13 year old spots a tried and tested advice

[Hellsbellsy]

My 13 year old has had bad spots now for a year or so and only getting worse.

We have tried various creams otc and face washes with no improvement.

We have a dr appointment but have to wait 3 weeks and it's really getting him down.

I've researched lots of posts on here, and it's seems these have been recommended .

• zinc supplements
• carbon theory charcoal
•tea tree soap
•Dead Sea the miraculous source soap

Then prescribed Duac or Differin.

ive attached a photo and am so wary of fake reviews and paid adverts on other sites, so would be so grateful for any advice here.

Basically anything topical (applied to the skin) is unlikely to make any difference for hormonal acne. Antibiotics may help, but don't let the doctor just prescribe them indefinitely - my dermatologist told me that if they hadn't improved them within six weeks then they weren't going to. Ultimately for me only roaccutane worked.

Hi @Hellsbellsy

I don't have any personal experience of this so can't give any advice re medications but I've often read that cutting out dairy can help - something to do with a combination of hormones in dairy and it is inflammatory. If you Google Woody Harrelson - he gave up dairy when he was 23 on advice, and it cleared up. Might be worth a try?

Just a sticking plaster thing but pimple patches can help draw pus out of worst ones and also help avoid temptation of picking spots this avoids scarring ...

Really good luck.

The acnecide 5.5% face wash gel is brilliant. It’s the only thing that really works for my DS.

Thanks everyone, interesting to hear. How long did it take to know the acnecide wash was working…. He’s using that now but no improvement yet…..

My suggestions after years of acne would be:

1. a good face wash. Cerave has a good range, try the blemish one or the SA smoothing one, but if he finds those drying swap to one of the others.

2. a good basic lightweight moisturiser. Keeping the skin too dry encourages more oil/sebum production.

3. Some kind of gentle exfoliation 2/3 times a week, AHA or BHA or glycolic acid etc. Not one with bits in it.

4. Ask for Epiduo from the GP. This is a mix of benzoyl peroxide and adapalene (a retinoid). Used nightly it really does help.

5. More water

Also agree with the pimple patches for any deep ones to help draw out the gunk.

If this doesn’t work then next step could be oral antibiotics (followed by probiotics to replace gut flora). But agree with PP that they either work fairly fast or they don’t.

From personal experience and based on increasing research I would not put any teenager on Roaccutane.

cervea face wash, cleansers and moisturisers are really good might be worth looking into and seeing if they help

@minipie has nailed it.
A salycilic acid cleanser once a day and a gentle cleanse at the other end of the day.
A barrier cream and adapalene and aha treatment not necessarily daily but a few times a week.
A light moisturiser

I wouldn’t bother with the acnecide wash tbh. Acnecide cream may help but is weaker than what the GP can prescribe.

Bear in mind any cream with benzoyl peroxide (eg Acnecide, Duac, Epiduo) will bleach fabrics so best to swap to white pillowcases and white PJ tops if using.

My DD has found that Niacinamide serum works.

Thanks everyone for your advise

I had acne bad enough to warrant reactance as a teen. As an adult, I’ve still got very oily skin and hair and the only combination I’ve found to work is Boots Salicylic acid face wash, glycolic acid toner, La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo+M and Boots skin clear salicylic acid niacinamide moisturiser. Glycolic toner used at night only. It’s the only thing that’s ever worked bar roaccutane and taking that is a decision that needs careful thought.

No creams, lotions, soaps or washes. Six weeks of washing with only water so that the skin flora can normalise. And some sunshine. That was what got my dc’s acne under control.

@GeraldThePufferSponge thank you, but do you use all these at the same time?

My daughter used Norse Organics . I wish I done a before and after on her beforehand . Her skin has completely cleared up . She now only uses water on her face and uses the scrub once a week . We tried alsorts on her skin and this was best thing Iv ever bought .

https://norseorganics.co/

If it’s hormonal no amount of skincare recommendations will help. We went down this rabbit hole chasing every expensive face wash and topical cream but what worked completely was both my dds taking the contraceptive pill Yasmin. They were on it from around age 13-18 and now they manage with Duac.

Has he used the acnecide gel? You say he's tried various OTC creams etc, was benzoyl peroxide one of them? Just thinking it might be more effective than the wash - I've tried to find info on how they compare before and never found much solid info, but instinct tells me the diluted wash for a few seconds might not work as well as applying the gel.

