Use Proper Remedies for Acne

There are lots of home remedies for cleaning skin and eliminating acne. They often include using common household products to get rid of blemishes. For instance, many people believe that applying toothpaste to the area will dry up their skin quickly, causing the pimple to vanish literally overnight. Some people are a little more realistic: they expect the toothpaste to take at least take a full day before completing its miracle.

Is Toothpaste a Good Acne Treatment?

You might have it on good faith from your mom or grandmother that toothpaste clears skin quickly, but there is plenty of evidence proving that toothpaste can actually cause problems that are more severe than a few pimples.

The argument is that toothpaste dries skin quickly, which causes the pimples to disappear. The basic idea is right, but it doesn’t work very well. Toothpaste really will dry out your skin, but, in reality, this is rarely a good thing. Toothpaste tends to dry out skin too much. This leaves your skin red and irritated. Some people even complain that using toothpaste causes so much irritation that they experience days of pain.

Toothpaste Can Cause Bigger Problems

Using toothpaste to get rid of acne can causes even bigger problems than irritated skin. This is especially true if you use a toothpaste that includes tartar control agents. The chemical used to prevent tartar can actually fuel zits. The bacteria in your acne basically eat the chemical, which causes pimples to grow larger, redder, and more painful.

Some people report that using toothpaste to treat acne has even led to perioral dermatitis. This is a skin condition that causes the area around the mouth to become red and irritated. Some times perioral dermatitis causes red bumps and pus-filled pores. Most people find that it looks worse than acne vulgaris, especially because it occurs right around the mouth. It looks more like a serious disease than a slight skin condition. To make matters even worse, perioral dermatitis can last for months, even when treated by a dermatologist.

Alternatives to Treating Acne with Toothpaste

More often than not, toothpaste will simply cause more problems. Instead of trying this home remedy, it makes more sense to choose over-the-counter products that have been effective for large numbers of people.

The most effective products sold over the counter usually contain between 2 and 10 percent benzoyl peroxide. Benzoyl peroxide has at least three qualities that helps eliminate acne fast.

• It breaks down the skin oils and dead cells that clog pores, allowing the area to heal.
• It acts as an antibacterial that attacks P. acne. Once this bacterium has been eliminated, the pimples start to heal rapidly.
• It introduces higher levels of oxygen to the skin. This helps prevent future outbreaks by improving the skin’s health and discouraging the growth of harmful bacteria.

When you use home remedies like toothpaste, you never know which side effects you will experience. They usually haven’t been tested by scientists, so there is no telling what risks you take when you use them. When you choose well known OTC acne treatments, though, you benefit from years of research that has identified the most successful ways to eliminate acne.