Body Acne? Simple Tips To Cure

Arm yourself with knowledge on the causes and treatment of body acne.

- Aishwarya P. Vaidya

Acne breakouts may not be limited to your face. They can develop on your back, neck and hands too.

Dr Soma Sarkar, dermatologist, About Face Clinic, Mumbai, tells you all about body acne.

Body acne develops when the sebaceous glands become overactive. These glands normally produce small amounts of sebum, which is a thick mixture of oil and skin cells. Acne forms when these glands go into over production and the extra sebum blocks your follicles, and bacteria moves in.

Causes  

Hormones can cause an outbreak of pimples, or increase its number. The hormones that are active during puberty also trigger your sebaceous glands to produce more sebum. The hormones with the greatest effect on the oil glands are the androgens, the male hormones. Both men and women have androgens, but men have m ore. In women, these hormones cause acne during the menstrual cycle.

Hormones found in some types of birth control pills can also cause acne.

Rubbing or friction from your clothes, contact with a dog’s tongue (e.g, after a friendly lick), skin contact with certain sports equipment, certain cosmetics, skin exposure to extreme temperatures and taking corticosteroid medications can be the other causes.