What is Acne?

Acne is one of the commonest skin problems of the youth, because almost 70 % suffer from more or less severe types of acne. Each one is trying to find a solution for it. For some people acne sets in as early as the age of 16, while for some, it may start in the late 20s.

Facial acne is naturally the most embarrassing. If you have pimples on your back or your chest, they can be hidden under clothing even in summer, but acne on the face cannot be hidden. Though it is just a superficial aspect, but when you meet a person, a face full of pimples may make you aversive to a few.

It is easier to treat facial acne than body acne, but it has the tendency to come back as flare-ups. The most common causes for acne are dust, air pollution, cosmetics and shaving. Because of these reasons your skin can get irritated and your pores get clogged. Also, the bacteria which causes the pimples is borne by dust and air pollution. When a pore gets clogged with dead skin cells, bacteria begins to breed in the sebaceous follicle. This follicle then develops into a blackhead, which is a mild case of acne, or develops into a severe form of acne and turns into pustules.

There are different types of acne. First of all, there are the mild types and secondly, the severe one. Severe acne occurs rarely, but when a person is affected with it, it can disfigure the face and body and there can be several psychological effects.

The mild or moderate form of acne is called acne vulgaris and is generally blackheads or whiteheads caused by blocked pores. When the pores are partially blocked, they are blackheads due to the black appearance which is caused by melanin pigment from the dead skin cells. It takes a long time to clear blackheads, because they are quite stable.

When the pores get completely blocked, whiteheads occur. The bacteria which is inside the pore turns the sebum into free fatty acid. Naturally the whitehead has a different color than the blackhead because the opening of the plugged sebaceous follicle to the surface of the skin is very narrow. In contrast, the blackhead has a distended follicular opening.

The severe types of acne are often chronic and should only be treated by a doctor. A dermatologist can give the best advice and make your skin beautiful and healthy again.