Quick and Effective Solution to small breakout

[vincent]

Hey Guys,

I have just experienced a very small break out of acne on one side of my face. I want to get rid of it before the weekend.

Any tips or quick fix solutions??

I heard toothpaste, but not sure about that one??

Thanks

 

[mr_economy]

Benzoyl-peroxide based spot treatments seem to be the best short term solution. There should be a plethora of them available at any local drug or grocery store.

 

[Andrew V.]

Don't apply toothpaste, you'll just make it angrier.

Try applying a paste made of ground-up aspirin and water and/or lotion. The aspirin will help reduce the redness and swelling of the blemish.

 

[mr_economy]

I will note that the crushed asprin works exactly the same as any salicylic acid-based product you buy. Asprin's chemical name is acetylsalicylic acid.

 

[Arethusa]

Yeah, it's just an acetyl group attached to the salicylic acid. Topically, they're practically identical. Crush some asprin, mix into a paste with water, and apply it with a q tip. Don't leave it on too long. That high a concentration is a fairly strong irritant.

 

[whoopee]

Azelaic acid is more effective.

 

[Max]

Just find some benzoyl peroxide spot treatment. Apply it every few hours and follow it up with moisturizer so you don't get all dried out.

 

[greg_atlanta]

If you're taking multivitamins, stop. Most contain potassium iodide or kelp, which makes acne redder and more inflamed.

My late-20s acne problem went away after my dermatologist told me to quit the multi-vitamins.

Anything from Neutrogena with salacylic acid is a good thing.

 

[oxide]

Originally Posted by greg_atlanta

If you're taking multivitamins, stop. Most contain potassium iodide or kelp, which makes acne redder and more inflamed.

My late-20s acne problem went away after my dermatologist told me to quit the multi-vitamins.

Anything from Neutrogena with salacylic acid is a good thing.

Thanks for that, my multi-vitamins do contain potassium iodine. Is this the ingredient that adds potassium or is it just part of the structure of another vitamin added? I'm asking this because there is another potassium igredient in Centrum which has more potassium.

 

[greg_atlanta]

Not sure.... but do you really need to take a multi-vitamin? They're not necessary even if your diet is mediocre. Americans are not malnourished.

 

[oxide]

Originally Posted by greg_atlanta

Not sure.... but do you really need to take a multi-vitamin? They're not necessary even if your diet is mediocre. Americans are not malnourished.
I'd rather take multi-vitamins because at the moment I'm on a low GI diet excluding dairy products so I'm excluding some vitamins and minerals provided by high GI and dairy foods. I've looked around many multi-vitamins and the ones providing iodine contain potassium iodine. This brings up a problem for me because for my spots to heal I need zinc which is also a mineral as well as iodine and I had to find a multi-vitamin containing vitamins and zinc (found one in Superdrug

).

Btw I've stopped taking multi-vitamins containing potassium iodine and started using the Neutrogena Daily Scrub (which contains salacylic acid sp?) and the redness has reduced as well as the size. Thanks for that post

.

 

[Andrew V.]

Not all products that contain salicylic acid are helpful. The pH of the entire product has to be low enough for it to be effective, and it has to stay on your skin for longer than you would leave a scrub on.

Aspirin and salicylic acid are closely related, but they do not have identical effects on your skin at all. Aspirin helps acne-prone skin by reducing redness and swelling; salicylic acid helps by exfoliating the skin and declogging pores.

 

[Lamo]

Originally Posted by greg_atlanta

If you're taking multivitamins, stop. Most contain potassium iodide or kelp, which makes acne redder and more inflamed.

My late-20s acne problem went away after my dermatologist told me to quit the multi-vitamins.

Anything from Neutrogena with salacylic acid is a good thing.

i've been using their skin clearing face wash for a while and it's worked nicely.

 

[Max]

You can always use a little coverup.

 

[Lucky Strike]

I have heard rumours about prescription hemorrhoid cream being the cat's whiskers.