Latest / Best of: Features / Adult acne is real, but there are ways to treat it. Here's what to know

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Adult acne is real, but there are ways to treat it. Here's what to know · Best of: Features

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  Adult acne is real, but there are ways to treat it. Here's
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  what to know. Written by Aditi Ramakrishnan. This article is being read
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  by an automated voice generated by Everlet. New York, The AP. As
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  a teenager, Gillian Megan Montalbo's pimples weren't too bad, just a few
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  bumps on her forehead and nose. But as an adult in the
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  workforce, the breakouts returned and intensified. The acne on her cheeks and
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  chin made her hesitant to look her bosses in the eye. It
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  really took a toll on my self esteem And my self confidence,
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  said Montalbo, a marketer and content creator who lives in the Philippines.
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  Pimples and acne are an uncomfortable hallmark of teenage years, but adults
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  can have breakouts too. Acne can also happen on other parts of
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  the body like the chest and shoulders. And then there's backnee, the
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  Internet's term for back breakouts. The best treatments vary from person to
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  person depending on what's causing the acne. And how it looks, and
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  breakouts can leave behind dark marks and scars that take even longer
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  to heal. Pimples come and go, but if breakouts stick around and
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  causes discoloration or changes in skin texture, it's a good idea to
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  see a dermatologist. We know how to treat acne, we know the
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  cause of it, so don't suffer alone, said doctor Crystal Agu, a
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  dermatologist and director of the Ethnic Skin Programme at Johns Hopkins School
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  of Medicine. The causes of acne can vary. Teenage acne tends to
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  affect They forehead, nose, and cheeks. Older adults and women in particular
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  can experience hormonal acne that pops up along the jawline and chin,
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  Agu said. Taking steroids can also trigger acne for some people. Pimples
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  happen when tiny pores in the skin get clogged by oil, bacteria,
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  and dead skin cells. They can fade over the course of weeks
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  to months, but if patches persist and spread, it could be a
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  sign of acne, which dermatologists consider a medical condition. Essentially, you're not
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  getting a break from a breakout, Agu said. Acne is caused by
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  many factors including genetics, hormones, environment, and even diet, like eating excessive
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  amounts of dairy. The causes of facial and body acne are similar,
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  although skin bacteria sometimes plays a larger role in body acne. Breakouts
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  can look like milder, painless white bumps or dark specks known as
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  whiteheads and blackheads, or more painful red bumps and deeper cysts, a
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  mark of cystic acne. There are OTC and prescription treatments for acne
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  Don't pick or pop your pimples, no matter how strong the urge
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  or how satisfying it might be. Everyone wants to pick and squeeze.
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  That will almost always make things worse, said doctor Lauren Fine, founder
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  of Fine Dermatology in Chicago. Picking can drive inflammation deeper into the
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  skin and cause acne to spread. It also increases the risk of
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  marks and scarring. For darker skinned people, those marks take longer to
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  go away because their skin produces extra pigment when stressed, Agu said.
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  Treatments for acne range from over the counter creams and lotions to
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  prescription strength medications. Dermatologists say it's somewhat easier to treat acne on
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  the face compared to the rest of the body because they face
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  has more sweat glands and doesn't dry out as easily. It's also
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  harder to apply some treatments like creams to hard to reach areas
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  like the back, so doctors often prescribe oral medications. For milder forms
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  of face acne, dermatologists may recommend face washes or creams containing benzo
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  peroxide, salicylic acid, or retinoids like adaplene. For more frequent breakouts, they
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  might prescribe higher strength regimens, like antibiotics or medicines with tritinoine. Isotretinoine
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  may be an option if those medicines don't work, or for cases
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  of severe cystic acne. Treatments for adult hormonal acne, particularly in women,
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  can differ from what's done for teens. Some dermatologists recommend birth control,
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  which can help stabilize hormones, or treatments like spirinolactone. Shots of cortisone
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  can help treat active acne spots in a pinch, but they aren't
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  a long term fix, Fine said. Pimple patches, containing a gel called
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  hydrocolloid, can absorb fluids from oozing pimples and stop you from picking
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  at them. Aga said they are suited only for mild forms of
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  acne. Fine said the patches have given some of her patients discoloration,
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  and she doesn't recommend them. Treat discoloration with exfoliants and face washes.
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  Experts say exfoliants and face washes containing glycolic acid can help discoloration
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  fade. Over-the-counter products containing adapoline and retinol creams can also help. For
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  more serious scarring, dermatologist, can recommend more aggressive treatments like lasers that,
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  probe deeper into the skin. It can take time to develop the
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  right treatment plan and, longer still, to see results. When starting a
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  new treatment, some people can also experience skin purging, breakouts that happen
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  when a product quickly brings clogg pores to the surface of the
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  skin. Montalbo's acne cleared up within a year after seeing a dermatologist,
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  but she was still dealing with acne scars. After that she had
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  to rebuild her self confidence. She said a strong support system was
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  essential to getting through some of them, hardest moments. Her dad, who
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  also struggled with acne, was the one who encouraged her to see
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  a doctor and find The right products. She also had a close
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  friend who travelled with her overseas for a vacation during the worst
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  of the breakouts, and mentioned in passing that she'd never even noticed
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  Montalbo's acne. When you are with the right people, they won't mind
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  how you look, Montalbo said, because to them what's important is how
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  you treat them. The AP's climate and environmental coverage receives financial support
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  from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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  Find the AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters
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  and funded coverage areas at the AP.org.