You probably already know that acne tends to pop up on your face at the most inconvenient times, which can be extremely frustrating. Although looks aren’t everything, pimples and breakouts can be painful and affect people’s confidence. If you have relatively frequent pimples or persistent acne, you may be looking for the best solutions to achieve clear, glowing skin. Follow along for 10 dos and don’ts to get rid of pimples fast and maintain healthy skin.
The Skincare Dos
Skincare is a helpful tool for fighting pimples, but you must know what you should be doing to help your skin. Read on for a few of the top skincare dos to improve your overall skin health and appearance.
Use Spot Treatment
Although your regular skincare products may help keep acne at bay, the occasional pimple can pop up out of nowhere. Therefore, keeping a spot treatment on hand is always a good idea. Whether you choose a concentrated gel, cream treatment, or single pimple patches, be sure to act on pimples and breakouts as soon as you notice them surfacing.
Ice the Area
Pimples can become painful and inflamed, but you might not know what to do to relieve these symptoms. Some of your products might have a cooling effect, but you can significantly reduce the swelling and pain by applying ice to the area. Whether you use an actual ice cube or an ice roller, the coldness will feel incredible on an irritated pimple and help reduce its swelling.
Use a Gentle, Acne-Fighting Cleanser
Cleansing your skin is arguably the most important step in your routine, but what you use to clean your face is even more important. You should use a gentle, acne-fighting cleanser in your daily routine to keep your breakouts to a minimum.
Use this cleanser to remove your makeup before bed every night and remove dead skin cells and oil in the morning. Furthermore, resist the urge to wash your face more frequently throughout the day; this can be harmful to your skin. Instead, stick to cleaning twice daily with an appropriate cleanser.
Continue Applying Sunscreen
Sunscreen crucial to a healthy skincare routine, as it protects your skin from harmful UV rays and other pollutants throughout the day. Unfortunately, many popular facial sunscreens contain extra ingredients that can clog your pores. Keeping an acne-friendly sunscreen in your skincare arsenal is important for those with acne-prone skin. Even if you don’t think you need it, you should apply sunscreen daily.
Opt for Acne-Friendly Makeup Products
Makeup products are one of the leading causes of acne, as they tend to clog your pores. While many people don’t think much about the products they apply to their faces, makeup is one such product that often contains comedogenic ingredients.
However, plenty of makeup options exist that contain acne-friendly ingredients that might help keep your pimples away, or at the very least, not encourage them. Whether you choose an acne-fighting primer or a foundation with salicylic acid, being selective of your skincare and makeup products is one of the best ways to achieve clear skin.
The Skincare Don’ts
Now that you know the dos of skincare, you should also know the don’ts. To ensure you have the full picture of the best steps for caring for your fragile skin, follow along for a few things you shouldn’t do to treat a pimple.
Squeeze, Pick, or Pop
Squeezing, picking, and popping a pimple may be your first instinct when one pops up on your face, but these are some of the worst things you can do. While you might think this will get rid of it quicker or diminish the appearance, picking or popping will make the pimple linger longer. Furthermore, it may lead to increased redness, inflammation, and risk of scarring. Plus, picking at your face spreads bacteria, which may lead to more pimples within a few days.
Apply Toothpaste
Many people swear by applying toothpaste to active pimples to dry them out, but it’s not the best idea for everyone. Toothpaste does dry pimples, but it can also cause increased inflammation or allergic reactions. As a result, you may end up with more problems than you started with if you decide to apply toothpaste to that pesky breakout.
Forget To Hydrate
Healthy skin requires hydration, meaning you shouldn’t forget to apply a hydrating moisturizer twice daily. Moisturizing is one of the most crucial parts of your daily routine, but you must also know that your skin reflects your overall health. If your body isn’t getting enough water, your skin may be acting up as a result. Therefore, drink plenty of water every day.
Wear Makeup Constantly
You might want to cover your breakouts and blemishes with makeup, but wearing it all the time can cause more issues for your skin. With that in mind, you should try to avoid wearing makeup as much as possible whenever you experience breakouts. If you must wear it to work or out in public, make a point to remove it as soon as you get home. This will help inhibit it from settling into your pores longer than necessary.
Overdo Skincare
Skincare is essential to maintain healthy skin, but it’s possible to overdo it. In fact, washing your face or applying spot treatment too frequently is a surefire way to strip your face of your natural oils and damage your moisture barrier. As a result, you may experience dry, irritated, and flaky skin. For a healthy routine and best results, try to stick to doing your skincare only twice daily, ideally in the morning and evening.
An Extra Thought
Many people think that your skin’s appearance is a result of what you do on the surface, but your lifestyle is especially vital when it comes to maintaining your skin. Believe it or not, your diet, water intake, hormones, weather exposure, etc., significantly impact breakouts and blemishes. Eating a balanced diet, drinking plenty of water, balancing your hormones, and protecting your skin from the elements are excellent methods to consider on your journey to beautiful, vibrant skin.
Hopefully, these 10 dos and don’ts to get rid of pimples fast will help you manage your chronic or occasional acne. Many people experience breakouts, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of. Use these tips for topical treatment, and work on your health as a whole to prevent pimples from popping up in the first place.
