Exfoliation for acne

Exfoliation is a process of removing dead cells from the surface of the skin and is particularly important to maintain skin health. Human skin normally replaces old dead cells on the surface by new young cells that come up from the deep dermis. Without exfoliation, dead cells tend to get deposited on skin surface clogging pores, thereby producing blackheads and acne. Thus, exfoliation has been practised by cultures from thousands of years ago and this has been the primary method of removing dirt and dead cells from skin to prevent acne and other skin infections.
Exfoliation can be achieved by physical or chemical methods. Physical maneuvers involve manually rubbing off the dirt and dead cells by friction. This can be achieved by using scrubs which contain micro particles that with manual rubbing dislodge dead cells from the skin surface. Methods like microdermabrasion practised by estheticians also rely on the same friction to clear of layers of dead cells from the skin. However, people with acne or inflamed skin actually do not benefit much from such procedures. In fact, they end up with more severe skin rashes and acute acne conditions as a result of excessive skin irritations produced by friction. Thus, scrubs that are popular for use with acne-prone skin (good examples are apricot scrub or walnut shell scrub) actually do more harm than good. Recent inventions in skin care products have replaced manual scrubbing by sonic facial brush that works electrically producing vibrations and users can can choose different brush heads from delicate to less gentler ones to scrub their face. This procedure although produced significantly good results for some resistant (on the thicker side) skin types, has been a disaster on the sensitive skin types. People having acne or more severe skin condition like rosacea should never use sonic face brush, as the most delicate brush can also damage or rupture inflamed skin and exacerbate the acne situation.
It is no denying the fact that in order to prevent acne, exfoliation is indeed needed. However, in case of sensitive skins types or people already suffering from acne or rosacea, more appropriate exfoliating would be the chemical exfoliates. These are often organic acids or enzymes that loosen up the dirt and dead cells stuck to the surface of the skin and wash them away. Some of the commonly used chemical exfoliates are the alpha hydroxy acids (AHA), glycolic acids, salicylic acids etc. Most of them are extracted from fruit sources and hence are less harmful. Depending on the condition and health of the skin, dermatologists sometimes recommend retinoic acid (Tretinoin), adapalene or tazarotene. These agents are gentle and does not require friction but are known to make the skin dry. Using a moisturizer after using these exfoliates have produced better results. However, any product that causes irritation and discomfort should at once be discontinued.The best way to choose the most effective exfoliation for a particular skin type is to consult the dermatologist and weigh the pros and cons before applying that to the skin.


http://shop.blackboxcosmetics.com/DT0489    

Understanding your acne

There is a common misconception that acne is only a problem of women.The truth is in fact that young males have acne more commonly than women and also for a longer time.This may be due to the presence of high amount of testosterone in men.So acne is a problem that affects both the men and women.

Acne is cause by hormones and your skin inability to rid its self of old dead skin cells,this is individual and due  mostly  to hereditary. the fluctuating  hormones  usually starts in early teens. The hormone androgen is produced at a high rate during the teenage years, creating larger sebaceous glands that are overactive. During this time, the skin areas around the face, chest and back are very prone to developing acne. Acne can also start as late as 24 or even 30, 60% of all  adult women experience blemishes or moderate acne.adult acne and  is mostly found to form around the chin and jaw line, this can be more painful and the acne will last longer for an adult due to the fact that  the older your are the slower your skin's cells sheds . On the other hand there are more teens with acne found around the hair line and on the forehead. this can be caused by sweat, hats, hair products or even oils from the hair. tight fitting clothes can cause back or chest acne by trapping sweat with bacteria.. Acne starts with in the skins pores, or hair follicles becoming clogged. Oil gets trapped in the follicle and then will build up and form a blemish.  the dead skins cells that are continually being shed getting stuck together inside a pore, creating a plug. Since oil, or sebum is being produced on a regular basis to keep your skin from being dried out, the oil will get trapped in the clogged pores, causing the acne.