I use the face wash in the morning, followed by the La Roche-Posay and moisturiser. In the evening, I use the glycolic toner, the La Roche-Posay and moisturiser.
All apart from the La Roche-Posay are Boots own brand so quite cheap (compared to the high end £££ ones) and they all last a while.
In about twenty years of trialling many, many products, they are the only over the counter products that have worked for me. But I appreciate it is 4 separate products so not something everyone can/wants.

None of your 1-5 worked for DS, though I know it works for lots of people.

The only thing that worked was roaccutane, which was brilliant. I know it's a heavy duty drug but what's the increasing research that would stop you from using it?

There is increasing research that it messes with normal sexual development. Basically dulls sexual feelings and physical responses - and some people say that this is permanent especially if given young. This is on top of all the already known risks about negative mental health effects, some cases of suicide.

These don’t happen for everyone, and acne can itself have horrible MH effects so it’s a balance, but I would not be putting my kids on it before 18 personally.

I’ve been on it 3 times and experienced both effects.

Another vote for the Acnecide range. the face wash and gel have helped my teenagers spots a lot (she tends to get them on her forehead and nose). She also gets the “blind” ones around the time of her period (the papules that are big, angry, red bumps without a head) and the acnecide gel helps clear those up.

I’ve had acne on and off since I was 12 and so know all the tricks! I was put on Roaccutane between 14 and 18 after the other methods (creams, gels, antibiotics) all failed. This was back when GPs could still prescribe Roaccutane and all the other stuff you can only get from a dermatologist now). It was miraculous! But when my acne came back after having kids in my mid-thirties I was told by my dermatologist that no responsible doctor would put anyone on Roaccutane for such a long time now and that actually they try and avoid it all together due to the more dangerous side effects being more common than was accounted for in the late 90s/noughties (things that she mentioned to me were serious blood disorders and bruising, it increasing the frequency of infections all over the body, psychosis and pancreatitis). The dermatologist also said that the topical and antibiotic treatments have come on a lot in 20+ years and sure enough Duac and Lymecycline cleared my face up within weeks.

My other top tips, accrued over many years are:

1. steam and magnesium salts. Either in the bath or in a basin with his head over and a towel.

2. blister plasters. I’ve seen some people mention pimple patches… I find them too small and over priced. Blister plasters are the same thing and can cover one of those big, blind spots with ease and you can cut them in half for smaller spots. It’s so satisfying when you pull it off in the morning and about a gallon of pus has been absorbed into the plaster.

3. witch hazel. A bit on a cotton wool ball swiped over the spots after washing your face months morning works well as it takes down inflammation and redness and helps dry the buggers up.

4. ibuprofen gel. A small blob of it can totally dry up smaller spots and bring large, blind ones to a head. Because ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory it’s perfect for this job. Make sure that you put it on before bed and wash it off in the morning. And be aware that it can be sticky, so don’t be alarmed if you become glued to your pillow case!

Good luck @Hellsbellsy- I hope some of the advice on this thread helps your son and that you get to see a dermatologist really soon.

Thanks everyone, it’s all really interesting and makes me realizes more and more that every case is different and what works for one person may not for another……
@Lellochip thats a good point, he only uses the acnecide face wash so perhaps we should try the gel and a light moisturiser like the Boots
skin clear salicylic acid niacinamide one as mentioned above until we get to see the Doctor.

I’ve also bought a job lot of pillowcases today so he can change that every day….

Good tip on the blister plasters! I am spending a fortune on Starface for my two DD.

My DS was like that, he used to get very upset about it. I worked out that him touching his face at school made it much worse, it used to clear up a bit in the holidays. Anyway what helped/worked was ancnecide and purified. I gave him a load of muslin squares/flannels and he used a clean on to dry his face each time. I also gave him his own set of towels as others have said it bleaches everything. It really does require a routine and commitment but it will get better. Also encourage hand washing and no face touching!

My kids both have acne, one uses Duac cream and the other uses Zineryt both prescribed by GP, they do take a few weeks to work, they still get spots but not as many.

This is the problem sadly, a lot is trial and error because different skincare suits different skin. The acnecide is a good first line medication though. I would search 'benzoyl peroxide short contact therapy' and look up the benefits of applying it and leaving it on for only a few minutes - all of the effectiveness with less of the side effects, bleaching of fabrics etc.