The Better Acne and Spot Treatment

Whilst most of us agree that spots are not the most attractive thing to have on your face, some people can handle the appearance with ease whilst others feel it’s their duty to fight off the invaders with a menagerie of treatments and lotions. They’ll try to remove as many unsightly spots as fast as possible and then hope they do not show up for a long while after – to mixed success!

Spots are generally caused by skin pore blockages, where cells that line the pore clump together and plug a valuable exit from the body. This exit is used by sebum (an oily/waxy substance secreted by the sebaceous gland, usually used to lubricate the skin) to move through the skin layer onto the skin surface. If an exit is blocked sebum is unable to pass to the surface, and it accumulates underneath the blocked pore along with other biological waste material, eventually bursting if the build up is excessive. As spots stress the skin cells, as well as sebum, there may also be a build up of nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is naturally present in cells, but an increase in its levels can inhibit the skin’s natural ability to heal itself.

Cream treatments and lotions can be applied to the affected skin surface to help combat spots but it can either leave a greasy appearance or dry out the skin, and some people are sceptical of using chemicals or antibiotics on their skin because of allergic reactions or an aversion to using chemical based products on their skin.

There may be a misconception that spots and acne are caused by a lack of personal hygiene, but it really the build up of sebum that is the main cause of the appearance of spots. Acne is more prevalent in teens than adults, and studies have shown that after the age of 20, sebum production decreases.

So what other methods exist that can help reduce or eliminate the appearance of spots? New treatment solutions make use of natural methods of healing have been developed with greater success in recent years. Sunlight for example increases the rate at which the skin peels, naturally helping to reduce the appearance of spots.

A particular aspect of sunlight is the red light that is invisible to the human eye and occurs naturally in light from the sun. This light is used in red light therapy treatments using LEDs (which do not generate heat) to treat mild to moderate acne. The red light is absorbed by the skin cells, forcing out the built-up nitric oxide and stimulating anti-oxidants that speed up skin cell repair, eventually helping to clear spots and acne plus reduce redness and inflammation.

The author has an interest in health and beauty, and especially about new products that use red light therapy developed for acne skin care and spot treatment.