How To Get Rid Of Acne (Video): Acne affects people of all ages and all races, and treating it is a slow process that requires diligence and patience. Here are some tips to help you get started

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Clear Your Acne - Naturally!

Most people who suffer from acne go out and spend good money on common over-the-counter acne treatment products. The truth is, most of these products are full of chemicals that can actually slow down the healing of acne, and irritate your skin, causing farther breakouts.

When an acne product has 20 ingredients listed on it, it can be hard to know if one of those ingredients is actually stopping you from having success. It can be even harder when you can't pronounce the ingredient, much less know what it is and how it is going to affect your skin. Most mainstream acne treatments are not only much more expensive than common household items, but they also don't always work as well either. With that in mind, I will list some basic household items that can work wonders on clearing up your skin.

Baking soda - A very cheap cooking ingredient that most people have in their homes already, baking soda can be used as a great scrub. The purpose of a scrub is to exfoliate the skin, removing dead skin that can eventually clog pores and lead to acne spots. To start off, you'll want to mix a small amount of baking soda with some water for form a paste. Baking soda is very effective as a scrub, so you want to be sure to be extra careful when applying it to your face. Gently massage the paste into your skin for ten to fifteen seconds. Then rinse the baking soda off, and pat your face dry with a clean towel.

Apple Cider Vinegar - Though most people that use vinegar to treat acne use the apple cider form of vinegar, you can also use plain old regular vinegar. Regardless of which type you use, vinegar can be very helpful with it comes to clearing up acne. It can kill off acne causing bacteria, balance your skin's pH, and absorb extra oil on your skin.

Starting with clean, dry skin, apply diluted vinegar (eight parts water to one part vinegar) directly to your skin with a cotton ball, and leave it on. If you want, you can also use a stronger vinegar solution (say, 2 or 3 parts water to 1 part vinegar), and apply it directly to problem areas, rinsing it off after ten minutes.

Lemon or lime juice can also be substituted for vinegar. Both of these juices are rich in citric acid, and can exfoliate your skin very well, halting the growth of acne spots, as well as fading previous, non-active acne quicker.

Egg Whites - Rich in protein, egg whites can be used as a mask to heal and rebuild your skin. It can also help to absorb excess oil from your skin. To start off, crack an egg, removing the yolk so that just the egg whites are left behind. Beat these egg whites, and apply them directly to your face. Let it sit for fifteen minutes, and then rinse the egg off.

Oatmeal - As odd as it may seem, oatmeal can absorb unwanted oil and draw out impurities which reside deep in your skin. Cook some plain oatmeal like you would for consumption. Let it cool off, and rub it over your clean skin. Let it sit for a while, like you would a mask, and then rinse off. If you do this on a regular basis, you should begin to start noticing results soon.

Tea Tree Oil - TTO is a commonly used all-natural household antiseptic, which you can pick up at most drugstores or supermarkets. You can apply TTO directly to acne spots to kill bacteria, or, if you strongly dilute it with another oil (such as jojoba oil), over your entire face. Tea tree gel can be easier to apply than the oil, and many are made for applying over large areas of skin, so they aren't quite as strong as straight TTO and do not need to be diluted.

Pantothenic Acid (Also known as Vit. B5) - Pantothenic acid can be taken in large quantities for the benefit of acne reduction. B5 works by helping your body to metabolize fats which would otherwise be later turned into sebum (oil) and excreted through the skin. Small amounts of B5 won't help though, and it has to be taken several times a day.

To help with acne, you will need to take 2.5 grams of pantothenic acid (the powder form is much easier to take), 4 times per day, for a total of 10 grams per day.

Aloe Vera - Aloe Vera has been used for many years in kitchens for topical application to burns. Another benefit of aloe is that it can prevent scaring, fade marks and help heal acne spots.

You now have an idea of some basic household items you can use on your skin, that work better than many OTC acne products, and are much cheaper to use. Since we have only really covered basic acne treatments, you can always take this to another level and take all natural, internal acne treatments.