 The rate of shedding old skin cells is very individual,some people's skin will not shed dead cells evenly that's went the cells become overly sticky  trapping the oil and bacteria, they form a plug called a comedo.You can make this condition even worse by over washing your face, using the wrong skin care, make-up, picking at your skin,excessive sun,stress is a big one, stress raises the levels of hormones and cortisol along with  this  stress slows the  healing of acne. study have  also shown that foods with high levels of hormones can cause severe acne  flare-ups. foods such as .nuts,shell fish, soy sauce, to much salt or  milk, especially low fat milk  the  cause  being  that low fat milk contains higher amount of hormones..

http://shop.blackboxcosmetics.com/DT0489    

NEW INFORMATION FOR ROSACEA SKINS

Rosacea is a chronic condition of the skin that cause reddening of the skin and may cause swelling and skin sores that look like acne. This condition is frequently encountered in fair skinned women within an age range of 30-50 yrs although men when affected, may have more severe symptoms. Simple rosacea has been described as swelling of blood vessels underneath the skin of the face leading to the observed reddening, however, most of the time it is associated with secondary skin complications like acne, seborrhea and may be eye disorders like blepharitis. Patients with rosacea blush easily. They often feel a burning or stinging sensation in their face. To make things ugly, a lot of spider like veins may appear called telangiecstasia of the face. In worse situations, they additionally have acne like skin sores that may ooze or crust. While this is medically described as 'not harmful', it is definitely embarrassing for the affected individual and particularly when there is no known cure for this condition. Health care practitioners have been treating these symptoms by recommending patients to avoid sun exposure, reduce stress, limit spicy foods and alcohol etc. They often prescribe antibiotics to prevent secondary infections that may aggravate the situation. However, up until now, there has not been any evidence that bacteria could be the causative agent of this condition. Antibiotics prescribed for rosacea, for example, tetracycline, minocycline or doxycycline, are believed to address the acne associated with rosacea. Physicians are of the opinion that rosacea is not acne and will not be cured by over the counter acne medications or antibiotics. Notwithstanding this fact, patients have observed significant improvement of their conditions when treated with antibiotics. Scientific explanation to this observation was lacking until recently, when a review article published from the National University of Ireland concluded that there could be a bacteria connection to the problem. In the study, what they found is that, bacteria that live within tiny mites residing in the skin may function as a trigger to rosacea. This is the first time scientists have talked about a bacterial trigger to rosacea. Sun exposure, outdoor activity in hot weather, wind, hot bath, cold weather, specific skincare products and a lot of other ever-increasing list of factors have been traditionally considered as triggers for rosacea. However, there seemed to exist a disconnect between the observed improvement with antibiotic treatment and the believed absence of bacterial involvement as a cause of rosacea. This recent paper in the Journal of Medical Microbiology (published August 30, 2012) summarizes findings that identify a mite species Demodex folliculorum, a normal fauna of the mammalian skin, to be harboring bacteria that might be responsible for causing symptoms of rosacea. These are parasitic mites commonly known as face mites and when present in large numbers can cause demodicosis. They normally reside near the hair follicles and their population density is greater near the cheeks, nose, eyebrows, eyelashes and forehead - areas mostly affected in rosacea. These mites are normally harmless however, one theory is that they contribute to hair loss. Their number increases as we age. Previous research has shown that persons with rosacea have more of these mites than normal individuals and the mites isolated from their skin harbor a species of bacteria identified as Bacillus oleronius. This finding, if true, may revolutionize treatment as this bacteria is found to be susceptible to some of the antibiotics used to treat rosacea. This probably explains why rosacea patients seemed to respond to antibiotics even though the conventional wisdom remained that bacteria is not the causative agent. Another bacteria, Staphylococcus epidermis has also been found from the pustules of the rosacea patients. While this research is promising and definitely going in the right direction to improve the prognosis of rosacea, more evidence will be needed to confirm that these bacteria are indeed the causative agents of rosacea and not coming from any secondary sources but from the face mites. Pharmaceutical companies are keeping a close eye on the current findings although, more publications in the same line of study are needed to confirm these initial observations.

Are scrubs really good for all skin types?

