Waking up in the morning to discover an acne breakout is probably one of the most annoying way to start your day. And perhaps you find yourself asking: “when will this misery end?!”

If this is you, then we are glad to say that you’ve come to the right place where you’ll learn how to finally reduce your acne once and for all while also learning how to take better care of your skin.

Beauty Barn lists 6 ways to Worsen Your Acne and what your alternative options are.

Also, have you checked out our blog on Best K-Beauty Ingredients for Acne? Check it out.

What is acne?

Acne is a skin disorder that is common to a lot of people across the world between the time individuals hit their puberty which may persist beyond the age of 25. Acne consists of pustules, nodules, blackheads, and whiteheads which can appear on the face, neck, back and the shoulders.

What causes acne?

Basically, acne appears whenever your pores (small openings on the skin where hair follicles are found) are clogged with impurities which include:
– Excess sebum (natural oil that your skin produces to keep itself moisturized),
– Dead skin cells,
– Acne causing bacteria,
– Other factors like hormonal changes can also influence the growth of acne.

Do you know how many types of acne are there? Watch this to know more:

Here are 6 easy Ways to Worsen your Acne

Unknowingly some of the things you do are secretly damaging your skin, for instance, your acne. So here are 5 things you need to avoid if you don’t want to worsen the acne breakouts:

1. Using strong actives without building tolerance

If you are new to skincare or have a weakened and damaged skin barrier, you will definitely need to go easy on the active ingredients (actives in short).

Actives as you know are strong ingredients that target skin concerns like hyperpigmentation, wrinkles and acne. Although, the results are amazing, if your skin barrier is severely weakened there’s a high chance of it doing more damage than good.

Alternatives:

You can try lesser concentrations at first and build tolerance for your skin thereon.

For alternatives, try using gentler ingredients like:
– Centella Asiatica
– Mugwort
– Propolis
– Snail Mucin
– Green Tea

Related to this: Top 9 Korean Skincare Products for Acne 

2. Picking Acne with hands

Truth be told – a lot of us have tried our hand at picking and popping that those dreadful zits or pimples. And yes, it is hard not to, but it is a struggle that you’ll have to bear to avoid further acne breakouts.

And did you know that picking acne only increases your chances of getting acne scars which are very stubborn to get rid of? But wait, that’s not all, our hands have different kinds of bacteria which only contributes to more acne breakouts.

As much as you can, it is best to avoid picking your acne with bare hands.

Alternatives:
The alternatives are – use an acne picking tool or try spot treatments like acne patches. Now the upside of K-beauty acne patches is that – they calm the acne inflammation and redness effectively. Most K-beauty acne patches are semi-transparent so that it is able to match multiple skin colours.

Related to this: Pimple Patches: Everything You Need To Know About It

Also check out: Best K-Beauty Spot Treatment 

3. Consuming Sugary and Starchy products

Once in a while we enjoy a good dessert after dinner or an ice cream cone on a hot summer da which is fine. However, consuming more sugary and starchy food may increase a hormone in your body called insulin which can lead to increased oil production on your face.

The excess oil clogs your pores and contributes to acne breakouts as such.

There are also incidences of dairy products causing acne in some individuals.

Alternatives:
The best alternatives would be to look for nutrients in food that contain Zinc, Antioxidants, Vitamin A and E.

Food such as dark green leafy vegetables, tomatoes, quinoa, brown rice, lentils, fatty fish, nuts, etc. may also help improve and lower acne breakouts.

Related to this: 6 Superfoods For Healthy, Glowing Skin

4. Excessive Cleansing

Cleansing is no doubt a good way to keep your acne in check by eliminating excess sebum (oil), bacteria and other impurities.

But did you know? If you cleanse your face too much, it will only worsen your acne breakouts because your skin barrier is compromised and hence irritating your acne flare ups.

The Solution?
Cleanse more does not get rid of acne faster but the key is moderation.

Cleansing your face twice a day is sufficient as you don’t want to damage your skin barrier by overdoing it.

Now what if your skin is dry? You can still cleanse your face but we would recommend to keep it minimal for the dry skin types.
You can try rinsing your face with just lukewarm water in the morning and a use a gentle cleanser like the COSRX Advanced Snail Mucin Gel Cleanser suitable for dry, acne-prone and sensitive skin.

Related to this: Snail Mucin FAQs You Need to Know

You might also like: 6 Best Korean Cleansers by COSRX

5. Skipping your Moisturizer

Possibly one of the biggest misconceptions out there is – “I have acne-prone and oily skin therefore I choose not to use a moisturizer because it makes my skin oily.” But you should now that this does quite the opposite. Not using a moisturizer encourages your skin to produce more sebum which can clog your pores causing acne to appear.

What should you do?
It’s quite simple, all you need to do is start using a moisturizer. If you feel creamy moisturizers are heavy for your skin, try moisturizers like the AXIS-Y Heartleaf My Type Calming Cream which has an almost gel-like consistency, pretty lightweight and has acne calming benefits.

We would also recommend one of Beauty Barn’s bestselling moisturizer – I’m From Mugwort Cream which is just fantastic at hydrating, calming irritation, reducing acne breakouts, and soothing inflamed & reddened skin.

Related to this: 12 Best K-Beauty Moisturizers Available in India

6. Using Alcohol-based toners

Now this one may seem a little tricky because there are certain types of alcohol ingredient types that are present in skincare.

Most contemporary Korean skincare brands are more likely to lean towards not adding alcohol in most of their products.

So the question is: should you avoid alcohol based toners?

Well, yes and even more so if you get acne breakouts. Basically, alcohol dries out your skin which would instead encourage your skin to produce more oil. The increase in sebum would only contribute to clogging your pores. In addition, alcohol may also strip off your skin barrier.

For drier skin types, alcohol is a big No-No because it may cause your skin to become even flakier and drier.

Alternatives:
The good news about K-beauty is that there are alternatives for alcohol-free toners like the Centella Water Alcohol Free Toner from COSRX which just amazing at what it does. It has both calming and hydrating benefits making it a good option for acne breakouts and repairing your skin barrier.

Related to this: Best K-Beauty Hydrating Toners for Glowing Skin

Conclusion

So, we hope that helps you understand how acne can worsen. These are basic mistakes you need to avoid if you wish to see positive results as you deal with your acne breakouts.
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