The teenage years are the hardest to manage clear skin. From uncontrollable hormone levels to helter-skelter sleep schedules, not to mention eating consistently on the run; it is little wonder blemishes and acne are a staple problem for high-schoolers. A teen can rein in wild skin care with just a few adjustments to daily life.

Washing
Teens need to use a cleanser formulated for faces. Bars of body soap or plain water are not going to remove bacteria and impurities causing acne. It may take a little trial and error to find a cleanser right for you. Discard any cleanser that turns your face bright red for an extended period or stings uncomfortably. These are signs of cream burn, and mean your skin is sensitive to an active chemical in the cleanser. Continual use of a harming cleanser can result in long term damage to skin.

Moisturizer
A light moisturizer, with sunscreen, should be applied daily after washing. Do not confuse oily skin with moisture. Dry or oily skin conditions only describe a skin’s reaction to dehydration, and do not describe if a skin needs a moisturizer. All faces need moisturizer. Oily skin only means the skin was dry, and so sebaceous glands compensated by producing sebum– or oil. To stop the oily condition, teens must treat the underlying cause: dryness. This is only accomplished with an appropriate moisturizer.

Diet and Sleep
The busy schedules of teens can make eating healthy difficult. Junk food, soda, and high amounts of sugar, coupled with a lack of vegetables and fruits high in vitamins like A, E, D, leave little mystery to why the skin can’t repair itself correctly. Faces are like night clubs. Bouncers keep out lowlifes (bacteria and germs), let fresh cool people in (creating new skin cells), but need your help to call the cops on riff-raff hanging outside (cleanser to clean away dead skin cells and bacteria). Imagine how well the night club will work if the DJ doesn’t show up, or the bar runs out of drinks? When adequate nutrition is lacking, skin can’t perform its functions correctly.
Try to substitute as many junk food items as possible with healthy snacks like granola bars, baby carrots, avocado dips, and juice or water. Drinking lots of water will keep skin hydrated, and flush sebaceous glands to prevent build up. Eight hours of sleep is imperative for skin to fully repair itself from the wear and tear of everyday life. If the night club’s day shift doesn’t have enough time to clean up and do paperwork, the night club won’t be successful during general open hours. It’s the same for skin.

Prescription Medication
Not all skin care problems are solved with home remedies. Serious cases of acne, rosacea, and other skin diseases must be treated by a licensed dermatologist. Remain vigilant about any prescription medication given for skin conditions, as side effects can be deadly. Popular medications for acne treatment, including birth-control pills for young women, are commonly known for blood clot risks. This risk is further heightened when a teen is a smoker, something regularly hidden from parents. If you engage in any behavior you don’t wish your parents to know about, but worry might affect any medications you are on, simply ask to speak to the dermatologist privately.

It will take time to adjust daily habits for good skin care. Go slowly, and replace normal habits one at a time. Trying to change everything at once– sleeping schedule, diet, and hygiene routine –will result in overload. It also increases the chance of failure, because all of the changes will be overwhelming without immediate results. It can take weeks to show improvement in skin condition from cleansers, moisturizers, and diet improvements. But, the payoff of healthy and unblemished skin is priceless.