5 Things to Cut From Your Acne Plan

It's a great idea to come up with an overall acne plan if you want clear skin. Washing your skin properly, eating right, and trying some of the common treatments should be part of any acne plan. But there are lots of products on the market today that can do more harm than good. Beware. This is especially true if you have sensitive skin. Let's take a look at some products you may wish to avoid:

Exfoliants: It's a cardinal rule of acne treatment - avoid anything that irritates and inflames your skin. This goes double for loofahs. Exfoliants can inflame acne and spread bacteria.

Masks: Unless a mask is prescribed as part of a holistic treatment, don't bother. Just like exfoliants, masks can irritate and inflame acne prone skin.

Pore strips: These pieces of tape look like they're working because when you peel them off your nose they are covered in little black spikes. Again, they irritate and inflame the skin and do more harm than good. It's better to attack blackheads with a simple 2.5% benzoyl peroxide gel.

Acne Soaps and washes: even though these potions usually contain an active ingredient like benzoyl peroxide, the truth is that they are in contact with your skin for so little time that they have minimal effect. They probably won't hurt you, but they will be a waste of your money. If you have money to burn, go for it!

Antibiotics: Okay, doctors have been prescribing antibiotics for years, so how can I possibly say they belong on this list? Well, bacteria is only a small piece of a much larger puzzle when it comes to acne. Is it nice to get rid of it? Sure. But it's not good for you to deplete the "good" bacteria from your system. The side effects of antibiotics can be uncomfortable to say the least. You will also be contributing to the formation of antibiotic resistant bacteria. In short, it's not worth having them as part of your acne plan. Save a few bucks and pass on the antibiotics.