Does Sleep Affect Acne?

I realized the other day that I am always tired, like super tired! Every morning alone is a battle just to get out of bed, and when I get in the shower I sway around because I’m still half asleep. I know why though, because I go to bed usually around 11-12 sometimes later and I’m always tossing in turning during the night, and then I have to wake up early every morning as well. I never thought much of how it could be affecting me until after reading an article about sleep that I realized my sleep routine have been like this for years. The article talks about something called sleep defecit which is when you keep depriving your body of sleep continuously after a while you will begin to lose your strength and concentration, and all the other things that help you get through a day will become weak or dull too. It can effect your health, well being, and things like your skin!


So I thought that this could definitely be a viable reason for acne, and I’m going to try it! I’m going to try my hardest to be in bed by 10pm every night and sleep for a full 8-9 hours and see if any significant changes happen to my skin.

I really suggest that you read this article and ask yourself if you’re getting enough sleep?

“Most teens need about 8½ to more than 9 hours of sleep each night. The right amount of sleep is essential for anyone who wants to do well on a test or play sports without tripping over their feet. Unfortunately, though, many teens don't get enough sleep.

Why Aren't Teens Getting Enough Sleep?

Until recently, teens were often given a bad rap for staying up late, oversleeping for school, and falling asleep in class. But recent studies show that adolescent sleep patterns actually differ from those of adults or kids.

These studies show that during the teen years, the body's circadian rhythm (sort of like an internal biological clock) is temporarily reset, telling a person to fall asleep later and wake up later. This change in the circadian rhythm seems to be due to the fact that the brain hormone melatonin is produced later at night for teens than it is for kids and adults. This can make it harder for teens to fall asleep early.

These changes in the body's circadian rhythm coincide with a time when we're busier than ever. For most teens, the pressure to do well in school is more intense than when they were kids, and it's harder to get by without studying hard. And teens also have other time demands — everything from sports and other extracurricular activities to fitting in a part-time job to save money for college.

Early start times in some schools may also play a role in this sleep deficit. Teens who fall asleep after midnight may still have to get up early for school, meaning that they may only squeeze in 6 or 7 hours of sleep a night. A couple hours of missed sleep a night may not seem like a big deal, but can create a noticeable sleep deficit over time.”

The rest of the article can be found here: http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/wellbeing/how_much_sleep.html#

Happy sleeping!

-jpc

Red Dead Redemption Update 2

On the previous Red Dead blog I said that I’d see how my skin got after I played for a little just to see if it would get worse or anything. I played for about 2-1/2 hours yesterday, and it was nothing tough, or aggravating, or stressful, just mellow roaming around and trying to get the basics of the game down. I was amazed though when I finally turned it off and looked in the mirror; my face was literally almost dripping with oil! I splashed some water on my face because I was about to go to bed anyways, but not even that got all the oil off because it was so thick!

Today I have some bad pimples flaring up on my right cheek and a huge swollen one that hurts like crazy on my chin, but whether it was from playing the game or just natural, I can’t be sure. I don’t think that it just caused these pimples though, they could’ve been there and all the oil caused them to flare up, or maybe all the oil did clog my pores causing these mammoth pimples. If you have not read the Video Games and Acne blog here is the link to it; check it out especially if you play games on the regular: http://blog.pimpleplanet.com/2010/04/video-games-and-acne.html

I’ll keep you updated in the next couple of days to come. By the way the game is awesome, and I would recommend it to anyone!

-Jpc

Why Do Some People Get Acne and Others Don't

I was thinking the other day about other possible causes of acne to write about, and as I was writing puberty/ hormones on my list of things that I had already wrote about it made me think. “How come everyone that goes through puberty not experience acne?” I know that a lot of people say it’s genetics, but no one in my family really had any acne and if they did it wasn’t bad, so I crossed that out on my checklist. Anyways I found this article that has viable reason for what may cause acne in teens, and I noticed one of the possible causes could be certain medications. I have not looked into this possible cause for acne but I do take asthma medication regularly, so this might be a cause for my acne. I will look into this for the next couple of days and see what I find, but in the meantime read this article:

