Acne on our bodies forms like acne on our face. Your pores get clogged because dead skin cells and oil mix together and clog your pores, which then contributes to acne. Any place where you have a hair follicle and oil glands is a prime candidate for acne. While body acne is harder to control for many reasons, it’s still possible with a few simple steps. Also, the clothes we wear keep the oil trapped in our bodies, which doesn’t help the problem.
Therefore, we must first clean properly. Good hygiene can help fight acne, although it doesn’t necessarily mean you have poor hygiene if you have acne problems. Clean Daily: Wash your face twice a day and your body once a day. Don’t overdo it. However, if you sweat excessively, for example from sports or chronic stress, you may need to remove this excess sweat, dirt and oil that does not accumulate on your skin. Wash your skin with a mild cleanser that your skin likes.
Next, you should exfoliate on a regular basis. Your body goes through a natural exfoliation process and this process takes around 30 days. However, this depends on a couple of things: our age and also our skin type. The older we get, the longer our skin takes to exfoliate on its own. And, depending on the type of skin, we can have more problems. For example, if you have oily skin, this oil will mix with dead skin causing it to “stick.” Once the cells become sticky, they cannot be removed easily and this clogs the pores and contributes to acne on our body. So manually exfoliating is essential!
Food has not been scientifically proven to contribute to acne, but if you notice that you tend to breakouts after eating certain foods, you may want to limit those foods. Dairy seems to be a problem for me. If I eat too much, I tend to burst. Is it a coincidence, perhaps? But I just try to limit my dairy intake and my skin seems to respond well. In addition to not eating foods that can cause problems, it is important to eat foods that can help with our problems. Eat foods rich in antioxidants like fruits and vegetables.
Hydration is also key. If we do not hydrate our body with water, we cannot cleanse it. If you don’t normally drink enough water, try adding another glass or two each day until you become more habitual. Take slow, easy steps until it feels more natural to you.
Finally, cleansing and exfoliating will not only help your body with acne, but you can also try a topical benzoyl peroxide cream. BP is very effective (and inexpensive, I might add) in treating body acne. Many acne sufferers find that cleaning, exfoliating, and using a topical benzoyl peroxide cream is enough to combat their problems. The trick is to be consistent with your skincare regimen and not overdo it. Be patient and soon you will notice the difference. Good luck!
