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Natural Remedies For Treating Acne: What cause acne and how can you treat it naturally?
Acne is a skin condition resulting from blocked hair follicles. Acne can take many forms: non-inflamed blackheads, swollen white-heads (pustules) and inflamed red spots (papules). These acne sores or ‘spots’ are usually the result of pores becoming clogged with sebum (an oil produced by the skin) and accumulating bacteria.
Underlying Causes
The underlying causes of acne may be found by consulting a nutritionist or dietician who can tell you if there are deficiencies or worrying imbalances in your system. In the meantime you can do something about the symptoms. Before you dive in to using any of the home remedies read some of the underlying causes of acne.
Forehead: If your acne is on your forehead than perhaps you are digesting something that your system is having a hard time processing. It could be caused by a food allergy or hair products. Try eliminating dairy products for 3 weeks to see if it clears up, then, add dairy back in to see if it flares up again. If it does - then you have probably found the food that your body is not digesting it well. Other strong possibilities are Gluten (wheat) allergies.
Liver: If your liver is not able to clean the blood well enough due to the abundance of the allergen the body, the liver will throw the excess impurities to the skin to get it out of the blood & body. You may find success by having a doctor perform a liver function test to determine the efficacy of your liver.
Neck / Jaw-line: If the neck and jaw-line are primarily the area of breakout then your culprit is most likely stress related.
Mouth: When your pimples are around the corners of your mouth - oh those are directly linked to your ovary production and probably happen on one side or the other every month. Sometimes a good birth control will relieve these breakouts, so good news for girls.
Face: If the whole cheek nose and jaw line inflamed that is more hormone related. Adding Zink into your diet will help to reduce the testosterone from turning into dihydro-testosterone which is a large reason for the skin irruption.
Knowing the reasons may help you to control it, but the remedies below should work to reduce your inflammation and speed up recovery. As always please consult a doctor or dermatologist if your case is extremely severe.
Diet
To make sure you have a better chance if getting rid of the acne for good, begin by evaluating your diet. Use the following guidelines and be ready to make some changes.
Include plenty of raw fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens which are high in vitamin K. (People with liver disease often lack sufficient K.) Artichokes contain a compound called silymarin, which supports and protects the liver. And, according to recent research in Japan, avocado protects the liver from damage. Other fruits containing similar properties include watermelon, kiwi, grapefruit, fig, cherry and papaya.
Eat lots of legumes (beans and peas) and seeds, which contain arginine, an amino acid helpful in detoxification.
Get plenty of fiber to avoid constipation. When your colon doesn't eliminate properly, toxins build up in your body, making your liver work overtime. In addition to raw fruits and vegetables, good sources of fiber include 100% whole grains, nuts, seeds, sweet potatoes, beans and prunes.
Plenty of omega-3 fatty acids in the diet provide further protection for the liver and may prevent liver cancer. Eat more grass-fed beef, walnuts, olive oil, flaxseed and cold-water fish.
Treatment: Extraction
When you are trying to extract your pimples follow these few rules for better success.
1. Always start with a clean warm face. Use a hot washcloth over the skin that has been soaked in baking soda and water to soften the skin.
2. Wash your hands and cover your fingers with tissue. (Move the tissue to clean area after you express oil and debris to decrease spread of bacteria).
3. Spread the skin open and then try to move your fingers under the pimple and gently push up. You should only try two times before moving on two the next area. After you have done your face, then go back to the few areas where you were unsuccessful and try two more times. If you do not express the blackhead or puss then the pimple is not ready, wait for another day. If you continue to squeeze you will risk bruising and damaging the tissue, which will take longer to heal than the pimple.
4. Wash your face again to remove the bacteria, and apply a oil free moisturizer for balance. Over dry skin will produce MORE oil so give our skin a small amount of moisture to trigger less oil production.
5. Always use sunscreen to prevent your pimples from turning into a hyper-pigmentation spot.
Treatment: Natural Remedies
Crushed Mint: Peppermint is great as an acne treatment because it contains menthol, which is a natural analgesic and anti-inflammatory. But if you can't find peppermint or aren't sure which type of mint they have at the market, use whatever is available. Peppermint is easy to grow in most climates; consider growing your own supply.
Method: Take a handful of mint leaves and crush them thoroughly with a mortar and pestle. Rub the leaves and juice on affected skin and leave for 5-10 minutes. Rinse with cold water. Repeat as often as desired to alleviate pain and inflammation.
Precautions: Also, though a strong reaction is unlikely, do not continue this treatment if it irritates your skin.
Oatmeal for acne: The oatmeal cleanses pores by absorbing oil and exfoliating the skin. Honey eases application and serves as a skin toner
Method: Cook a single serving of plain oatmeal as you would for eating. Add approximately ¼ cup honey and mix thoroughly. Allow to cool. Apply to face, avoiding the eye area. Leave for 10-20 minutes. Do not leave it on too long or it will become difficult to remove.Precautions: None
Nettle: Nettle is the general term for herbaceous plants of the genus Urtica. "Stinging nettle" (Urtica dioica) is the best-known variety and is regarded variously as a garden nuisance, an edible green, and an herbal remedy. Stinging nettle has been used worldwide for centuries as a natural remedy. Drying it or soaking it in hot water removes its inflammatory properties and makes it suitable for handling and ingestion. Though fresh stalks cause skin irritation and inflammation, the leaves have anti-inflammatory properties. Consuming fluids also helps to flush the system of toxins.
Nettle tea as an acne remedy: Wear gloves when handling fresh nettle plants. Remove leaves from stems and discard stems. Fill a teapot full of nettle leaves. Pour boiling water over the leaves. Steep for 5 minutes. Add honey and/or lemon if desired and drink. The tea will be somewhat bitter. However, it is quite nutritious an especially high in calcium. Dried nettle is also available in tea bags but will not be as effective.
Dried nettle as an acne remedy: Nettle can be purchased in pill form. The pills contain freeze dried nettle and can be taken as recommended. Be sure to drink plenty of water along with dried nettle.
Precautions: Nettle may cause stomach irritation in some people. Nettle is also a diuretic and should not be taken by nursing women.
Lemon juice and rose water acne treatment: Lemon juice is a natural astringent and mild antibacterial agent. Rose petals, from which rose water is made, also have antibacterial properties. It is a also a skin toner and helps to mitigate the rather harsh, acidic quality of straight lemon juice.
Method: Mix equal parts lemon juice and rose water. Apply directly to skin. You might feel an initial sting from the lemon juice. Rinse after 15-30 minutes.
Precautions: Be careful of exposing your skin to direct sunlight if you have been using lemon juice on your face. Also, though a strong reaction is unlikely, do not continue this treatment if it irritates your skin.
Toothpaste and Aspirin : Aspirin is made from Willow Bark - which is also the source for making Salicylic acid which is an anti-inflammatory commonly used in acne products. It will help to reduce the skin irritation while speeding up the cellular turnover, thus making the blemish disappear faster. Combine this with the mint which also calms and absorbs excess oil and you have a good home remedy. If the toothpaste also has peroxide in it, it will work even better.
Method: You take average aspirin (uncoated) mix it with warm water so that it dissolves, but not too much water to make a "paste." (It should dissolve quickly). Then apply the aspirin to acne pimples. The aspirin may also be mixed with toothpaste. (Make sure it is a white, colour free toothpaste). The mints/menthol contained in the toothpaste will calm inflammation, and the aspirin will dry up the pustules.
Precautions: This is not good to use EVERY NIGHT, as peroxide can over dry the skin.
If you have any remedies that you swear by let us know and we can post them on the site. Email info@guide-to-living-naturally.com