The #1 Thing that Is Making Your Acne Worse this Summer

For years, people believed that a good, healthy dose of sun was the answer to their acne-related problems. Doctors in the 1950’s even prescribed sessions under a sun lamp to treat patients looking to rid their complexions of acne, and the idea has more or less stuck, with some looking to more and more DIY options to help symptoms of acne.

Many dermatologists are pleading with people to resist the urge to go about treating their skin the old fashioned way with a lengthy sunbath by the pool. The claim nowadays is that the sun’s rays can actually end up making acne worse...but why? To get an idea of exactly what the sun is doing to your skin to make acne worse, check out this quick and easy guide below!  

Those rays will end up leaving you oilier than ever!

People with acne seem to love tanning because many of them notice their pimples drying up after a day or two in the sun. What they don’t realize is that this temporary relief from an irritating blemish is actually triggering even bigger problems to get underway, problems which can actually lead to more acne! That oil your may feel on your skin, especially in the t-zone, nose or chin area, is called sebum, which is produced by the sebaceous glands. Sebum’s function is to hydrate the skin. When the skin becomes too dry, these glands become triggered to produce more sebum to replace the oil that was just removed. Too much sebum can become clogged inside the pores along with dirt and debris to form bacteria, which leads to acne symptoms such as blackheads and pimples. Not only does this counterproductive method of treating acne potentially lead to more acne, it also diminishes moisture from the outer layer of skin, which makes it hard to keep the body hydrated on those hot days, and may lead to early onset lines and wrinkles, in addition to acne.  

It discourages inflammation, but doesn’t actually work to solve the problem.

The decrease in the redness of acne people experience after prolonged exposure to sun rays seems like a quick-fix solution for a spotty complexion, but that’s only part of the picture when it comes to how UV rays are affecting your condition. The reason the redness appears to go away is because the sun actually decreases an inflammatory response produced by the body. The whitehead of a pimple is actually white blood cells sent to “fight” the bacteria formed within a pore clogged with too much sebum, dirt and debris, so when the inflammatory response isn’t triggered, a puss-filled blemish doesn’t form. Seems like the perfect solution to acne, right? Not quite. When you decrease this immune reaction, the entire immune system can eventually become compromised, making it hard to fight off infection down the road.  Additionally, this temporary oil zap isn’t actually treating the problem at all! In order to achieve long-term relief, the problem must be addressed at its source - the sebaceous glands, and a systemic treatment like AcnEase does that for its users everyday, regardless of how much sun hits your skin!  

Sun rays can make existing acne scars even darker.

The main reason many people feel that their acne improves after a long day in the sun is because the skin becomes darker, making existing acne and acne scarring less visible. Unfortunately, this cover-up solution is just an illusion. Not only will that acne still be there once the color starts to fade, but the scars left behind can be made even worse through hyperpigmentation. Sun rays can increase the risk of leaving permanent acne scars no matter what your skin type, tone or shade, so in order to prevent an even bigger problem to deal with down the road, be sure to wear sunscreen at all times, even on the cloudy days, and do your best to avoid exposure during the sun’s peak hours, usually between 10am-4pm.  

If you happen to live in a part of the world that the clouds rarely cover, or just can’t seem to resist soaking up some sun rays, you can take some good preventative measures to assure you that your acne won’t be made worse by those UV rays. You always want to give your skin a nice coat of sunscreen, and cover up as much as possible - that will work wonders on the surface of your skin. Additionally, to stay proactive from within, and to experience long-term results, an all-natural, herbal solution like AcnEase can work to produce real results you can live with, even in the hot and sweltering summer heat!  

We want to hear from you! What do you do to keep the sun off your face? Or are you still tanning? Tell us in the comments!