“The following is a list of possible links to acne:
* Hereditary: Acne tends to run in families where other members also have developed acne. Family history of acne is associated with earlier occurrence of acne.
* Use of anabolic steroids: Steroids affect the process of pubertal growth and sebaceous glands. Sebaceous glands are connected to hair follicles which secrete an oily substance called sebum. When this process is altered (by steroids) these glands and pores get clogged up, resulting in acne.
* Medication: Any medication containing...lithium (treatment for migraine and cluster headaches, bipolar disorder, depression)...barbiturates (sedative/hypnotic drugs)...androgens (steroid drugs) contribute to acne.
* Hormones: Acne may be hastened by androgens, male hormones that are present in both women and men. These androgen hormones have long been faulted for acne. They stimulate the sebaceous glands, producing more oil, which leads to clogged pores and provides a breeding ground for the acne bacteria.
* Bacteria in the pores: Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) is the anaerobic bacterium that causes acne. When the sebaceous glands start to over produce oil, the p.acne invades the hair follicles and starts to multiply by feeding themselves of the oil using enzymes. Acne bacteria then produces fatty acids that inflame the skin. Red and white blood cells start to defend the body of this inflammation often causing an inflammatory response, that results in pimples, whiteheads, zits, swelling and pus.
* Chemicals: Exposure to dioxins not only causes acne-like pimples, but are among the most dangerous poisons known.
* Accumulation of dead skin cells: Acne begins when the oil (sebum) mixes with dead skin cells. This combination plugs up the skin's pores and becomes infected with bacteria that oozes into nearby tissues, resulting in swelling, nodules, pimples or whiteheads.
* Stress: Stress doesn't cause acne, but stress often makes it worse.”

The rest of article can be found here:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Acne,-Why-Do-Some-People-Get-it-and-Some-People-Dont?&id=1187467


-jpc

RED DEAD REDEMPTION

I have been waiting for this moment for so long and now that it’s finally here and I finally have the game its safe to say that it is going to be hard to find the time to do anything else. If you play videogames at all then I would definitely recommend this game to you! I know it’s completely off subject from acne, but I guess I could make something out of it and keep track of my skin to see if it changes from the long nights of playing this game. Like in the previous blog “Videogames and Acne”( which you can find here: http://blog.pimpleplanet.com/2010/04/video-games-and-acne.html) I explained that my face always gets oily and greasy when I play games for too long and too late at night, and I usually breakout soon after. So I guess I can test this theory out over the next couple of nights, and especially on the weekends when I stay up super late! I have the game now, but I have not even had a chance to open it and play it yet because I wanted to get everything done and out of the way before I did so that I could savor the enjoyment! The game already was rated a 9.7 out of 10 on IGN.com and its popularity keeps on growing! I changed my Gamertag to: PIMPLEPLANETcom add me if you want to get down! In the meantime check out these videos, and I’ll be sure to tell you if any significant changes happen to my skin in the future:












-Jpc

Milk and Dairy, Do They Affect Acne?

I’ve have been hearing a lot lately that milk and other dairy products are a main culprit when it comes to acne. Though I myself used to drink milk regularly every morning, and then I stopped for2 months to test out this theory, and I didn’t notice any significant changes at all. I can see how they get this theory though and I’m sure that is does have a big effect on some peoples’ acne. They say that milk cause acne because it has hormones in it, and well we all know that hormones are the main cause for acne when one is a teenager. So before you do anything else read this article, it is really interesting and should only take a minute of your time and you’ll learn a little bit more about milk and dairy and their effects on acne!


Here it is…

“We've heard it over and over again: your diet does not cause acne. However, there are a handful of doctors who believe that what we eat may indeed affect our skin. And they're not pointing fingers at chocolate and potato chips, but instead at milk. That's right -- the wholesome drink that we've always considered healthy is at the center of an acne controversy.

Researchers claim to have found a correlation between milk intake and the incidence of acne. It seems milk drinkers develop more severe acne than non-milk drinkers. One study, published in the May 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, looked at the diets of teenage boys. The young men who drank the most milk also tended to have the worst acne.

This supports the results of previous studies, during which teenage girls were asked to keep food diaries and monitor breakout activity. Again, girls whose diets were rich in dairy products had more severe acne than the rest.

Of all dairy products, milk was the worst offender. Chocolate milk, cottage cheese, and sherbet also had a negative effect on the skin. But other dairy products didn't seem to cause breakouts.

Interestingly, skim milk induced breakouts more often than whole milk, so it seems fat content in milk isn't the culprit. And those who took vitamin D supplements didn't have more breakouts, so vitamin D isn't thought to be the cause either.

Fatty foods also didn't trigger breakouts. And the foods that many people associate with causing acne -- chocolate, pizza, soda, and French fries -- didn't seem to increase breakout activity at all.

