5 Ways To Ensure Your Hair Care Routine Doesn’t Aggravate Your Acne

The formation of acne is usually attributed to either excessively oily or way-too-dry skin, but there’s another culprit that may be contributing to your symptoms - your hair or more precisely – your hair care routine.

Acne is a result of a hormonal imbalance, which can affect the function of the sebaceous glands, whose job it is to create sebum, (skin oil) which travels along the pores to hydrate and protect the skin on the surface. When too much sebum is produced, it clogs the pores.  A mixure of the skin oil, dirt and dead skin cells invites bacteria to form, triggering an inflammatory response from the body. This response usually appears as red, swollen bumps known as pimples, a symptom of acne.

So where does your hair really fit into this? Hair can’t actually cause acne, but the products that you use, the condition of the hair and, how often you touch it etc. may make for some less than ideal conditions for maintaining a clear and healthy complexion.

Here are some safe measures to help ensure you sport not only beautiful hair but also an acne free complexion.

How To Keep Your Hair Care Process From Adding to Breakouts!

1. Go easy on the hair care products. Less is more, or at least better. Not only does product buildup result in limp locks, but that excess product can end up on your skin, especially if you have long hair, or just completed a hard workout, so try to go easy. In addition to limiting the amount, take care to read up on what’s in those products, and do your best to steer clear of anything containing mineral oil, sulfates, or silicone. If you experience body acne on the chest and back, you might want to look toward your hair care to see if you can change up your formulas.
2. Choose the right products and right routine. Keep your hair clean and beware of heavy hair oils and build-up.  Dirty hair or hair covered with oils and/or chemicals easily transfer from your strands to your fingertips. Even clean hair can pick up residue left behind from a recent shampoo or conditioning, so always try to choose clean,and natural products and rinse your hair really well.
3. Keep your hands off of your face. This is a good rule of thumb to live by for anyone with acne, and the exact reason why you should abide by rule #2. All of that residue you’ve collected builds up, and when in contact with the skin can lead to clogged pores, which can lead to breakouts. If you must touch, give your hands a washing or disinfecting first.
4. Soak those strands after a workout. The right kind of workout can be a great way to detox the skin of pore-clogging residue, but if you don’t take proper hygienic measures after you’ve worked up a sweat, you may be doing your skin more harm than good. In addition to washing your face, body, and clothes after exercising, giving those strands a quick washing can help wash away oils and sweat that have been flushed from the pores and have collected on the hair.
5. Beware of the beard!  If you find yourself smooching with a guy who happens to be bearded, or even stubbly, you might be creating friction on the skin, which can either stimulate oil production, lead to over drying, or both!  So just be sure you take some action after the smooch session by washing and moisturizing your skin as soon as possible. For the guys with acne, please note that the beard may actually create more acne for you, so again, beard and acne do not mix well!

While keeping clean hair habits plays a big part in keeping breakouts at bay, the most effective approach to keeping acne formation in check is by addressing the problem at its source - the sebaceous glands - and AcnEase does just that, no matter how mild or severe the symptoms. Using safe and effective herbal ingredients, AcnEase works to create a buffer between the hormones and sebaceous glands, ensuring that only the amount of oil needed to properly hydrate the skin is produced - no more, no less. And the best part is, it does the work for you, so if you don’t have time to lather, rinse, repeat after a session at the gym, you can rest assured that the condition of your acne is being treated regardless.

We want to hear from you! Have you ever noticed an increase in breakouts after using a certain hair product? Have any tips for keeping those oily strands off of your face? Tell us in the comments!