Benzoyl Peroxide Otc Treatment

It’s difficult not to walk inside a specialty store and be astounded by the thousands of products designed for acne-prone skin. New products seem to appear on store shelves by the hundreds, literally overnight. Demand for the latest products is always huge and largely flamed by the effective and often misleading advertising campaigns of skin care companies. Consumers always seem to be convinced that new products will work much better than their prior treatments. A close comparison of product labels quickly reveals just how ignorant most consumers are. The same ingredients in your last acne treatment are simply repackaged and restocked. There is no sense in jumping the bandwagon with millions of others, who are sure to lose money with little benefit.

Benzoyl peroxide is the most prevalent and ingredient in most acne products. It can treat several contributing factors to acne. It kills acne bacteria and improves skin cell turnover, which is the primary cause of acne. Dead skin which fails to slough off instead penetrates and obstructs pores, trapping sebum and bacteria. No OTC medications aside from benzoyl peroxide attacks both the bacteria and normalizes the shedding cycle.

Your usual over-the-counter treatment features a multi-step process. First your cleanse your skin, and then apply a special solution, such as a toner. The final step is to apply a topical medication. Cleansers and topical creams and gels specifically designed for acne always contain some concentration of benzoyl peroxide. Sometimes it is the sole acne-fighting additive, or combined with other ingredients like sulfur.

In most cases, a plain tube of benzoyl peroxide will be just as good as any other OTC product. Don’t be lured in by clever marketing ruses such as the fancy graphs depicted on the back of acne products. These usually don’t hold much water. A gentle cleanser and benzoyl peroxide is all you need.

Be sure to purchase only the low concentration form of the topical, which should be 2.5%. You can find it in 5% and 10% variations, however, these only produce more irritation without any further improvement. Use a moisturizer if the low concentration proves to irritating as well.

Educate yourself on how to get rid of pimples fast and taking care of acne prone skin

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