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Alternative ways for the
treatment of acne
Acne is an inflammatory
condition of the skin that commonly occurs in adolescence. It can
start at puberty and continue as a problem into adulthood. Acne is
characterised by blackheads, whiteheads, pustules, inflamed and
infected nodules, sacs and cysts. Infection occurs in the hair
follicle in the oil producing gland (i.e. sebaceous glands).
This may cause permanently dilated pores and scarring.
Medical treatments for
acne
If the condition is severe,
the person affected by acne may be given antibiotics to be applied
on the skin or in forms of tablets to be taken orally. In some
cases, if acne occurs in the older female, oral oestrogens are used.
In the less severe cases,
the patient may be told that s/he will just grow out of it.
The 3 step alternative
way to the treatment of acne
Most naturopaths agree that
usually acne is an internal problem, not an external
one. True healing must come from within, and this will take some
time. It may take at least one month before you start seeing the
results, but these will be long lasting. Below are the three
important steps to treat acne successfully:
1) The first thing
you have to do is change your diet. All junk foods
such as cheeseburgers, hot dogs, French fries, crisps, fried
potatoes (and all fried food in general), sugary foods (included
chocolate), carbonated drinks (such as cola), coffee, and alcohol
will have to disappear from your diet. You will also have to
reduce the intake of dairy products and avoid pork meat and lamb
(which are very fatty). There may be no need for you to follow this
‘junk avoidance regime’ for the rest of your life, but you may have
to stick to it for at least a few years.
Needless to say, this junk
avoidance regime has to be coupled with ‘healthy food regime’, where
you will be eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and raw
juices.
2) The second
important thing to do is regulate your bowel movements.
It is essential that your body eliminates waste on a daily basis.
Otherwise your skin will continue to suffer. You can help regulating
your bowels by taking some linseed (flax) oil. It doesn’t really
taste of much, so you won’t be put off by it. Obviously you can’t
always rely on ‘aids’ to help your bowel. For this reason it is
important that you eat plenty of fibre (which is contained in fresh
and dry fruit and vegetables) and that you do at least some moderate
exercise such as walking to school/work etc. on a daily
basis.
3) Keep up a good
skin routine.
a)
Wash the face and other affected areas gently twice each day.
Use an unscented pH balanced soap (or tea tree soap) in warm water
and rinse thoroughly in cold water.
b)
Wash the hair daily and, if long, tie it back away from
facial skin. If you use hair gels, only use non-greasy types.
c)
Do NOT squeeze pimples. This can lead to infection and
scarring.
d)
Keep makeup away from pimples. Do not use any preparation
that could block the oil glands.
e)
Apply one drop of tea tree oil directly on the spot (make
sure you don’t apply it to the rest of the skin, but ONLY on the
spot).
f)
Have a facial sauna three times a week using 2-3 drops of tea
tree or lavender oil.
The psychological
component of acne
In an interesting book by
Debbie Shapiro (The bodymind workbook) it is argued that acne may be
an expression of anger, resentment and fear connected to finding our
self-identity. Acne may therefore be a way in which the mind is
manifesting an internal emotional conflict about who we are. It may
also be a way of avoiding contact with others because even if we
long for such contact, we may also be fearful of it (e.g.
there may be fear of being rejected).
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