Can Vitamin E Help Reduce Acne?
Acne is one of the most common and annoying skin problems faced by millions of people. It affects both teenagers and adults, and there are endless theories on what causes acne and how best to treat it. Most of these theories are just that: theories. What we know for sure is that acne is caused by excessive hormones that in turn create too much oil in our skin glands.
The Real Causes of Acne
The real culprit of acne is a hormone called androgen. It is mainly produced in large quantities during puberty to help our bodies grow quickly from children to adults. This is why teenagers are most prone to outbreaks of
Androgen hormones cause excess oil known as sebum to build up in our skin’s oil glands. When you add naturally-occurring dead skin to the mix the result is a clogged pore, better known as whiteheads and blackheads. Clogged pores often become infected with a bacteria known as acne vulgaris, which creates the pus-filled pimples everyone hates to see appear.acne. But androgen hormones can also afflict adults if they have a genetic hormone disorder that prompts their bodies to make excessive amounts of the hormone long past the age when it is needed for growth.
Vitamin E Oil to Deal With Acne
One of the worst things you can do to treat a pimple is to try and squeeze the pus from it. By doing this you simply open up the pore to additional outside bacterial infection and increase the likelihood of forming a scar. The only way to deal with a pimple is to apply antibacterial agents like tea tree oil to the surface of the acne and wait until it clears up. However, tea tree oil dries the skin.
This is where the benefits of Vitamin E oil on acne come into play. Vitamin E is a natural moisturizer, so applying it to the acne after it begins to clear up can help smooth over the skin and rebuild new skin cells to repair the damage. Vitamin E alone cannot do anything to treat acne. Only an antibacterial agent can do that. But used in conjunction with an oil like tea tree, it can do wonders at keeping your skin looking healthy after the acne has been dealt with.
Healing the Effects of Acne Scarring
The most beneficial effect of Vitamin E when dealing with acne is to avoid scarring. The more often you squeeze a pimple the larger the pore becomes. Over time this will develop into a pit, or scar, that looks like a pock mark. By applying a small amount of pure Vitamin E oil to the acne immediately after it begins to dry out, you can help avoid these pits from developing.
The active compound in Vitamin E that helps with skin repair is topopherol. There are several forms of topopherol in Vitamin E but the one that appears to have the most power at skin cell rejuvenation is alpha-topopherol. Using the vitamin in its pure natural form has the best effects. Direct application to the skin helps these tocopherols get deep under the surface where it promotes collagen production and cellular regeneration.
How to Use Vitamin E on Acne
Vitamin E cannot remove the effects of serious acne scarring, but it does have a beneficial role to play in preventing them from appearing. Pure Vitamin E oil is best for this purpose. Simply buy a bottle of gel caps and puncture one to release the pure Vitamin E oil inside. Squeeze a little of the gel on a sterile cotton swab and dab it on the pimple. Repeat this with a fresh clean cotton swab for each pimple. For the best results you should repeat this process three times a day.
This treatment only really works if you apply the vitamin oil to the acne immediately after it begins to heal and before any scarring can take place. If you already have serious acne scarring you need to consider a more intense treatment such as laser resurfacing, microdermabrasion or chemical peels to help repair your skin.
Considering the affordable price of pure Vitamin E gel caps, you can easily manage your own acne without resorting to expensive specialty products or over-the-counter creams that are often very harsh on sensitive skin. By using a natural antibacterial like tea tree oil to dry out the pimple and Vitamin E oil afterwards to repair the skin cells you can deal with any outbreak quickly and safely.
photo courtesy of: gemsling