Confident glow without teenage acne: tips and tricks for healthy teen skin

Oily, acne-prone facial skin affects 85% of teenagers and makes their daily lives difficult. The biological storm in teenagers’ bodies often manifests as acne-prone skin. Not only for teenagers but also for more mature skin, you can find amazing products and innovative skincare tools here.

Unfortunately for teenagers, poor nutrition and acne-prone skin very often co-exist. Long-term skin health cannot be achieved without a proper diet! Essentially, fats do not cause blood sugar levels to rise, but it is nevertheless worth prioritising healthy fats and oils such as coconut oil, olive oil, pumpkin seed oil, and sesame oil. The consumption of pumpkin seeds and nuts is important for problem skin because of their zinc content. All skin problems have measurable zinc deficiencies, so it is important to use face creams and moisturisers containing zinc and to eat foods rich in trace elements.

Active ingredients for you

But let’s look at the active ingredients that you can safely use as part of your routine even at the age of 12–13!

Niacinamide

A popular and well-established active ingredient that helps to harmonise sebum production in the skin, as well as being an anti-inflammatory. It helps to normalise the size of pores. You’ll usually find it in higher concentrations in serums and lower concentrations in moisturisers, in which case it supports the skin’s protective layer very nicely. However, it is not recommended to use it in combination with a serum with a high content of vitamin C.

Salicylic acid

Often listed as BHA on the packaging. It’s a chemical exfoliator, which means it can gently remove the top, dead skin layer — and what makes it really great for acne-prone, blackhead-prone skin is that it can do this deep inside the pores, it has a beneficial regulatory effect on the natural exfoliation of the pore walls, and it’s also excellent for preventing blackheads. In addition, it is also anti-inflammatory, which can also be a big plus for acne-prone skin.

Zinc

It is extremely useful for rapidly oily skin because it regulates oil production and is also effective against acne-causing bacteria. Furthermore, zinc has a soothing and exfoliating effect, which helps the skin to heal and regenerate. It is also needed internally by the body for healthy skin function. You can find it in fish, legumes, seaweed, spinach, cashews, etc.

Azelaic acid

Although it is called an acid, azelaic acid does not act like chemical exfoliating acids, it does not exfoliate the skin. It is so effective in treating acne because of its antibacterial (the bacteria most often responsible for acne) and anti-inflammatory properties. And as a bonus, it’s also great at treating spots that remain after acne. It’s also great for skin that flakes easily, gets oily quickly and reddens frequently.

Hyaluronic acid

Hyaluronic acid is one of the body’s natural building blocks and is found everywhere in the tissues that cover the body. It has the inimitable ability to increase the skin’s ability to retain moisture. It is the best of all the ingredients: able to bind up to a thousand times its own weight in water. But hyaluronic acid does more than that: it not only increases the skin’s own ability to retain moisture but also strengthens the skin’s natural protective layer, fights ageing free radicals and has anti-inflammatory properties.

Treating acne effectively

But what do you do if the “ problem “ has already happened? Let’s see how to treat your acne!

In the case of stubborn acne that does not respond to active ingredients after months and is accompanied by scarring, it is worth visiting a dermatologist as soon as possible and starting the right treatment to avoid leaving permanent marks.

Pressure should not be used, but if it cannot be prevented, at least be careful how you press:

Only squeeze pimples that can drain on their own. Press once with a clean hand using a sterile handkerchief — not with your fingernail, but with the edge of your fingertip, and not close to the pimple, but a little further away so that you press the whole pimple, not just the top of the surface. This will avoid micro-injuries, and tearing of the skin, which can lead to bleeding, inflammation, sores and scars. After the first pressure, you can apply one last pressure to remove all that is left, don’t push too hard, disinfect and moisturise or apply a clear pimple plaster to keep the area clean and prevent dirt and further poking. Leave immature pimples that do not have an outlet and do not respond to pressure alone. For acne-prone skin, a more effective treatment may be a carbon peel by a professional.

Social media and skin care

In the context of the ideal teenage facial care routine, we should definitely mention the worrying trend that is gaining ground in the social media world: teenage girls and boys as young as 10–11 years old are imitating the make-up and facial care routine of adults, mainly well-known stars and celebrities, and are recording it in the form of video feeds. This phenomenon is not only mentally damaging to the young generation — their healthy, age-appropriate self-image and self-esteem are compromised — but also to an almost child’s skin, products and active ingredients intended for mature adult skin are not good for it, and do more harm than good.

It is the responsibility of adult relatives to ensure self-love, and self-care, in the form of a skincare routine too, is instilled in the growing generation. The bumpy road to adulthood brings many challenges physically, emotionally and mentally. How much easier it is to get through this stressful period with a clear, glowing complexion, less acne and more confidence!

References:

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/beauty/skincare/a46395619/teen-skin/

https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/teen-skincare

https://edition.cnn.com/cnn-underscored/beauty/teen-skin-care-routine