Teenage sons acne

[areallthenamesusedup]

Son is 17. Has fairly bad acne. Not the very severe type but pretty much all over his face skin. Moved from Clearsil products to Acncide Products which are available over the counter from
Superdrug. Definite improvement but wondered if there is anything else we can try? It is starting to get him down. Had friends whose sons have done the whole GP referrals but the acne stuff they were prescribed seemed to cause MH concerns. Wondered if there is anything else not quite so drastic anyone can recommend? Thx.

I picked up an as-new one of these on ebay for under £20 and it's helped with my DS's skin

www.lumie.com/products/clear

I would recommend the GP and a referral to a dermatologist. You friends son was likely to be taking roccutaine. We had a totally different experience in that it cleared my sons acne.
Clearisil and Acneside are both very harsh on the skin. I would also recommend gentle cleansing and moisturising until you can see a dermatologist.

Gp can prescribe Duac
I think it’s a good treatment for acne

I would look at the ordinary products. Something like niacinamide or salicylic acid or both. If you can get hold of it, tretinoin is supposed to be amazing. You can get only get it on prescription in the uk. But all of these treatments do make your skin sensitive to the sun so you would need to make sure he used sunscreen.

The one that has mental health implications is Rocutine (sp?) and is a second or third line treatment treatment - there are others they can try first.
We went to GP and my DS was prescribed antibiotics and a cream. Worked very well (except for the fact the blooming cream bleached EVERYTHING it touches so we now have tie die effect on all bedding and towels!)

Thanks everyone. Will be phoning GP in the morning.

And Effic I know what you mean about the tie-die. Bought him some new bedding on the Monday, some Acnecide on the Tuesday🙄🙄🙄

Go to the GP. No over the counter remedy actually works for acne. He needs some proper treatment

Definately try gp route. Acne can cause mental health issues in itself. My dd tried 3 different antibiotics before we tried isotretinoin (roaccutane), it was the only thing that worked. So nice to strip skincare back to a mild face wash and just spf in the mornings. No rubbing in endless creams that dye everything and make skin dry and sore!

It took 4 months to see the results but amazing stuff. No issues at all and has done her confidence the world of good.

Don't waste time on endless creams OP, we dud and I regret it. Not only did it cost a fortune but it gave her new hope every time, only to be left really disappointed again. We brought what was recommended from The Ordinary but nothing worked well enough. My advice would be to just treat it properly now, before the risk of scars.

The Dermalogica “Clear Start” range really helped my DD. Along with changing pillow cases very regularly and using a freshly washed face flannel to dry her face. We bought a load of flannels and she uses one once and then it goes in the wash.

I hope you find something that helps. I have seen La Roche Posay recommended a lot too.

There are plenty of things the GP will try first before referring for roaccutane.
FWIW both my brothers and I had roaccutane, had no problems and have zero regrets. They both had it as teens and I dont know why I waited until my twenties!

Always use products that specifically state non-comedogenic as this means non spot forming. Cetaphil recommended by my dermatologist. I use La Roche Posay Effaclar face wash and cetaphil night cream and wouldn't change to anything else!

I took teenage DS to the doctor about his acne and she prescribed a couple of antibiotic creams which did nothing.
He was referred to dermatology and was prescribed isotretinoin (roaccutane).
Amazing stuff. The list of side effects is scary but honestly the only thing my DS suffered with was very dry lips and the occasional nosebleed. We were warned to look out for mood changes or signs of depression but thankfully he was fine.
His skin is amazing now and he has so much more confidence.
I wouldn’t rule it out op, apart from damaging his self confidence untreated acne can also leave some nasty scarring.
Maybe see what the doctor says.

DS is 14 and after trying all the over the counter stuff we are using treclin gel from gp. This is a mix of tretinoin and an antibiotic. I made it clear to gp I didn't want to try oral roccutane as we have family history of depression and I suspect DS is susceptible. It's taken 3 months but it's starting to improve. It got worse at first but apparently that is a known side effect. His face us much better and his back has improved. It's not a miracle but a significant improvement.

Both my son and daughter had roaccutane Worked fine for them both. Other than dry lips no other reactions.
We tried every over the counter cream and wash, the dr tried lots before prescribing but it was the only thing that worked.
I’m glad I took them to the dr early on as I could see them getting more and more upset.