Although there's lots of information about dealing with facial acne, getting acne on your back is not unusual, and it's much harder to deal with. It's sometimes referred to as bacne. Unfortunately many athletes get regular outbreaks of back acne, because sweat is one of the two major causes. So as athletes work out a lot, they sweat a lot, and hence get back acne. The other contributing factor is tight fitting clothing. So if you're an athlete who wears tight clothes a lot, chances are you'll get back acne regularly. Many people find that there's a hereditary element - if one of your parents suffered from back acne, chances are you will too. In this case, it's quite probably that there's a hormonal issue.
While it can be hard to get rid of back acne completely, there are things you can do to reduce its severity and help relieve some of the discomfort. The obvious one is to make sure you shower whenever you get really sweaty. It doesn't matter if you shower more than once a day. Use some sort of back scrubber to help remove the dead skin, but make sure you are very gentle - the last thing you need is to break open the acne sores and help the infection spread.
Aim to wear loose clothing, preferably made from material that allows your skin to breathe, to help reduce sweating. You may also find that changing your shirt a couple of times a day helps to prevent bacteria from building up, as well as removing any sweat or dirt that has accumulated on the shirt. It's also a good idea to use some unscented baby powder on your back after a shower, to help stop the skin sweating. You may even want to try spraying your back with an antiperspirant, but if you normally sweat a lot this can have some adverse effects.
Cotton is probably the best material to choose for your clothing, because it does a great job of letting your skin breathe. It's also important to make sure you put on completely clean clothes every day, no matter how much you want to wear your favorite t-shirt three days in a row. For women, this also means changing your bra daily as well. If you regularly use an exercise mat, then place a towel under your back so that the excess sweat is absorbed.
Some people find that back acne improves when you use a mixture of tea tree oil and lye soap. This mixture helps to control the oils in the back, as well as softening the skin. Also, avoid sleeping on a waterbed. Generally these are warm to sleep on, which can irritate the skin and make you sweat while you sleep. Both of these will contribute to back acne.
Even with all these precautions, you might still find yourself with a bad outbreak of back acne. It can be much harder to treat than facial acne, and it's not uncommon for dermatologists to prescribe antibiotics for this condition. Generally either tetracycline or minocycline are recommended. You can also get anti-bacterial washes on prescription, which help to keep the skin free of bacteria. There are also creams and lotions that are available on prescription that can help. If you do your best to control the factors that contribute to back acne, then over time you should find it decreases.
No comments:
Post a Comment