Understanding Body Acne Helps Lead To Clearer Skin

For many adults who thought that they would never have to deal with acne again once they were done going through puberty, it can come as a rude awakening to find that acne problems often persist into adulthood. While most people think of acne occurring on the face only, body acne can also be an issue. Body acne can be both uncomfortable and embarrassing.

In addition to the usual causes of acne such as stress, hormones and menstrual cycles, body acne can be caused by sweat and tight-fitting clothing as well.

Acne, regardless of its location is caused by a build up of sebum, the glands that provide moisture to the skin's surface. When it mixes with dead skin cells or other dirt on the surface, it blocks the pores through which the sebum travels to the surface, causing body acne. Typically, people are used to seeing acne on faces and necks, but it may not be until they get to the beach in the bathing suit that they reveal body acne on shoulders, back, legs and even their butt.

Due to the fact that doing strenuous exercise causes the body to sweat profusely, people who do regular exercise in tight fitting clothing are at high risk for developing body acne. For most people, making some good choices and taking some preventative measures can help them to make their skin clearer.

Cure Acne Through Prevention

Although the severity of body acne cannot be directly controlled, the frequency with which the body breaks out can be reduced by taking some important steps for prevention. It is true that eating a good diet promotes good health, but the long held theory belief that certain foods cause acne is not supported in any way by medical science. Even though reaching the skin all over your body can sometimes be difficult, exfoliation is the most important step in preventing acne.

You should opt to use an acne cream that contains 10% benzoyl peroxide on the back and legs. This is because the skin in these areas is exceptionally thick and thus a higher percentage of benzoyl peroxide will not cause any irritation.

After exfoliating the skin, it is important to use a good moisturizer. This will prevent the skin from getting too dry after dead skin cells have been removed from the surface. It is important to shower after working out and to avoid wearing excessively tight clothes.