Whoot whoot the weather is warming up and tank top season will be here before we know it but with that comes different skin care issues than we faced over the winter months!
During the warmer weather and increased sweating also comes increased access to outside environmental toxins assualting our skin so it is normal to see an increase in breakouts on our necks, chest, shoulders and of course our backs ~ the hardest area to actually 'self treat' but there is hope!
B-acne ~ how does it differ from normal acne?
There are a couple differences first being that the pores on our back are normally much wider/larger than on our face combined with the challenge that our backs are very hard to reach on your own to properly cleanse and they also contain thousands of oil
producing glands which during certain times of the year can get a little out of control with
overproduction ~ and wham you have a breeding ground for b-acne.
So a treatment plan needs to be based on getting the oil production under control while still ensuring a healthy balance of nutrients for the skin.
B-Acne Be Gone in 3 easy steps
1: Hot and Steamy wins the race
If you are like me you will look for any excuse to perform this step even if you do not suffer from b-acne it is an awesome stress reliever ~ 15 minutes of quiet time in the hot steamy bathtub count me in! If the purpose of this soak is to treat your b-acne avoid the harsh bubble bath chemicals though battle that oil build up by adding 5-10 drops of tea tree oil and a cup of Himalayan pink sea salt which is a natural way to help exfoliate and has many of its own health benefits. More info on Himalayan Pink Sea Salts benefits can be found here or a Google search will bring you lots of great info on them.
Maybe put some candles on or some light music or a good book whatever relaxes you and soak for at least 15 minutes the ideal time is 45 ~ ensure you are able to have your back fully submerged in the hot water and drink lots of water while soak to avoid dehydration as well as if you add some lemon to your water it will help with detoxing your body. This soak will fully open your pores and allow you to supply your skin with the proper nutrients to fight acne.
At this point enlist the aid of a loved one at this point or if you have a back brush you can use that to apply the Aloette Multi Action Scrub which is a natural almond meal and kaolin that will gently exfoliate and unclog pores combined with
honey which is a natural antibacterial, papaya extract for an anti inflammatory to give your back a nice exfoliating scrub and than rinse yourself off and cleanse the rest of your body if desired before you dry off.
2. Moisture is Magnificent
So in step one you cleansed and exfoliated but you also stripped your body of some essential nutrients during the detox which we need to replace at this point in order to heal and strengthen
your skin and to prevent any of your b-acne from scarring.
One of the best ways to replenish those essential nutrients after cleansing / exfoliating is to use a great moisturizer meant for your skin type! Many people with oily skin or acne mistakenly assume that they do
not need to 'moisturize' because they are oily enough already but 'oil'
is not moisture and it is certainly is not going to replace the missing essential nutrients that cleansing might have removed.
When choosing a great hydrating moisturizer you want to make sure to cover the B-ACE's so to speak ... so you want one with Vitamins B, A, C and E in it as these are nutrients essential to healthy skin.
When choosing a great hydrating moisturizer you want to make sure to cover the B-ACE's so to speak ... so you want one with Vitamins B, A, C and E in it as these are nutrients essential to healthy skin.
Our Aloe Pure line Nutri-hydrating Mist is AMAZING product to hydrate with at this step as it is 90% Aloe Vera and also contains vitamins A C and E ... which will cover all your "B-ACE's".
The Aloe Vera plant contains one of the highest concentrations of Vitamin B which is what makes it an awesome delivery agent for skincare. This is one of the reasons why I LOVE Aloette ~ people like myself with Celiac tend to be deficient in several different vitamins so this is a helpful supplement to naturally absorb through our skin. Plus our Aloe Vera is certifed organic and paraben free and clinically proven to be 6-10 times more effective that other Aloe on the market PLUS it is number 1,2 or 3 in all our skincare products so you are not only getting high quality Aloe but a high quantity power of the plant in all your skicare products which equals amazing healing results for your skin.
So you've hydrated your skin with a product that contains the essential nutrients now you want to lock in those nutrients with a moisturizer. Again Aloette has two that I love the first being our Body Souffle which is just heavenly scented with a nourishing blend of organic orange oil, mango seed butter and essential ginger and coriander extracts it is just lovely. We also have our Hand and Body Silk made
with soothing Aloeganic aloe vera and coconut oil with a gentle floral
fragrance it is lightweight, non-greasy and will keep your skin
soft, supple and sweet smelling throughout the day!
3: Now go Dance in the D!
Vitamin D3 that is ~ one of the main reasons why our body overproduce oil is that we are deficient in Vitamin D3 ... Vitamin D specially D3 is essential to our body to create hormone balance and therefore a deficiency creates challenges in our over all health.
Vitamin D3 ironically is created best directly from the SUN however between the growing use of sunscreen and just 'barriers' like clothes it is very hard for the body to create and absorb enough for us which is why exfoliating the 'dead skin' is essential to help aid in the creation and absorption of vitamin D as it removes the dead skin cell layers and primes the surface for Vitamin D growth.
So once you are all exfoliated you need to make sure to spend some time each day in the direct sun ~ do not over do it 10-15 minutes of direct sunlight is plenty as you do not want to burn your skin. Sadly growing research shows that too much sunscreen may actually prevent the absorption of Vitamin D along with some other factors which why a growing number of us are 'deficient' in this Vitamin causing many ailments aside from just acne. So you definitely want this 15 minutes to be direct sunlight ~ apply your sunscreen after that time frame specially if you are going to be outside longer than 15 minutes. More info on the correlation of things that impede Vitamin D absorption can be found here.
It is also very important that you do not have a shower again for at least 3 or more
hours after completing the direct sun step. IMO this is another reason why we are growing more and more deficient in these essential vitamins is that we 'shower to often' in North America. Since both Vitamin B and D3 take time to absorb properly into your body having a shower to quickly after being out in the sun will wash
away the nourishing benefits before they have enough time to enter into
your system ~ try to keep showering and bathing to ONCE a day max and ideally in the morning after your body has had time out in the sun during the day and your vitamin D can be absorbed through the night while you sleep.
Consistently repeat those steps as part of your skin care routine each week up to 2-4 times a week depending on the severity of your oil and b-acne and you should find yourself having clear healthy skin in no time.
Yours in beauty
Margaret
