products for teenage acne

lovelycupoftea

Hi Polly

Personally i wouldnt touch any of the clearasil, clinique or so called acne treatments on the market, they are way too harsh on the skin and over stimulate the production of sebum in the skin (I'm a Beauty Therapist so I should know).. If you want a cheap brand to start, Visibly Clear by Neurtrogena is very good, they have little pads that you use with water and are very simple to use and they also have an oil free moisturiser. More expensive brand would be Dermalogica, but drag him in to a salon to let the Therapist look at his skin before buying. They do little trial sizes for around £20 so if not suitable you havent wasted too much money. If you dont see an improvement in about 4-6 weeks then take him to the doctors for antibiotics. Sometimes these are the only things that work to kill the bacteria off...Hope this helps

regan.lottie

Unfortnately I suffered for 5+ years with my skin - very bad acne as well. However thanks to the godsend that is roaccutane, I have been clear for the last five months!!:beer:

However, as your son is still fairly young I would suggest a trip to your GP and see if they can prescribe some antibiotics. Hopefully a course should sort it out if you don't leave it as long as I did to get help :mad: Another option is to have a look see on the acne forum, very helpful people there.

Good Luck!

Ted_Hutchinson

harryharp wrote: »

Unfortunately vegetarians (like our family) can't take these. Flaxseed oil is usually cited as the vegetarian equivalent to fish oils, but whether they'd have as good an effect on the skin I don't know.

Certainly for Heart conditions Omega-3 MUST be from fish oil
There are many references that google will throw up showing flaxseed oil helps acne but a similar search on pubmed does not produce the research to back up those claims.

However this new research shows that vegetarians may be better able to convert linoleic acid to EPA than previously thought the fact that the PLCn-3PUFA:DALA ratio is approximately 22% is higher in vegetarians and meat-eaters than in fish-eaters indicates that there is greater conversion of ALA than in fish-eaters and may explain the smaller than expected differences in n-3 PUFA status between fish and non-fish consumers.

I prefer to use ground flaxseed as that also provides lignans and fibre but I also use 1.5g omega 3 daily plus krill oil capsules and also eat plenty of sardines in tomato sauce and other oily fish.

nibs

Another fan of Roaccutane here. My 16 yr old ds was desperate and after months of research he decided on Roaccutane - against the opinions of many. He was very down and fed up of people saying " its all part of growing up."
It isn't. After 4 months his skin was beautiful - completely clear and very healthy looking. The only side effect was very dry skin for which he applied double base moisturiser.
He did try over the counter creams first and then went onto antibiotics of which none worked. Roaccutane was his last option and it worked.
It is important to try other options first but do not despair if they dont work.
My ds caught his just as scarring was starting to develope,( because people were telling him not to be be so oversensitive and to accept it as part of being a teenager.) The scarring has now faded.
Hope this helps anyone who's going through the same thing as my ds once was.

Ted_Hutchinson

nibs wrote: »

Another fan of Roaccutane here.

alters learning and memory, but not anxiety-like behavior, in the adult rat.These data indicate extensive, enduring memory effects from oral ISO treatment at doses likely to produce serum levels within the range typically used to treat acne in humans.


Recent reports indicate that depression occasionally occurs in patients using the acne drug Accutane,

Isotretinoin (13-cis retinoic acid) is an effective treatment for severe cystic or recalcitrant acne vulgaris; however, concerns have been raised regarding its potential association with depression and suicidal behavior.

This is the first controlled study to find a statistically significant association between isotretinoin and depression. Because depression could have serious consequences, close monitoring of isotretinoin users is indicated.

melancholly

nibs wrote: »

Another fan of Roaccutane here. My 16 yr old ds was desperate and after months of research he decided on Roaccutane - against the opinions of many. He was very down and fed up of people saying " its all part of growing up."
It isn't. After 4 months his skin was beautiful - completely clear and very healthy looking. The only side effect was very dry skin for which he applied double base moisturiser.
He did try over the counter creams first and then went onto antibiotics of which none worked. Roaccutane was his last option and it worked.
It is important to try other options first but do not despair if they dont work.
My ds caught his just as scarring was starting to develope,( because people were telling him not to be be so oversensitive and to accept it as part of being a teenager.) The scarring has now faded.
Hope this helps anyone who's going through the same thing as my ds once was.

glad it's working out - everything knows these drugs are strong and have side effects (such as depression), hence the need for a consultant to prescribe them. i think a lot of people underestimate the effect of long term bad acne on teenagers - i know that feeling of being told it's just something you go through. whatever the small percentage of increased risk of something like depression - feeling like you don't want to leave the house because of your skin can be much worse!

does anyone else remember the topical anti biotic yellow gel thing than made your skin go yellow?! man, i hated that one!

nibs

As I said - after months of research, including advice from a specialist, he decided this option was right for him.
Maybe not for everyone, but for him it restored his confidence and brought him out of a very low time.
We also found that those who were fortunate to have never suffered from acne were the least understanding.

regan.lottie

There are many arguments for and against roaccutane. It's a personal choice and you should not let others influence you. I was at a personal break down point. I had literally tried EVERYTHING and everyone, GP, parents, dermatologist agreed that I was old enough, 18 at the time, and that it wasn't likely that anything else would help.
You have to remember though, lots of people post about the negative side effects but those whose experiences are great wont necessarily go on about it so you only hear bad press, generally.
I wish all the best to anyone who is suffering, I know what you will be going through.

caketaker

Ted_Hutchinson vbmenu_register("postmenu_13967529", true);

Your post made some interesting reading,thanks.I have just re-read my omega 3 pot and it says dont exceed stated dose,and me being aware it is possible to over-dose on vitamins,i just do as the pack states.
It gives me 1000mg per day.
Everything i have read recommends different daily doses.Saying that the 1000mg i am taking has still cleared up my skin.

Ted_Hutchinson

caketaker wrote: »

I have just re-read my omega 3 pot and it says dont exceed stated dose,and me being aware it is possible to over-dose on vitamins,i just do as the pack states.

While 1000mg of fish oil may have cleared up your acne 1000mg daily of fish oil is not a scientifically based recommendation.
The typical standard Pure Fish Oil - 1000mg, of which Omega 3 fatty acids represent 300mg (EPA is 180mg, DHA is 120mg). contains only 300mg of omega 3s. A tin of sardines in tomato sauce contains over 2g of omega 3 about the equivalent of 7 of your fish oil capsules. Go back to post 46 and follow the first link and read ALL the blogs on fish oil from Dr Davis and you will then understand better why the information on your fish oil capsules is scientifically flawed. There is absolutely no danger in eating a tin of sardines in tomato sauce or a portion of mackerel herring or other oily fish, indeed 4 portions a week produce measurable health benefits. You will only enjoy those health benefits if you either up your weekly oily fish consumption or take AN EQUIVALENT amount of omega 3 from fish oil capsules. That is why Dr Davis was suggesting 1800mg omega 3 daily (6 capsules every day) and in the light of the latest omega 3 findings is increasing that recommendation.