Ways to Prevent Acne at Home - Acne Home Care

Hello. I’m Seo Min-ho, the founding director of Episode Clinic.

여드름 시리즈 2탄, 집에서 할 수 있는 여드름 예방법에 대해서 알려드리겠습니다.

병원에서 여드름 치료를 받는 것이 가장 효과적인 방법이지만

If you don't take care of your skin at home, your acne treatment is only half as effective.

I’d like to share some lifestyle habits for preventing acne—advice I give to patients I treat for acne at my clinic.

1. Face Washing

In my last post, I explained that acneoccurs when dead skin cells blockthe pores, causing sebum to build up.

Therefore, it is important to wash your face thoroughlyto prevent clumps of dead skin cells from blocking the pores.

However, if you wash your face too often or too vigorously,

In fact, it may increase skin irritationand lead to even more sebum production.

The following are the recommended cleansing methods for acne-prone skin.

Number of times to wash your face: Twice a day (Not more, not less—just do it properly twice a day)

Facial Cleanser: Mildly Acidic Foaming Cleanser

Temperature: Use lukewarm water (avoid water that is too hot or too cold)

How to Wash Your Face: After washing your face, rinse thoroughly with water to ensure no residue remains.

See? It's not that hard, is it? Just follow these four simple steps: do it twice, use mildly acidic, lukewarm water, and rinse thoroughly.

Actually, if it's too complicated, it's hard to try it at home, so I end up not doing it...

2. Don't touch your acne with your hands

Acne... Whenever I see it, I just want to squeeze it with my fingers.

Just seeing it bothers me.

하지만 손으로 여드름을 짜면 당장 기분은 시원할 수 있지만 손에는 눈에 보이지 않는 다양한 세균이 있습니다.

If you pick at a pimple in this condition, additional bacteriacan enter the affected area, causing the inflammation to worsen. 

If a scar forms like this, it actually takes much more money and effort to remove it.

If you want to get rid of your current acne right away, in an environment with proper hygiene measuresin place,

It is recommended that you undergo aproper root canal treatment.

3. Cosmetics

Cosmetics are the topic people ask about most often.

To get straight to the point: Never use expensive cosmetics, andavoid using products that are high in oil.

You just need to follow these two guidelines.

특히 이걸 쉽게 알 수 있는 방법은 '논코메도제닉(noncomedogenic)' 화장품을 고르시면 좋습니다.

Non-comedogenic cosmetics are products formulated to minimize the risk of clogging pores and causing acne. 

Just because cosmetics are expensive doesn't mean they're any good. 

If you take a closer look at the cosmetics industry, you'll find that the cost of the actual ingredients accounts for less than 10%, while more than 70%goes toward marketing and distribution costs.

Buying expensive cosmetics is just like paying the modeling fees for the cosmetic companies' adsout of my own pocket.

It is most important to check the ingredients of a cosmetic productbefore purchasing it.

I'll post a separate entry with my cosmetic recommendations.

Just keep these two things in mind: 1. You don't need to buy expensive products, 2. Buy non-comedogenic products.

4. Lifestyle Habits★★

In fact, this lifestyle habit is the most important. While the three points above were about managingexisting sebum and acne,

Lifestyle habits regulate sebum production itself.

I will explain lifestyle habits by dividing them into three categories: sleep, diet, and hygiene.

1) Sleep

Sleep... It's what modern people—myself included—lack the most, yet need the most.

Explaining the mechanism in detail would be too complicated, so I'll just give youthe bottom line.

Lack of sleep -> Increased stress -> Increased sebum production

Both sleep deprivation and stress increase the secretion of stress hormonesin our bodies.

From an evolutionary perspective, since the skin ismore likely to be damagedduring stressful situations... sebum production increasesto strengthen the skin barrier.

It also helps wounds healquickly.

However,

You can think of this as a defense mechanism thatwas necessary during the primitive eraof hunting and gathering but is no longer neededby modern humans—yet it still persists.

If possible, it’s best to maintain a regular sleep scheduleto help regulate hormone secretion.

2) Food ★★★

The Relationship Between Food and Acne

They used to say it didn't exist, so why has that changed now?

