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Want to guess the biggest nemesis of teenagers? Yes, acne! And no, I am not talking about just the acne and blemishes on the face, but also back acne. Read on to find out all about back acne treatment!
Effective Back Acne Treatment for Relief
Back acne treatment might not have been as prevalent if we merely stressed about our backs, which don’t get as much attention as our faces. Here’s a simple explanation for those unfamiliar with the term “bacne.”
Back acne1, or “bacne,” is a skin disorder characterized by outbreaks on the back. Because our backs have thick skin, they also have a lot of sweat and oil glands, which is the ideal environment for acne. Sigh.
We’ve got your back (literally) if you’re struggling with back acne and seeking solutions to help it go away. Get ready to dig out your backless tops!
1. Body Acne Due to Skin Pore Blockage:
The same factors that cause blockages in your hair follicles in your face and body contribute to the development of both types of acne. These clogged follicles2 develop into pimples, which can occasionally get red, swollen, and uncomfortable.
We need to take a step back and consider the key elements that go into keeping your skin to understand this process better.
You need a medicated body cleanser to work well, particularly one that contains salicylic acid, which can clog pores and eradicate acne-causing germs3.
2. Why Does Body Acne Occur?
According to certain studies, certain lifestyle decisions are related to the presence of body acne, hence the need to search for back acne treatment.4 The following factors can affect how severe the ailment is:
- Dietary practices
- Angst levels
- Sleeping habits
- Body mass index Drug and alcohol use
- Genetic propensity
- Irregularity of the menstrual cycle
3. What is Back Acne?
Acne frequently affects the sensitive skin of the face, so you could refrain from revealing your face in public depending on how severe the blemishes are.
But acne can arise in other parts of your body as well. Any portion of your body with oil-secreting glands or hair follicles, including your back, chest, and shoulders.
Most people experience facial acne at some point in their lives, but some also experience back or chest acne and sensitive skin of the body.
Your back has several sebaceous glands that secrete sebum, an oily material, which is one of the main contributors to back acne.
Back acne results from an accumulation of dead skin cells and oil [sebum] within the clogged pores in the skin, as well as an acne-causing bacteria, cutibacterium acnes, which triggers an inflammatory response.
Sports activities that result in increased sweating and friction from athletic gear and clothing are frequently linked to acne on the back and shoulders.
4. Back Acne Origins:
To find the perfect back acne treatment for you, it’s important to first know the origin.
Returning home after a hard workout and immediately falling asleep. Sounds recognizable? Consider your post-workout regimen to be just as vital, and shower!
If you don’t want the perspiration and dirt on your skin to clog your pores, take a shower to melt away the buildup.
After all, acne would be a sure sign of closed pores. Got lengthy hair that can compete with Rapunzel? Your hair’s oil and grease may travel to your back and cause breakouts.
Additionally, product residues from improper back rinsing after shampooing and conditioning long hair might result in acne.
On days when you wear tight clothing, the sweat and bacteria can push oils and bacteria further into pores and clog them. Additionally, friction may result in back acne. Instead, wear comfortable, breathable clothing.
Hormonal changes can cause issues with your skin. A rise in sebum (oil) levels brought on by spiralling testosterone levels can result in outbreaks. It is typically understood that hormonal imbalance can happen during puberty, menstruation, or pregnancy.
If you try your best to take care of your back but still experience persistent acne, your genes likely are to blame. Simply put, your body creates more oil, leading to acne.
5. Kinds of Back Acne
Your back may develop various forms of acne lesions, hence so many forms of back acne treatment, including:
Whiteheads: Whiteheads are also known as closed comedones5. They appear when a blocked follicle remains closed and under your skin, resulting in a white lump.
Blackheads: A blackhead, also known as open comedones6, is formed when a blocked follicle on the surface of your skin opens.
Blackheads don’t appear black because dirt has gotten inside your follicle; rather, the sebum and air reaction cause the black-tip appearance.
Papules 7are the name for acne lesions that appear as little, pink pimples on your skin and can occasionally be tender. This acne is caused by an irritated, blocked hair follicle and lacks pus.
Pustules: A pustule, often known as a pimple, is a papule filled with white or yellow pus with a crimson foundation.
These lesions are also brought on by inflammation in a hair follicle that is blocked. The pustule swells up with pus due to an accumulation of white blood cells.
