How To Help Your Teenager To Cope With The Often Catastrophic Problem Of Teen Acne

It may very well appear relatively trivial to many people but to a teenager the appearance of acne can all too often seem like the end of the world. Nearly all teenagers will get acne at some time and, in most cases, it is quite mild and nothing more than irritating. In other cases however acne can be severe and result in a negative body image and occasionally even serious depression. In every case however there are a variety of steps which you can take to assist your teenager to cope with the problems posed by acne.

A major problem with acne is the fact that there are several myths about acne which your teenager is very likely to hear at school or to pick up on things like the Internet. You need to therefore begin by arming yourself with the facts and here are several of the main facts about precisely what causes acne and what sort of things can actually make an acne attack worse:

* Genetics � some children are simply more susceptible to acne than others no matter what they do.

* Too much scrubbing � a lot of children believe than cleaning their skin thoroughly will help in getting rid of acne. Although cleanliness is undoubtedly important, scrubbing the skin too hard can both cause problems for existing spots and also result in their spread.

* Popping pimples � most teenagers cannot resist the temptation to pop their pimples and this is something which we can probably all understand. However, in spite of the fact that this may appear to help things look better in the short term, it will only cause more problems in the long term.

* Diet � the exact connection between diet and acne is not well understood just at the moment but there can be little doubt diet has a part to play when I comes to acne.

* Stress � when we are under stress the normal chemical balance in our bodies becomes unbalanced and this can contribute to the problems of teen acne.

* Makeup � a lot of children, both girls and boys, will attempt to use makeup to cover their acne. However, this can produce problems both in terms of the skin's ability to breathe adequately and of acne reacting to the chemicals contained within the makeup chosen.

The first thing which your children must understand is that acne is a normal part of the process of growing up and, in particular, of the hormonal changes which are going on within their bodies. They also need to understand that some children will suffer more than others and that, whether they are lucky or not, this is just a phase which will pass given time.

Next, you children have to be taught proper skin care and this is best done from an early age, and before acne arrives if at all possible. However, if acne is already present it is not too late and this is one thing which they need to both learn and practice.

Kids need to wash their face in the morning and again in the evening with a mild soap and, once acne arrives, with a special acne soap which can be purchased over-the counter at most supermarkets or drug stores. One important point to remember here is that washing two times daily is sufficient and that, desite the fact that they may be tempted to wash more frequently this can actually dry the skin and make their acne worse.

Over-the-counter acne soaps and washing will frequently be enough, although this is not an instant cure and your children need to be both patient and persistent. Where this does not work however you should talk to your doctor or dermatologist. Your doctor or dermatologist may well recommend a stronger prescription medication which your child will again need to use for some considerable period of time before it does the trick.

Undoubtedly, the most important step which you can take towards helping your teenager to cope with acne is to begin early. Your child may well be embarrassed by the arrival of acne and you may feel reluctant to step in and assist if they have only a pimple or two. However, starting treatment early can frequently knock the problem on the head and prevent it from developing into a surprisingly serious condition.

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