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

It may well appear quite trivial to many people but to a teenager the onset of acne can often seem like the end of the world. Most teenagers will suffer from acne at some time and, in most cases, it is relatively mild and nothing more than a mild irritation. However, in other cases acne can be severe and produce a negative body image and occasionally even serious depression. In all cases however there are a variety of steps which you can take to help your teenager in coping with the difficulties of acne.

A significant problem with acne is that there are many myths about acne which your child 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 truth and here are several of the main facts about exactly what causes acne and what can actually make an acne attack worse:

* Genetics – some children are quite simply more prone to acne than others no matter what they do.

* Too much scrubbing – a surprising number of teenagers believe than cleaning their skin well will help to rid them of acne. While cleanliness is certainly important, scrubbing the skin too vigorously can cause problems with existing spots and also cause them to spread.

* Squeezing spots – almost all teenagers cannot resist the temptation to squeeze their pimples and this is one thing which we can probably all understand. Unfortunately, although this may seem to make things look better in the short term, it will only cause more problems in the longer term.

* Diet – the exact link between acne and diet is not terribly well understood at the moment but it certainly appears that diet has a part to play when it comes to acne.

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

* Makeup – many children, both girls and boys, will try to use makeup to hide their acne. This can however cause problems both in terms of the inability of the skin to breathe adequately and of acne reacting to the makeup used.

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

Next, your children need to be taught proper skin care and this is best done at an early age, and before acne appears if possible. However, if acne is already present it is not too late and this is one thing that they must both learn and practice.

Kids should wash their face each morning and again in the evening with a mild soap and, once acne appears, with a specially formulated acne soap that can be purchased over-the counter at most supermarkets or drug stores. An important point here is that washing twice daily is sufficient and that, desite the fact that they might 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 often do the trick, although this is not an instant cure and your children need to be persistent and patient. If this does not work however you will need to talk to your doctor or consult a dermatologist. Your doctor or dermatologist will be able to suggest the best acne medication which your teenager will again need to use for quite some time before it produces results.

Undoubtedly, the most important step which you can take towards assisting your child to cope with acne is to begin early. Your child may well be embarrassed by the appearance of acne and you might be reluctant to step in and help if they have just a spot or two. Starting treatment early can however often knock the problem on the head and stop it from developing into a surprisingly serious problem. Parenting teenagers is not always easy but with the right preparation it does not have to be too hard either.