Why would certain dairy products contribute to acne? Some think it's the hormones found in milk. Milk contains androgen hormones, which have long been associated with the formation of acne breakouts.

Testosterone is an androgen hormone, and it is strongly linked to acne development. Its most often thought of as a male hormone, but women produce testosterone too, although in lesser amounts.

Testosterone, through a complicated chain reaction, creates di-hydrotestosterone (DHT). DHT stimulates the sebaceous glands, creating an oilier skin that is more prone to pore blockages and, ultimately, pimples. Milk naturally is filled with hormones, including DHT. It's possible that milk contains enough hormones to have an effect on the body, including the skin. People who are genetically predisposed to acne breakouts may have a stronger reaction to the hormones in milk, according to some researchers.

Many dairy farmers also give their cows additional hormones to stimulate milk production and enable the cow to produce more milk. As a result, most milk is very high in IGF-1. IGF-1 is a growth factor that peaks in the human body during adolescence, when acne is usually at it's worst. It is believed that IGF-1, along with testosterone and DHT, trigger acne breakouts.

In two previous studies, high milk consumption was linked to high IGF-1 levels. Again, skim milk was associated with higher IGF-1 levels than whole milk.

The processing of skim milk may explain why it is linked to acne severity more often than whole milk. Whey proteins are added to give skim milk a creamier consistency. Some speculate that these proteins impact acne development.

Of course, not everyone who drinks a lot of milk breaks out in pimples, and many disagree with these findings. The Dairy Council counters that the results are skewed, citing the fact that in one study, adult women were asked about their dairy intake during the years after they left high school.

And many medical professionals are wary of the conclusions being drawn, because they don't take into account other factors that may influence acne severity. They're also quick to point out that the studies don't link milk to acne development -- they only establish a correlation between milk consumption and acne severity.

The biggest problem for researchers is proving their controversial theory. There is no way to do a double-blind, randomized controlled trial (considered the gold standard in research), because there is nothing that can be used as an adequate placebo for milk.

But some doctors are taking a new view of how diet affects the skin, and this no-dairy philosophy has its believers. Some dermatologists say they have had some success in having their patients cut milk and dairy from their diets.

There is still no hard evidence proving milk consumption causes, or worsens, acne. Much more research is needed before this theory can be proven. However, decreasing milk intake may be helpful, especially for those whose acne isn't responding well to more conventional treatments.

In the meantime, you can stick to the advice that doctors have given for years: avoid any foods that seem to worsen your breakouts whether that be pizza, chocolate, oranges, or dairy products.”
Here is the link to the site! - http://acne.about.com/od/acnetriggers/a/milkandacne.htm

So my suggestion is experiment a little and see if milk is one of the causes for your acne, you never know!

Take it easy!

-Jpc

Sunlight, is it Good or Bad?

So with this subject like any other acne related thing; has two sides to it. There are people who swear that sunlight is an essential part in healing acne, and that it is good for the skin. While others are totally anti-sun, and say that it can make your acne worse and cause acne. I personally believe like many others that there is a happy medium between the two, and that sunlight which is essential for all life on earth is good for the skin, but too much of it can be a bad thing. After all I used to spend 5-6 hours a day in the Arizona sun skateboarding, and it was when I broke my arm and had to stop for a few months that my acne slowly began to start. I never wore any sunscreen, I didn’t eat healthy, and I would often drink Coke or juice instead of water. After a long day of sweating like crazy and being pounded by nonstop sunlight I would go home and instead of taking a shower or washing my face I would just do my homework and go to bed, and around this time my skin was absolutely flawless like the surface of a peach almost. It was when I broke my left arm twice pretty much back-to-back (After the first time I broke it and got the cast off the doctor gave me the “okay” to skate again, I then sadly broke it again a week later haha!) that I was out from skateboarding for a good 4-4-1/2 months with all the rehab included. During this time was when I started hanging out with different people from school and started going to parties and drinking and such. It was all good fun and I was almost glad that I had broken my arm because I got to experience new things, but this was also the time when my skin started to go down the drain…


Whether it was because I wasn’t getting any sunlight and exercising anymore, all the drinking, staying up late and other things that come with partying, or maybe it was both of these things combined, or maybe it was neither. I believe that it had a lot to do with both of the things, but I can’t be sure! My theory was that all of the toxins and things from living like a crazed party animal were just staying in my system because I didn’t exercise or sweat anymore to get them out. So from this my skin was beginning to lose its strength and on top of I had no source of Vitamin D (Sunlight) because I wasn’t skating anymore or going out much during the day. Back then though I had no idea what was going on or causing it so I just bought the harshest treatments I could find and continued on while the condition worsened; again though this is just my theory for what started it, I have no physical proof that these things are what cause my acne.

