So what is acne?
it is the occurrence of inflamed or infected sebaceous glands in the skin; in particular, a condition characterized by red pimples on the face, prevalent chiefly among teenagers. (source: google.com)
How Popular Myths Only Make Acne Worse
Acne is an extremely prevalent disease, at any given time, 10% of the world population suffers from acne. Most people will experience acne at least once in their lifetime, typically during adolescence. Those who never suffer from acne are a very fortunate minority.
The great news though, is that acne, no matter how severe, can be controlled. Ironically what stands in the way of many receiving proper treatment for acne is the many myths and misconceptions that persist today, despite the many advances that have been made in the understanding and treatment of acne. If you have acne and you want it addressed the right way here are the most damaging misconceptions about acne that many still believe to this day:
Myth 1: Acne is a cosmetic, superficial problem, and a rite of passage, it is not a major health concern.
This myth is most damaging of all, the website the-dermatologist.com summarizes the real gravity of the Acne problem like this: “There is no single disease which causes more psychic trauma, more maladjustment between parents and children, more general insecurity and feelings of inferiority and greater sums of psychic suffering than does acne vulgaris.” A series of studies compiled by the-dermatologist.com conclusively and resoundingly links acne to clinical depression, anxiety, low self esteem, inability to make friends, and even suicidal ideation. Those who suffer from acne are far more likely to experience these serious psychological and psycho-social conditions than those who do not. Moreover, as acne increases in severity, so too does the likelihood of negative psychological effects.
Myth 2: Acne is caused by dirt
Truth: While dirt can aggravate acne prone skin, it is never the direct cause of acne. Acne is caused by overactive sebaceous glands, which in turn can be caused by genetics, poor sleeping habits, or hormonal changes. If you have acne prone skin, keeping clean alone will not significantly lessen acne, on the other hand, if you are genetically blessed with good skin, no matter how unhygienic you are, you will not develop acne.
Myth 3: Allow pimples to “ripen” before bursting them
Truth: A pimple isn’t a fruit to be picked, and a large swollen pimple isn’t “ripe” it’s pustular (infected). By the time a pimple becomes pustular, it has almost always already damaged the collagen of the skin. This will mean long lasting, deep acne scars that will contribute to prematurely aging skin and be difficult and expensive to treat in the future. The ideal time to remove visible acne is when it is in the blackhead or whitehead stage, apart from preventing an unsightly pimple, this also prevents long term acne scars. The removal of whiteheads, and blackheads can only be done properly by trained professionals with the proper equipment.
Myth 4: Pimples should be left alone to dry up
Truth: This is a myth you will hear even from sources in developed countries, the truth is though, even this is untrue. Pimples allowed to become swollen and eventually to just subside most often cause deep acne scars. The only reason pricking is not a common practice in developed countries is labor costs. Acne pricking is labor and training intensive, which is why it is only in third world countries such as the Philippines where pricking can be done by a highly skilled professional, earning a decent wage, but for a reasonable price.
Myth 5: Ripe pimples can be burst at home
This myth arises from the fact that without professional skill or the proper equipment, the only time it is possible to burst a pimple at home is when it is swollen and infected. Ideally acne should be treated before it reaches the pimple stage, but if it does get to the pimple stage, removing it still requires a professional working in a sterile environment in order to minimize long term damage.
Myth 6: Acne refers only to severe pimples
Acne is the umbrella term of papules, pustules, blackheads and whiteheads. A pimple, even a small one is acne in its most advanced stage. Acne is a disease, like any disease prevention is preferred to cure, but when acne starts to appear, the earlier the intervention, the better. Acne should be treated in the whitehead and blackhead stage, if any pimples do appear, they need to be addressed within two days to prevent long term acne scars.
Myth 7: There are those who are simply hopeless cases, those for whom no amount of treatment or medications available today can get their acne under control.
While there is no “quick fix” for severe cases of acne, there is no such thing as a hopeless. Today’s acne treatments while effective, still take a while to get acne under control. Those who seem to be hopeless cases are simply people who try ineffective off-the-shelf remedies or who seek professional treatment but are unable to complete their doctor prescribed treatment regimens, which last typically between 6-18 weeks.
At most clinics, treatment can be painful, and after a typical acne pricking at most clinics, the visible skin trauma can be quite glaring, prompting many acne sufferers to give up on treatment prematurely.
Over the years, SkinTrends has quietly built up its reputation as the acne authority. SkinTrends owner and head dermatologist Dr. Joy Mongcal recognizes that to this day, there are no machines, or automated treatment modalities that can take the place of an expertly done manual pricking.
This is why at SkinTrends, Dr. Mongcal puts all of her attendants through 6 months of extensive training (the longest in the industry by far). During training, trainees first practice pricking on their family members, once Dr. Mongcal is satisfied, the last hurdle is actual pricking with Dr. Mongcal as the patient. Only then is an attendant entrusted with paying patients.
Acne treatments at SkinTrends are quite affordable, especially compared to the bigger clinics, but for treating acne, SkinTrends is as good as the best of them, if not even better. SkinTrends acne treatments are far less painful, and leave barely any visible trauma on the skin. The SkinTrends guarantee is that if patients are not acne free after the recommended number of sessions, a number of succeeding sessions are free, Dr. Mongcal boasts that nobody has ever had to avail of that benefit. To find out if there is a SkinTrends near you, check out their website: http://www.skintrends.com.ph/.
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