Exfoliation is a process of removing dead cells from the surface of the skin and is particularly important to maintain skin health. Human skin normally replaces old dead cells on the surface by new young cells that come up from the deep dermis. Without exfoliation, dead cells tend to get deposited on skin surface clogging pores, thereby producing blackheads and acne. Thus, exfoliation has been practised by cultures from thousands of years ago and this has been the primary method of removing dirt and dead cells from skin to prevent acne and other skin infections.
Exfoliations can be achieved by physical or chemical methods. Physical manouevres involve manually rubbing off the dirt and dead cells by friction. This can be achieved by using scrubs which contain micro particles that with manual rubbing dislodge dead cells from the skin surface. Methods like microdermabrasion practised by aestheticians also rely on the same friction to clear of layers of dead cells from the skin. However, people with acne or inflamed skin actually do not benefit much from such procedures. In fact, they end up with more severe skin rashes and acute acne conditions as a result of excessive skin irritations produced by friction. Thus, scrubs that are popular for use with acne-prone skin (good examples are apricot scrub or walnut shell scrub) actually do more harm than good. Recent inventions in skin care products have replaced manual scrubbing by sonic facial brush that works electrically producing vibrations and users can can choose different brush heads from delicate to less gentler ones to scrub their face. This procedure although produced significantly good results for some resistant (on the thicker side) skin types, has been a disaster on the sensitive skin types. People having acne or more severe skin condition like rosacea should never use sonic face brush, as the most delicate brush can also damage or rupture inflamed skin and exacerbate the acne situation.
It is no denying the fact that in order to prevent acne, exfoliation is indeed needed. However, in case of sensitive skins types or people already suffering from acne or rosacea, more appropriate exfoliant would be the chemical exfoliants. These are often organic acids or enzymes that loosen up the dirt and dead cells stuck to the surface of the skin and wash them away. Some of the commonly used chemical exfoliants are the alpha hydroxy acids (AHA), glycolic acids, salicylic acids etc. Most of them are extracted from fruit sources and hence are less harmful. Depending on the condition and health of the skin, dermatologists sometimes recommend retinoic acid (Tretinoin), adapalene or tazarotene. These agents are gentle and does not require friction but are known to make the skin dry. Using a moisturizer after using these exfoliants have produced better results. However, any product that causes irritation and discomfort should at once be discontinued.T

How do i Deal with hyperpigmentation

Hyperpigmentation is darkening of skin due to excess melanin secretion - a skin disorder that could be due to sun exposure, hormones,skin inflammation (acne) or injuries. Human skin has specialized cells called melanocytes that are capable of making and secreting 'melanin', a pigment that is also present in the retina of our eyes and our hair. Melanin has the unique capability to absorb UV radiation and in doing so, prevents the harmful effects of sun exposure. UV radiation causes damage to our DNA, producing harmful mutations thereby increasing the risks of skin cancer. Thus, it is a normal biological urgency of our body to produce more melanin in response to sun exposure causing a tan. Normally, this affects equally to all skin types including Asian, mediterranean or African skin tones. However, when melanin is produced excessively, it may cause hyperpigmentation. In this case, skin may show dark spots or patches, often intensifying already existing freckles. However, some people having mutations in MITF, a particular gene of the melanin biosynthetic pathway, do not get darker tan when exposed to sun. These people are called the 'redheads' who run the risk of skin cancer more than the rest of us.
Skin darkening or hyperpigmentation can also occur due to some physiological conditions or diseases. Addison's disease and Cushing's disease are good examples. Melasma where hyperpigmented spots are found in pregnant women can be another example. Whatever be the cause, the current treatment of these conditions are often the same. Skin ointments containing bleaching chemicals like alpha -hydroxy acids are effective over a long period of time. Other chemicals and/or botanicals are also in use for treatment of hyperpigmentation. Hydroquinone, kojic acid, azelaic acid are some of them. Tretinoin cream or retinoic acid is also effective under certain circumstances where pigmentation is due to acne. Some anti-aging skin formulations also brightens up dark skin due to the presence of anti-oxidants in them that prevent skin damage from stress induced by free radicals.
However, the best way to deal with hyperpigmentation from sun exposure is to prevent it in the first place. Sun screen lotions that has a higher SPF, protects skin from UV exposure, thereby reducing skin's response with excess melanin secretion. This not only prevents excessive skin darkening but also prevents DNA damage in the skin cells thereby lowering the risk of skin cancer.