There is a bad news for chocolate lovers – researchers report that the consumption of pure chocolate can exacerbate facial acne vulgaris within days in people who have acne prone skin type. The findings contradict with the results of earlier studies that reported no connection between chocolate and acne breakouts. Samantha Block, a medical student at University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, in Florida, who presented at the American Academy of Dermatology 69th Annual Meeting, explained that previous studies that negated any relationship between chocolate and acne, looked at acne breakouts after the consumption of chocolate candy, which contains added ingredients like milk, sugar and nuts.
The study involved 10 healthy male subjects between 18 and 35 years of age who were prone to acne vulgaris. They were not allowed to use any medications for acne. They consumed 100ounces of pure chocolate with fresh water and maintained usual diet for one week. The researchers found a significant increase in the acne lesions and the study reported a strong relationship between the amount of chocolate consumed and the number of acne lesions that formed. In addition, subjects also report to experience headache, nausea, vomiting, gastrointestinal distress and diarrhea.
If you have developed acne, what’s next?
Acne is perhaps the most widely found skin disorder and you can easily see people around you who develop acne despite of all the precautionary measures they take. The worst thing about acne is, it leaves scars that look almost as ugly as their parent acne. People, who do not take acne seriously, often end up with acne scars treatment. Following are some procedures for all those who have acne scars.
Professional’s help
The best treatment for acne scars is certainly a professional’s advice. Dermatologists treat upper layer of skin that contains acne scars and you experience a smooth and scar free new layer of skin. Following are some acne scars treatments that are reported to produce good results.
Dermabrasion: it wears away the top layer of skin that contains acne scars. During the healing process, new layer of skin is formed that does not contain any scars. It is used for severe acne scars.
Microdermabrasion: it is a newer version of dermabrasion. It is less intrusive and uses crystals to dust off cells on the top layer of skin.
Laser treatment: it uses laser beam that destroys the affected layer of skin. As the healing process progresses new scar free and smooth layer is formed.
Dermal fillers: dermal fillers are injections usually of collagen or fats that fill out the scars and make skin smooth. They are temporary and need repeated sessions to maintain the results.
Homeopathic remedies
If you are patient enough to wait months to see the results, you can go for homeopathic acne scars treatments. However, some skin care specialists recommend trying homeopathic remedies before going for other pricy and fancy solutions. Following are some home remedies that work great for acne scars.
Lemon juice and tomato: applying fresh lemon juice on face lightens the acne scars. You can apply tomato on freshly cleansed skin each night on acne scars. Antioxidants and vitamin A in tomato benefit skin.
Aloe vera gel: aloe vera gel has a long history of helping people in case of acne, acne scars, burns, cuts, insect bites, poison ivy, skin ulcer, welts and eczema. Cut open a leaf spike of aloevera and massage the gel directly into the affected area.
Sandal wood powder paste: apply it on acne scars overnight. It heals them and gives skin smooth texture.