Acne spots are a form of post inflammatory pigmentation (PIH) that occur as the aftermath of acne breakouts.
PIH happens when the skin is inflamed (from acne, rashes or an injury). When there’s an inflammation, the skin triggers the release of melanin pigment to the area so it can heal faster. The melanin pigment released darkens the area and that creates the dark spots. And the higher the inflammation, the darker the area will be.
To completely prevent dark spots from acne, you’ll need to not have acne. Is it possible to not have acne if you have oily acne-prone skin? Yes! With a few lifestyle changes like eating right, getting enough sleep and having a good skincare regimen. But even when you’ve achieved clear skin, a few pimples could still show up randomly to remind you that they still exist.
So you might not be able to completely stop the breakouts, but you can certainly prevent the dark spots it leaves behind. Here’s how you can do that:
Wear sunscreen
Sunscreen isn’t just to protect your skin from the harmful rays of the sun. It could also prevent dark spots from forming on your skin. Excessive sun exposure triggers an overproduction of melanin which will greatly increase your chances of getting dark spots. Also, It darkens already existing spots which makes them harder to get rid of.
So, you absolutely must protect your skin from the sun to prevent dark spots. Get a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 and be sure to use it every day.
To prevent dark spots, exfoliate regularly
Exfoliating gets rid of dead skin cells which could clog your pores and cause acne. So exfoliating will reduce your chances of breaking out. And if you’re not breaking out, then you can’t get acne spots. Also when you exfoliate, you’re increasing cell turnover. So your skin produces newer cells faster which prevents dark spots from staying on your skin.
Note that if you have serious acne breakouts, then it’s better to use chemical exfoliants. Scrubbing your skin with manual exfoliants will irritate it further and worsen your break-outs.
(Photo: adorebeauty.com.au)
Use acne spot treatments
Spot treatments are designed to deliver acne-fighting medicine straight into your pores where it’s needed. They work to quickly kill acne bacteria and provide relief to the skin. When used rightly, they can cure pimples completely without leaving any spots behind.
Don’t pop your pimples
This might not sound like good advice at first glance, because you obviously want the pimples gone as soon as possible. But trust us, that’s not the way. When you pop pimples, you create a tiny wound on the surface of your skin. In response to this, that area of your skin darkens so the wound can heal (remember what we said about melanin pigments earlier?). That’s how you get dark spots and it could take months to get rid of them.
But if you don’t pop your pimples, it will naturally heal in about five to six days and leave no spots behind.
(Photo: today.gh.com)
Also, did you know that popping pimples could lead to serious health complications and possibly even death? Yes! If the pimples are in the danger triangle. You can read about it here.