Nodules: This kind of acne develops when germs get stuck in a hair follicle. These lesions start deep within your skin, hardening and becoming noticeable nodules that hurt. Due to tissue damage brought on by the lesion’s deeper location, an inflammatory reaction occurs.
Cysts are bigger, pus-filled lesions on the skin caused by acne that also develop when germs get stuck in a hair follicle. The infection spreads deeper into the skin with cystic acne, resulting in a painful lump that may leave a permanent scar.
6. Back Acne Treatments and Medicines at Home:
6.1. Salt of Epsom:
Magnesium sulphate, another name for Epsom salt, eliminates and lessens irritability, discomfort, and anxiety. It gives enzymes a boost that aids in the absorption of zinc, potassium, and vitamin D. For the healthiest skin possible, these nutrients are essential.
Use two cups of Epsom salt in a warm water bath to apply this natural cure. Avoid modifying the water in any way (soap, perfumes). Scrub your back to remove dead skin cells. Rest for 30 minutes in this bath as well.
After finishing, wash with warm water and hydrate yourself by drinking cool, fresh water.
6.2. Sweet Scrub:
The best natural exfoliator for your body is sugar. Like store-bought scrubs, they have the same effect as micro drops. Due to its natural ingredients, it is more effective than similar products on the market.
Combine two parts of sugar with one part of coconut oil to make this natural treatment. If desired, honey can also be included. Make a paste out of these ingredients, and apply this paste to your zits. After finishing, wash it with water.
To make cleanup simple, it is preferable to do this before taking a shower.
6.3. Honey and Oats:
Lubricants, dirt, and other kinds of toxicity are dissolved by oatmeal. When compared to the microorganisms that cause bad skin, honey possesses a germ-free quality.
Honey has an anti-inflammatory substance that relieves acne-related pain and irritation.
Add 3 tablespoons of oats to boiling water to utilize this home treatment. After cooking the oatmeal, stir 4 tablespoons of honey into it. Before applying it to your back, let it cool. After 20 minutes, remove it by washing it with warm water.
To reap the benefits of this natural cure, repeat this as frequently as you wish.
6.4. Apple Cider Vinegar:
This treatment kills germs, balances the body’s pH levels, and lessens inflammation. Use the following procedure to ingest apple cider vinegar daily: Add 2 tablespoons to a glass of water.
Combine two parts water and one part apple cider vinegar, and keep it in a spray bottle. Before bed, spray the mixture on the acne lesions every night. Give it 25 minutes to dry before washing it off with water.
Keep the spray bottle in the refrigerator to get rid of acne patches. Continue this process as long as you see fit in the morning or before going to bed, or you can use any cotton swab to apply to the affected areas.
6.5. Salicylic acid:
You might have noticed that face washes and cleansers include salicylic acid on their labels or heard specialists advise you to do so. However, do you understand what it is and why it is said to be such a skin saver?
Salicylic acid is a beta hydroxy acid (BHA).8 So, it can clean deep within your pores and is oil soluble. It is also a keratolytic agent, making the skin more easily removed or exfoliated.
Salicylic acid is slightly different from benzoyl peroxide, which you probably have heard more about. Salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide both work well to cure acne. However salicylic acid eliminates dead skin cells that block pores, while benzoyl peroxide kills bacteria in pores.
6.6. Citrus Juice:
Strong acidic citric acid, as that in lemon juice, removes dead skin cells, layers, and spots to promote the formation of new skin. Lemon juice reduces scars and dries out acne. Use any light substance to dab the acne patches after a shower.
Utilizing a cotton swab, apply fresh lemon juice to the acne tracts. Before putting on loose garments, allow them to dry. A few hours later, rinse with warm water. To observe results, keep using this technique every day for a week.
6.7. Wash Your Skin Often:
To prevent clogged pores, choose body cleansers with the words “noncomedogenic” or “oil-free” on the label. Steer clear of astringents, abrasive scrubbing, and antibacterial soaps because these can exacerbate acne.
And when washing your skin, be gentle as harsh scrubs, loofas, and exfoliators can harm the skin’s protective layer and exacerbate body acne.
6.8. Use a Drug Available Over the Counter:
Apart from back acne treatment, over-the-counter acne creams and gels with chemicals like benzoyl peroxide, resorcinol, salicylic acid, and sulphur can help clear up blemishes and stop new ones from forming when treating minor back acne.
Of course, you’ll probably need help from someone to apply acne creams to your back. Utilizing a body wash with elements that fight acne might be simpler.