This sums up our basic list of natural alternatives for chemical based acne treatment products. You can take this a step farther by attacking your acne from the inside out. Acne has been shown numerous times to be very closely affected by the digestive system, so keeping your entire digestive system working as smooth as possible can help reduce acne. I will help give you a basic idea of some all natural products you can take to help clear up acne.

Cucumber, lemon and carrot juice, brewer's yeast, and active charcoal pills are all capable of helping the digestive system function normally. Since the digestive system is closely related with the health of the skin, they should help reduce acne breakouts. Flax seed can also be wonderful for helping your skin heal faster.

Ryan Bauer is a former acne sufferer who writes health articles and runs his acne treatment website, Acne Elimination.

BBC News

New acne treatment up for award BBC News A Scottish company has launched a new treatment based on light-therapy to treat acne. Ambicare has developed a device which can be used at home. The patient places pads, which emit a blue light, directly onto the affected parts of their skin.

Don't blame whitening agents in toothpaste for those breakouts Chicago Tribune Despite suspicions from some zit-stricken folks seeking answers on online advice forums, dermatologists say there's no reason to blame toothpaste for acne breakouts. What toothpaste can cause, however, is irritation or allergic reactions in people with ... and more »

EQuicknews

Acne Treatment EQuicknews Acne haѕ been а persistent problem among humans fоr centuries. While acne іs mоstlу the problem of teens, it can аlso develop on thе skin of older people. Because оf this, humans hаve bеen lооkіng fоr effective treatments fоr аs long as acne hаѕ been а ... and more »

Justin Bieber At Your Front Door: It Really Happened to These Fans! Gather Celebs News Channel As Justin went along in his chauffeured car, he reads the various text messages from the teens who wanted to try the acne product that Justin is now the spokesperson for. You could tell when he showed up at their houses that they never expected a visit ... and more »

Acne Inversa Patients Face Sexual Distress Skin and Allergy News Digital Network Sexual dysfunction and distress are increased in patients with acne inversa leading to a diminished quality of life, according to the findings of a recent prospective, observational study. The findings, which are among the first to evaluate sexual ...

The Guardian (blog)

How Scandinavian brands made 'anti-cool' fashionable The Guardian (blog) Following the undisputed success of Acne, the Swedish brand Polly Vernon once described as "a winner of a range. Very wearable; quietly, fabulously hip. It has hip sewn into its very seams," there are jeans by HUMÖR, backpacks by Sandqvist and ... and more »

The Score on Scoring: Mylan 1, Warner Chilcott 0 Wall Street Journal (blog) By Jonathan D. Rockoff The generic drug maker announced today that the FDA has approved its sale of a copycat version of a medicine called Doryx for severe acne. Doryx is sold in the US by Irish specialty drug maker Warner-Chilcott, which has been ... Mylan Can't Launch Doryx Generic Just YetLaw360 (subscription) all 26 news articles »

Aloe Vera Benefits Sufferers of Acne, Cavities and Ulcers WebWire (press release) 02/08/2012 - Not only is aloe vera good for treating skin ailments, aloe vera juice can be found in many health and beauty projects used to treat acne and tooth cavities, and it has been used in products that aid digestion. Aloe vera's benefits have ...

Los Angeles Times

Men's grooming: Major moneymaker? Los Angeles Times And although only a quarter use facial skincare items such as lip products and acne treatments, revenue grew 11% in 2011, according to the report. “There is a huge opportunity with men for facial skincare,” said Karen Grant, a senior global industry ... NPD Reports on the Men's Grooming Industry: A Market Poised for GrowthPR Web (press release) all 5 news articles »

Tips for acne-free skin Times of India One should always keep his/her skin clean and clear as pimples and acne occur when the pores in your skin get clogged up with oil and dirt. Bacteria infects that pore, leading to acne. Always try to avoid touching the face with your hands. and more »