Either way you look at it sunlight, which is Vitamin D is good for the body and skin let alone all life on earth! If you do have acne though I do hear that being in the sun too long can cause your acne to scar pretty bad. There are sunscreens out there, but I personally don’t like them because they make my face as greasy and shiny looking like a mirror, and I’m not so sure that they work all too well. Now days it’s hard for me to find the time to get proper amount of sunlight but when I do it sure does feel really good on my face. I also notice that whenever I’m on vacation at the beach all day that my skin will look pretty good by the time I get back home.

The bottom line from what I’ve read is that the UV rays from the sun can aid in killing the acne causing bacteria on the skin. On the other hand though it causes your sebaceous glands to produce more oil, and it narrows your hair follicle which can clog your pore and vuela a pimple is born! Though as you already know there are two sides to every story, and while some things might work for others it may not help at all for different people. So let me know what you think, your feedback is always appreciated!

                          Have a good one!

                                -Jpc

How A Pimple Forms

Hey all! I was reading around and I came across this article that explains really well the process of a pimple forming! Now it makes me a little confused because I hear that no one knows exactly what causes acne, and then on the other side I hear people saying they know exactly what causes acne. So either way this article will help you out if you don’t know too much about pimples and how they form. I got the article from: http://www.acnetalks.com/pimple/Acne-Basics/Define-Acne/How-Acne-Happens.htm


Check it out!

Did you always think that acne appears in just one day or one night? Many people think that. This is not true. An acne or pimple, emerges from a blemish, which requires 2-3 weeks to take a defined form of acne. You cannot see this process because it happens deep under your skin. There are several factors that function differently in different people to form acne. That is acne is a highly individualized problem and you should therefore explore acne forming roots in you.



Your acne is caused when holes present in your skin in the form of pores and hair follicles get clogged by dead skin cells and excessive sebum content. Pores are little holes present on your skin. These pores are actually hair follicles containing very fine hair. Each hair follicle is connected to a sebaceous gland.

The sebaceous gland produces an oily substance called sebum. Sebum helps in keeping the skin soft. This sebum reaches the surface of the skin through the hair follicle. The hair follicle is lined with cells called Keratinocytes.

Now, during puberty, testosterone, a hormone present both in males and females, increases. This increase in testosterone encourages the sebaceous gland to produce more sebum. This sebum, hair, and keratinocytes fill and plug the hair follicle. Plugging of the follicle is the earliest sign of acne. Because the follicle is plugged, sebum cannot reach the surface of the skin. This means that the follicle is filled with oil (sebum) and cells (keratinocytes). A mixture of both these causes Propionibacterium acnes or P. acnes, which is present on the skin, to grow in the plugged follicle.

This bacteria in the plugged follicle, induces the white blood cells to attack it. When the white blood cells attack, they cause the skin to inflame. This inflammation is characterized by heat, swelling, redness and pain.



In due course of time, the wall of the hair follicle breaks down, spilling everything, that is, sebum, dead cells, and bacteria, on the nearby skin. This leads to lesions or pimples, which we commonly refer to as Acne. Acne can be either mild, moderate or severe.

Now that you know how acne develops, it is necessary to check out the factors that contribute to your acne. Following factors contribute to acne:



1. Hormones: At puberty, the body begins producing hormones called androgens (male hormones, but present in both males and females). These stimulate the sebaceous glands, which in turn, produce extra sebum. Androgen is also responsible for acne flare-ups during the menstrual cycle and at times, pregnancy.



2. Excess sebum: Excess sebum is responsible for plugging the hair follicle. It mixes with P. acnes and causes acne.

3. Dead cells: Generally, dead cells are thrown out gradually by the skin. But, when these dead cells mix with the excess sebum, they contribute to the plugging of the hair follicle, thereby pausing the skin's natural process of throwing out dead cells.

4. Propionibacterium acnes or P. acnes: Though P. acnes is present on all skin types at all times, it starts multiplying rapidly once a follicle is plugged.



5. Inflammatory Response: In order to control unwanted bacteria, the body sends out white blood cells to fight against it. The skin reacts to these white blood cells by inflaming. This inflammation causes the pimples to become swollen, red and painful.



Remember that the functioning of these five factors is different for different people. That is, acne is a highly individualized problem. So, do not compare yourself with your friend.