This is one of the questions most frequently asked by people with acne.

“Does food affect acne?”

사실 이 질문에 대한 의학적 답변은

시간이 지나면서 조금 바뀌었습니다.

In the past, it was commonly believed that “food and acne are unrelated.”

과거 피부과 교과서에서는

음식과 여드름은 큰 관련이 없다는 설명이 많았습니다.

이 인식에는

1969년에 발표된 한 연구(Effect of chocolate on acne vulgaris)가 큰 영향을 주었습니다.

이 연구에서는초콜릿을 먹어도 여드름이 악화되지 않는다는 결과가 나왔고,

For a long time afterward

“Food has nothing to do with acne.”

This perception has become widespread.

However,

Recent research has shown a slight shift in thinking.

최근 연구들을 보면

음식과 여드름 사이에 일부 연관성이 있을 수 있다는 결과들이 나오고 있습니다.

특히 다음과 같은 식습관이

여드름을 악화시킬 수 있다는 연구들이 있습니다.

When you eat foods high in sugar(such as soda, fruit juice, chocolate, and cake),

-> Raises blood sugar quickly

->Induces increases in insulin, IGF-1, and androgen activity

-> Increased sebum production, excess dead skin cells in the pores, and inflammatory reactions

leads to.

따라서 특정 음식을 무조건 끊기보다는

당분이 많은 음식이나 단 음료를 과도하게 섭취하지 않는 것이

현실적인 관리 방법입니다.

And among those who have recently been experiencing a lot of acne, 

I used to take health supplementsquite often.

As I was organizing the content, it ended up getting a bit long, so

I'll explain this mechanism in more detail in my next post!

In other words,

과거

→ 음식과 여드름은 관계 없다

현재

→ 일부 식습관은 여드름을 악화시킬 수 있다

However,

음식만으로 여드름이 생기거나 치료되는 것은 아니며

개인차가 존재합니다.

3) Hygiene Management

여드름은 단순히 피부 문제만이 아니라

생활습관과 위생 상태의 영향도 많이 받습니다.

Items that come into contact with the skin tend to accumulate more sebum and dead skin cellsthan you might think,and bacteriacan easilymultiplyon them.

따라서 피부에 자주 닿는 물건을

깨끗하게 관리하는 것도 여드름 예방에 도움이 됩니다.

What are some typical examples?

(1) Pillowcase

Pillows are particularly prone to accumulating sebum secreted while you sleep, dead skin cells shed from your face, and bacteriathat live there.

이 상태에서 계속 얼굴이 닿으면

여드름이 악화되는 경우가 있습니다.

If possible, it's best to changeyour pillowcases once or twice a week.

(2) Masks

Wearing a mask for a long time causes moisture to build up, and bacteriacan easily multiply in warm, humid environments.

Therefore, it is recommended that you change your mask frequently, if possible.

(3) Smartphones

This is something that, surprisingly, many people overlook.

Smartphones harbor more germsthan you might think. (They say that if you don't wipe them down often, they can be even dirtier than a toilet.)

통화를 할 때 스마트폰이 얼굴 피부에 닿으면

여드름 부위에 세균이 전달될 수 있습니다.

Therefore, it's a good idea to wipe downyour smartphone regularly.

(4) Hair

머리카락에 있는 피지와 헤어 제품이 얼굴 피부에 닿으면

이마 여드름이 생기는 경우가 자주 있습니다.

특히 헤어 왁스나 오일 제품을 사용하는 경우

이마 피부에 닿지 않도록 하고 꼭 청결하게 머리를 감고 자는것이 좋습니다(베개커버와 이어지는 관계..)

5. Summary

Home care for preventing acne is

1️) 하루 2회 세안

2) 여드름 손으로 만지지 않기

3) 모공을 막는 화장품 피하기

4) 수면, 음식, 위생관리 등 생활습관 관리(스트레스관리)

이 네 가지만 잘 지켜도

여드름 발생을 상당히 줄일 수 있습니다.

The next post will discuss the relationship between fitness supplements and acne.

Let's take a closer look.