What is Acne?

Well let's start off by saying that acne is NOT your fault.  It is not caused by chocolate or french fries or poor hygiene. 

Hormones and genetics are the main culprits for causing Acne. Acne is a complicated process happening inside the skins pore and a cycle that starts weeks before a pimple surfaces. The plugging of the pore, oil secretion, bacterial overgrowth and inflammation are all steps in the acne cycle.

Acne is an inherited condition of the pore. If you have a family history of moderate-to-severe acne, you have the greatest risk of developing it yourself.  When someone is prone to acne, their pores clog with dead skin cells much faster than normal. Healthy pores shed about one layer of dead skin cells per day inside the pore, but acne-prone pores shed up to five layers of dead skin cells per day. The body just can’t keep up with keeping the pore clear. Technically, this is called “retention hyperkeratosis” — dead skin cells shedding more quickly than the pore can expel them.

Another factor is androgen hormones that begin triggering during puberty and continue to influence the skin through adulthood as hormone levels fluctuate, especially in women, often triggering acne in women who may have escaped it in their youth.

To read more about what acne is click here: