How Are Blackheads Treated?
Many acne medications are available at drug and grocery stores without a prescription. These medications are available in cream, gel, and pad form and are put directly on your skin.
The drugs contain ingredients such as salicylic acid, benzoyl peroxide, and resorcinol. They work by killing bacteria, drying excess oil, and forcing the skin to shed dead skin cells.
Some factors can increase your chances of developing acne and blackheads:
How are blackheads treated?
- producing too much body oil
- the buildup of the p. acne bacteria (propionibacterium acnes) on the skin
- irritation of the hair follicles when dead skins cells don’t shed on a regular basis
- undergoing hormonal changes that cause an increase in oil production during the teen years, during menstruation, or while taking birth control pills
- taking certain drugs, such as corticosteroids, lithium, or androgens
Some people believe what you eat or drink can affect acne. Dairy products and foods such as carbohydrates that increase blood sugar levels may play a part in triggering acne, but researchers aren’t convinced that there is a strong connection.
What are the symptoms of blackheads?
Blackheads are easy to spot on the skin because of their dark color. They are slightly raised, although they are not painful because they are not inflamed like pimples. Pimples form when bacteria invade the blockage in the hair follicle, causing redness and inflammation.
What causes blackheads?
Blackheads form when a clog or plug develops in the opening of hair follicles in your skin. Each follicle contains one hair and a sebaceous gland that produces oil, called sebum, which helps keep your skin soft.
Dead skin cells and oils collect in the opening of the skin follicle, producing a bump called a comedone. If the skin over the bump stays closed, the bump is called a whitehead. When the skin over the bump opens, exposure to the air causes it to look black, and a blackhead forms.
