Whether it’s heavy acids or household cleaners, we all have our best methods for keeping fractures at bay. But as much as we know about caring for our own skin, dermatologists always seems to have another trick up its sleeve. To help you with your acne-fighting arsenal, we asked five dermatologists to share their best-kept skincare secrets. Cream? Each of them gets the job done quickly.
1. Change your hair care products
“Most people don’t realize that everyday hair care products like shampoo and conditioner can cause skin problems, including acne and rashes,” says Iris Rubin, MD, dermatologist and founder of SEEN Skin & Hair Care. “This is because these products come into contact with the skin when they are rinsed off and run down the scalp, face and body in the shower. But here’s the catch: when you wash these products off, they can build up a residue on the skin that lasts for hours. This residue transfers from your hair to your towel or pillowcase and then onto your skin. To make matters worse, if your shampoo or conditioner contains pore-clogging ingredients like coconut oil, certain waxes, and even polymers, you could be rolling around in them on your pillowcase all night. That’s why it’s important to wash your pillowcase and towels at least once a week .”
“People with acne-prone skin need to take a close look at their skin and hair care products to make sure it’s non-comedogenic (doesn’t break out). Sometimes changing your regular shampoo or conditioner to one that’s non-comedogenic and safe for acne-prone skin, like SEEN, enough to remove rashes quickly.
2. Apply salicylic acid under the pimple patch
“What’s even better than leaving a pimple alone is dabbing on the spot with powerful acne-fighting ingredients like salicylic acid,” says Sandra Lee, MD (aka Dr. Pimple Popper), dermatologist and founder of SLMD. Skin care. “Let it dry, then apply salicylic acid with a salicylic acid pimple patch. Leave it on for a few hours and then repeat. I like this chip because it doubles the salicylic acid, which has pore-cleansing and anti-inflammatory properties.
3. Book a professional chemical peel
“When a red, angry pimple rears its head, I trust a few spots because they work quickly. A topical steroid applied lightly to the skin helps, as does a professional chemical peel, which most people associate with skin care,” says board-certified dermatologist Papri Sakar, MD. “A salicylic or glycolic acid peel can help shrink a super-inflamed cyst, but there are also many combination peels that also use small amounts of several different ingredients. Salicylic acid is the easiest to use because the skin doesn’t necessarily need to ‘peel’ for it to work. The treatment is quite quick – it takes 20-30 minutes in the office – and I usually treat the whole face and not a single rash… If you’re in trouble and need a quick fix, a peel usually works well.
4. Try topical steroids
“A pimple can appear as a small asymptomatic red bump, a small pustule with a whitehead in the center, or a deep, painful cystic pimple,” says dermatologist Kseniya Kobets, MD. “If you have a topical steroid at home, such as over-the-counter hydrocortisone, it’s a good idea to use it as a spot treatment for a few days to a week, especially if you experience irritation or sensitivity from benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid. pimples. However, a word of caution when using topical steroids: applying them all over the face or long-term is not good idea because it can lead to thinning of the skin, dilation of blood vessels, stretch marks and even worsening of acne.
5. Use a few drops of Visine
“Many people ask me what to do if they get a pimple while traveling, because many of us break out when away from home due to increased stress and exposure to dirt and grime. I recommend people travel with Visine,” says Nazanin Saedi, MD, board-certified dermatologist at Plymouth Meeting Dermatology . “Over-the-counter eye drops contain tetrahydrozoline hydrochloride, a vasoconstrictor that constricts superficial blood vessels to temporarily reduce redness. However, you want to use Visine on the pimple for no more than a day or two because it can cause redness.”