Best Acne Treatments: Over the Counter    by Julie Carlson

in Health / Skin Care    (submitted 2011-06-22)

There are many over-the-counter products that claim to be effective in treating acne problems. The issue is that it’s hard to know which of these products are really effective and which of these products are not. When a company claims its product is effective, often it is just a marketing strategy. Sometimes trying a product yourself is a great risk because it can worsen your acne problem. To help you look for the best products to treat your acne, here are the things that you should look for in each product:

Salicylic acid: Salicylic acid should be found in your acne treatment products because it’s good for non-inflammatory acne lesions. Though its effects are only moderate, it is still very effective. This acid can be used if you can’t use retinoid or benzoyl peroxide for your acne because of a reaction they might give you. If you are still a minor and you have acne or you are breastfeeding a baby and you are suffering from acne, salicylic acid to treat your acne is a good start.

Benzoyl peroxide: Benzoyl peroxide is the most popular and effective treatment for acne that is widely available in the market. This kills the bacteria-causing acne, eliminates the dead cells in your skin, cleans your pores, removes excess oil and alleviates the inflammation. This is good for non-inflammatory and even inflammatory acne. It’s possible that you will see improvements in your skin after five days of using it depending on how severe your acne problem is. You can use this with other topical antibiotics to have better results, but it is still effective if taken alone.

Sulfur and Resorcinol: Sulfur and resorcinol should always be taken in a combination to combat acne. These are good for removing whiteheads, blackheads, dead skin cells, and oils that are not useful to the skin. This can cause you to have dry skin but it’s still effective to treat acne.

Alpha Hydroxy Acid: There are two kinds of alpha hydroxy acid. Glycolic acid can be found in sugar cane and lactic acid that can be found in milk. These are good for exfoliating the skin and removing dead skin cells, breaking basal layer melanin and increasing melanin synthesis in the dermis of the skin.

Tea tree oil: Tea tree oil is a topical antiseptic that is good in reducing non-inflammatory and inflammatory acne lesions. Its effects may not be as fast as other acne products to remove acne but it has only a few side effects. This has been used in Australia for dozens of years to treat their acne.

You should look for these things in an acne product if you want to find the best acne products in the market.

About the Author

Julie Carlson is a freelance writer and main contributor to http://theHealth411.com. Visit theHealth411 for a wide range of information, from migraine remedies to a fat burning foods list.