Ok, we can all (somehow) deal with acne breakouts in high school, but in college, really?! No one should have to suffer those annoying red dots on the face that make the skin look like pepperoni pizza in the years when it is all about making new friends and creating lifelong relationships. Still, it happens, more often than you would imagine, even if you haven’t had such problems during your teenage days. And the turbulent life that comes along college makes getting clear skin more difficult than getting a degree. Let us see what are the factors that make acne breakouts frequent in college students, how can that impact their lives and how can they prevent or minimize the damage.
College: The Breeding Ground for Acne
We know that almost every teenager will develop acne at some point due to hormonal changes that come with puberty, but why are college students susceptible to acne? Well, the stress and unhealthy habits which are often linked with college life are contributing to skin’s sensitivity to blemishes, pimples and blackheads. Stress causes acne by provoking the body’s inflammatory response and thus breaking clogged pores.
Being away from mom’s cuisine, possibly for the first time, will motivate most of the students to turn to processed fast food, which can create perfect conditions for developing adult acne. Another major contributor is alcohol, which is not a direct cause of acne, but it does affect hormonal changes, dries out the skin and causes dehydration, which, again, leads to an inflammatory response.
The Infinite Loop of Stress
Stress may be the reason why you’ve developed acne in the first place, but if you are freaking out about every new breakout, you will yet again be stressed out which can lead to even more skin issues. For college students, acne breakouts can seem like the end of the world. They lose their self-confidence which is very important for succeeding and making friends in college. That’s why this skin problem is the most devastating during one’s sophomore year.
Make It Stop, Please!
Fortunately, college acne is not an unsolvable problem. The first step is to stop making a huge fuss about it, though. The second is to get rid of the bad habits, such as pizza night every night and chocolate bar in 3am. Your most efficient tool in fighting off acne will be proper skincare. Cleansing your face in the morning and in the evening, using an oil-free moisturizer, exfoliating once a week and treating acne with various adult acne solutions that can soothe inflammations and minimize future breakouts, should be enough.
More Tricks up Your Sleeve
They may appear suddenly, but acne breakouts never go away that rapidly, so sometimes you’ll need to arm yourself with more tools to chase them away. One of the common and quite efficient ways to make your skin less prone to developing acne in the first place is to take oral contraceptives. There are also some acne medications, but you should be careful with those. Some of them can lead to smaller problems like dried out skin, while others can be really bad for your liver, if taken regularly. There are a lot of natural remedies that could make your battle against acne more successful. Some of the most efficient ingredients of these natural at-home acne remedies are apple cider vinegar, honey, cinnamon, yogurt, egg whites, papaya, orange peels, tea tree oil, banana peels, aloe, baking soda, lemon juice and garlic.
In the end, the one thing that college students neglect the most is taking proper care of themselves. Not getting enough sleep and physical activity, and being under too much stress and chaos, can only make your skin go crazy. If you’ve done everything in your power to fight off acne, and it still isn’t working, it is best to visit a dermatologist.
