Many people are confused about adolescent acne – what causes it? Today we are going to have a look at what causes adolescent acne to help you understand it better. Acne Vulgaris, the commonest kind of acne afflicting young people and teenagers. In America and developed Western countries it impacts around 85% of adolescents and surprisingly is reported to affect more boys than girls.
Though most people experience some acne between the ages of 9 -17 years, it can also continues to be an issue in early later life as well. Some people even encounter bad skin well into adulthood. Often this is just not acne vulgaris but develops into cystic or bacterial acne.
In the most serious cases acne can cause long term scarring and it is also reported as prone to cause significant psychological problems as well. Psychological factors and issues can include:-
- Anxiety and Distress
- Despression symptoms
- Lack of Self Esteem
- Lack of Self Confidence
- Embarrassment and Shame
Obviously all these psychological elements could be authentic or imagined but are real for the teenager experiencing these feelings. These factors will also be seriously exaggerated during teenage years when young people put a huge amount of prominence on their individual appearance.
So what causes Adolescent Acne?
Adolescent Acne is closely linked to overactive skin oil glands, that are tiny glands found just below the skin’s surface. Typically the sebaceous oil glands serve and key function by producing an oily substance called “sebum” which has a natural but important function that is intended to lubricate and protect the top layer of skin.
Adolescent Acne – When does it begin?
Commonly, just prior to puberty, the body creates many hormones, necessary to normal growth and development, but some hormones will stimulate the skin oil glands to provide more sebum than is necessary. Because of the over creation of sebum the skins pores get blocked and the normal secretion of sebum doesn’t happen. This blocking of skin pores will cause the growth a closed comedo commonly known as a whitehead pimple.
The obstruction of this gland causes the gland to enlarge and as it expands, it becomes an open comedo filled with darker material that’s otherwise called a blackhead. Many individuals believe that whiteheads and black heads are different types of acne when actually a blackhead is, in effect, an older somewhat minor whitehead. Small whiteheads may go unnoticed if they are smaller and deeper in the skin and then appear as a blackhead as the skin layers naturally shed over time.
Is Adolescent Acne hereditary?
If both of your parents had teenage acne it is thought to increase your probability of developing acne yourself. There is limited scientific facts to support this assumption along with the the exact genetic links and patterns passed from mother and father to children just is not well documented or understood.