10 Ways to Prevent Acne

There is no guaranteed way to prevent breakouts of pimples on your chin or anywhere else. However, learning to care for this acne-prone area can reduce the frequency of breakouts, as well as their duration and severity.

Acne breakouts often occur because of changes you’ve made to your daily routine. Maybe you’ve started using a different laundry detergent, shampoo, face cream or soap. These are often the biggest culprits of an acne breakout.

If you want to keep your skin clear and radiant, avoid breakouts by following these 10 simple tips:

1. Choose Acne-Friendly Makeup

The makeup you use (and how much you use) has a big impact on the health of your skin. If you’re prone to breakouts, look for products that say “non-comedogenic” on the label. This means that the product is specifically designed not to clog your pores. Clogged pores are one of the leading causes of breakouts.

2. Change Your Pillow Case Weekly

Forget the $50 bottle of acne cream you’ve been purchasing every month, changing your pillow case is a proven method for preventing breakouts. All of the sweat, dirt and makeup from your face is seeping into your pillow every night. If you don’t wash your pillow cases regularly you’re basically planting your face on a pillow of sweat and dirt for 8 hours. Washing your cases will give your face the fresh rest it needs at the end of the day.

3. Moisturize

If you’ve turned to acne products to control your outbreaks (which most of you probably have), the importance of moisturizing becomes a key component in keeping your breakouts at bay. Most acne products contain ingredients that dry out the skin, thus, moisturizing immediately after is critical. Make sure you hydrate your skin with water before applying the moisturizer.

4. Review Your Shampoo

Have you noticed that you’ve been breaking out a lot more than usual lately? You might want to check your shampoo. Shampoos and conditioners with a lot fragrance and chemicals can irritate skin and cause breakouts on your forehead, jaw, neck and back. Considering using non-fragrance products (or all-natural products) and always make sure you rinse the shampoo out of your hair completely before washing your face in the shower.

5. Stop Touching Your Face

This might seem like common sense but keeping your hands away from your face is harder than you think. If you’re sitting in class or at work, chances are your head is resting on your hands and your fingers are running up your cheeks. These movements can cause irritation and spark a breakout. Keeping your hands and fingers off your face will keep it clean and healthy and help eliminate future breakouts.

6. Check Your Laundry Detergent

Much like shampoos, laundry detergents can be a huge culprit when it comes to breakouts. If you’re experiencing more breakouts than normal it could very well have to do with the ingredients in your detergent. Many soaps contain harsh chemicals and fragrances that can irritate skin (especially when you use towels to dry your face). Try switching to a non-fragrance detergent or one with more natural ingredients and see if you’re breakouts start to fade.

7. Stay Out of the Sun

A little bit of sun has been known to reduce breakouts but too much  can cause damage to your skin and prompt a breakout. If you’re planning a weekend at the beach, be sure to load up on sunscreen and moisturizer – these will help keep your skin hydrated and protected from the sun which will equal less breakouts this summer.

8. Exercise 

Exercising daily will not only help you look and feel better but it will also help reduce the frequency of your breakouts. Working out increases the blood flow through the body which will keep your skin looking healthy and radiant. Plus, when you workout, you drink more water and drinking more water will definitely help prevent acne breakouts.

9. Reduce Stress

Staying calm and happy has actually been proven to help control breakouts. Acne often appears when someone becomes stressed out or worried about something (perhaps you’re worried about breaking out) and tends to spread faster in these circumstances as well. The best thing to do is to keep calm and try not to sweat the small stuff. In doing so, you’ll feel and look better.

10. Eat Healthy

An unhealthy diet has always been linked to acne. While many studies fail to prove a direct link between the two, doctors and health experts agree that maintaining a healthy diet can go a long way in preventing breakouts. Also, you may not know it but you might have a small allergy to some foods (dairy is a common one) which can spark acne problems. Reducing the amount of dairy you eat, along with unhealthy foods like greasy burgers, french fries, chips and soda will undoubtedly help eliminate your breakouts.