Skincare
Five simple ways to deal with spots
3 min read
Pimple just popped up out of nowhere? Don’t worry, here are five simple says to deal with spots. They can pop up anywhere, at any time and at any age. All it needs for a spot to form is for a pore on the skin to become blocked by a mixture of sebum (the skin’s natural oil) and dead skin cells, and the next thing you know a whole host of bacteria, have set up home inside, causing inflammation, redness and swelling. Eventually the spot bursts, allowing the infected material – a yellow-y mixture of dead bacteria and white corpuscles – to escape before starting the repair process that eventually sees the spot heal and vanish. How you deal with a pimple once it rears its ugly head makes a huge difference to how quickly it disappears, though, not to mention whether it leaves a permanent reminder of its presence through scarring, so take on board these tips for sorting out spots…
Rare is the man who hasn’t had a least one or two spots in it's life.
Resist fiddling with your fingers
Like scabs, spots practically call out to be picked at with but you should resist the urge to fiddle with it with your fingers. Not only do you run the risk of introducing even more bacteria into the spot, you could spread existing bacteria to the surrounding area. What’s more, picking can result in permanent scaring.
Don’t delay treating
Numerous spot creams and gels are available and are best applied the second you suspect a spot is forming. Look for ones containing ingredients like salicylic acid, which helps clear pores and witch hazel - a natural astringent that can help remove excess oil - and apply using a cotton bud or clean fingertips to eliminate the risk of transferring bacteria to the surrounding skin. Talk to you doctor or pharmacist about products containing benzoyl peroxide if you are suffering from acne rather than just the occasional spot.
Blitz zits before bed
Applying a spot cream to freshly cleansed skin just before bed means it can go to work overnight, while skin is in repair and recovery mode and isn’t having to deal with all the other daily assaults like pollution and UV exposure.
Consider some cammo
Sometimes the best way to deal with a spot – and to allow it time to burst of its own accord – is to hide it with a concealer. A cosmetic product increasingly popular with men, simply dab a little on the spot, gently blending it in the surrounding skin. Even better, opt for a ‘blemish treatment concealer’ which will camouflage and treat the zit at the same time.
Never squeeze your spots!
The best way to tackle a spot is to allow it to rupture when it’s good and ready. Quite often this can happen when you’ve taken a shower and are towel drying (if that breaks the head then chances are it’s near to popping anyway). Squeezing can push infection further into the into the pore and can inflame surrounding skin. A much safer solution is to be patient and simply let the pimple run its course.
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