6.9. Lemongrass Oil:
The antifungal and antibacterial effects of lavender oil are abundant.
Lavender oil, which has a pleasant scent, releases stress and relaxes you. This maintains the proper balance of your hormones. Another contributing factor to acne outbreaks is hormonal inequality, when it’s time to shower, use lavender oil with other cleaning chemicals instead.
Simply add eight drops of lavender oil to your bathwater to employ this natural cure. Spend at least twenty minutes in this bath. Back acne can be cured by taking a bath with lavender oil at least once a week.
7. How to Avoid Back Acne Worse:
The main causes of “bacne” — hormonal changes and heredity — are outside of your control, so you can’t always control whether you have back acne. So, to cure, we have back acne treatment, but you must better prevent it, right?
However, you can take precautions to lessen your risk of getting these lesions.
7.1. Medications to be Avoided:
Among different back acne treatment, lithium and other medications, such as androgens (male hormones), have been shown to enhance the likelihood of developing acne. Discuss potential alternative therapies with your doctor if you use any of these medications.
7.2. Reduce the Amount of Oil-Based Skin Care Products You Use:
If your moisturizers and cosmetics contain oil, avoid using them on your back. You should look for non-comedogenic products, which means they are less likely to clog pores.
7.3. Reduce Stress on Your Back:
Back acne, also known as acne mechanica, can be brought on by anything that causes more sweating and rubbing on your back. This can include backpacks, sports equipment, back braces, and back exercises for health.
We advise picking a lightweight, correctly fitting backpack to reduce rubbing and irritation.
Wearing sports equipment that exerts strain on your back, such as shoulder pads, for an extended period is not advised. Instead, wear a fresh cotton T-shirt underneath to lessen the pressure and friction.
7.4. Clean Clothes to Wear:
Dirty garments can trap sweat, oil, and filth, further aggravating the skin and promoting the emergence of acne. It’s recommended to take off sweaty garments after a workout and to wear loose clothing while exercising.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Does back acne ever go away?
Fortunately, back acne is a curable issue. Most people may obtain relief by utilizing therapies they can use at home. However, you could require medical attention if the breakout is extreme or the zits are huge.
2. Is acne on the back normal?
Although back acne, commonly known as bacne, is completely normal, it may occasionally make you feel uneasy. So, it’s better to look for remedies as prolonging your condition can get severe.
3. Is back acne related to PCOS?
PCOS-related acne typically affects regions that are more vulnerable to the adverse effects of hormonal changes like the face, neck, and back.
Bottomline
If you are suffering from the excruciating problem of back acne, then you must try the back acne treatment listed above. But not all of them! Remember not to irritate your skin by putting one thing after another on it.
Also, having acne does not make you less beautiful, always remember that. Keep glowing regardless, alas, this life is too short to cry about such tiny zits, right?
- Hassan, Judith, et al. “The individual health burden of acne: appearance-related distress in male and female adolescents and adults with back, chest and facial acne.” Journal of health psychology 14.8 (2009): 1105-1118. ↩︎
- Heng, Anna Hwee Sing, and Fook Tim Chew. “Systematic review of the epidemiology of acne vulgaris.” Scientific reports 10.1 (2020): 5754. ↩︎
- Sharma, Sujata, et al. “Novel Strategies in the Treatment of Acne: A Review.” International Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation 12.2 (2022). ↩︎
- Suva, Manoj A., et al. “A brief review on acne vulgaris: pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment.” Research & Reviews: Journal of Pharmacology 4.3 (2014): 1-12. ↩︎
- Bottomley, W. W., et al. “Treatment of closed comedones–Comparisons of fulguration with topical tretinoin and electrocautery with fulguration.” Dermatology 186.4 (1993): 253-257. ↩︎
- Ingham, Eileen, et al. “Pro-inflammatory levels of interleukin-1î±-like bioactivity are present in the majority of open comedones in acne vulgaris.” Journal of investigative dermatology 98.6 (1992): 895-901. ↩︎
- Donati, Aline, et al. “Facial papules in frontal fibrosing alopecia: evidence of vellus follicle involvement.” Archives of dermatology 147.12 (2011): 1424-1427. ↩︎
- Stojanovic, Vladimir, and Sherri Ihle. “Role of beta-hydroxybutyric acid in diabetic ketoacidosis: A review.” The Canadian Veterinary Journal 52.4 (2011): 426. ↩︎
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