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These days it seems like theres a product for every skin care concern under the sun.
The beauty industry has found a way to commercialize every square inch of your skin, fromwhole-body deodoranttointimate vulva-care.
With all these products, why is there still no widely available fix for acne?
Its not lost on me that acne is incredibly nuanced and unique to every person.
What causes my acne can be different from what causes your acne, and so on.
Not to mention, there are varioustypes of acne, from superficial blackheads and whiteheads to hormonal cysts.
But as any consumer knows, customer satisfaction mostly boils down to instant gratification.
People think of acne as cosmetic issue, which it certainly is not.
For example, a lot of the big medical conditions that exist, like eczema, are chronic.
It could go away for many months, if not years, and come back.
The same with hypertension.
Acne is similar."
But we have wonderful treatments, Dr. Marchbein says.
People think of acne as cosmetic issue, which it certainly is not.
What do all these treatments have in common?
They must be prescribed by a doctor.
We dont just get our own high-blood-pressure medicine.
We dont just prescribe ourselves Synthroid for thyroid disease.
Theres a reason that we have board-certified physicians.
[An overnight treatment] will exist, and I think were getting better with that.
I can say [from my experience] working on some things, says Dr. Bhanusali.
The next iteration of acne patches will have targeted treatment, depending on the technology.
So, on a pimple-by-pimple basis, we will have better options in the next year or two.
Improvements in delivery, getting actives to where they need to be.
Most pimple patches are just removing debris and waste.
But you could have different actives that play a part in wound healing and pigmentation.
Right now, pimple patches are there to protect the outer skin layer.
Theyre hydrocolloid dressings, which have long been used in medicine to protect the skin barrier, he says.
But we use transdermal delivery of actives like in the form of hormone replacement patches.
For now, Dr. Zeichner gives his patients a DIY fix for getting rid of a pimple fast.
Our skin is a living, breathing thing, and there are so many things that react to it.
And now evenbenzoyl peroxide is being thrown under the bus.
However, Pavitt cant market the serum as an acne treatment due to FDA regulations.
The FDA is very slow on the update with new developments, she says.
And we can look at that withsunscreensas well.
Ourfilters and screens in the USare really, really antiquated because the FDA doesnt have development with it.
Just because a product is marketed as an acne product doesnt mean it will help.
Pavitt recommends sticking with brands that specialize in acne-prone skin and doing your own research.
Most of the time her clients are breaking out from a cocktail of ingredients and actives.
They get so mad at me because they want, to your point, a silver bullet.
And sometimes the silver bullet is just stopping everything and letting the skin do its thing.
There are so many things in the world that we just simply dont cure.
No cure like so many other chronic conditions.
In the meantime, the beauty industryand society as a wholeshould reframe the way we think about acne.
Normalizing it, letting people know that acne is not a condition where youre dirty.
Its not because youre not cleansing properly; you didnt do anything wrong, says Dr. Marchbein.
And if youre someone who suffers from problematic skin, give yourself some grace.
Breakouts, scarring, hyperpigmentation, and texture issues only indicate one thing: Youre human.
Thats why acne is so complicated.
