To do this, we will need a gentle, non-comedogenic, non-irritating antibacterial cleanser. These are few and far between, and I have only found one cleanser that can do the job: Noxzema “Triple Clean” Cleanser. This is a gentle cleanser that contains an antibacterial ingredient called “triclosan”.

First of all, splash your face once or twice with warm water. Then, squeeze about a dime sized amount of the cleanser into your hands. Work into a rich lather, and then apply to the face, being extra careful to be gentle. There is no need to scrub or rub it hard, as this will NOT help with acne, it will only make it worse. With that said, very gently, using no pressure at all, and only the tips of your fingers, rub it onto your skin for one minute straight. This is to make sure that all of the bacteria are killed off. Then rinse the cleanser from your face, and gently pat the skin dry with a clean towel.

Step 2 - Benzoyl Peroxide

Benzoyl Peroxide is a very common over-the-counter acne treatment product. BP works by creating an oxygen rich environment within the skin, interrupting the metabolic process of the p. acnes bacteria, causing it to die off. It is also antiinflammatory, helping to reduce redness.

Avoid anything that is 10% BP, unless it won’t be staying on your skin for long. Go for 5%, or better yet, 2.5%. The two products I recommend are Neutrogena’s “on-the-spot” acne treatment cream, and Stridex’s BP pads. Both contain 2.5% benzoyl peroxide.

No matter which product you choose, apply it gently to your skin after cleansing.

Step 3 - Salicylic Acid

Salicylic Acid is a beta hydroxy acid - meaning it is an exfoliant, and will help your skin to shed dead skin cells faster. This prevents the dead skin cells from forming a clog inside pores, trapping bacteria and leading to a pimple.

The salicylic acid product I recommend is Clean & Clear’s “advantage” acne spot treatment. It is a sort of gel, that contains 2% salicylic acid. It goes on smooth, is invisible once it has dried, and stays on all day to provide protection against acne.

After the benzoyl peroxide has dried, gently apply the salicylic acid. I use about a quarter sized amount for my face, but if your skin isn’t “used to it” yet, start with less.

And that’s it! You’re now protecting your skin from three major causes of acne, and hopefully your skin will begin to clear up!

This regimen is meant to be done twice per day - once in the morning, and again at night. Since both benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid are irritating to the skin at first, don’t jump right in. Your skin has to get used to the products before you can use them to their fullest extent. Be patient, and at first, only apply benzoyl peroxide, and only apply it once per day. Then work up to twice per day. Once your skin is used to that, add in the salicylic acid slowly. Eventually, you should be using quite a bit of both products. Definitely remember to wear a sunscreen if you’ll be venturing out into the sun.

Ryan Bauer is a former acne sufferer from Springfield, MO. He runs an acne information website called Acne Elimination.

Tags: acne, pimples, zits, skin, clear skin, benzoyl, salicylic, pantothenic, ryan bauer

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