Acne vulgaris is the clinical term for a condition that occurs when skin pores inside the skin become blocked with sebum. The sebum becomes trapped, oxidises, and is infiltrated by bacteria called Cutibacterium acnes, resulting in skin inflammation and acne.
For some of us, ‘acne’ might be a few pimples on our face, that we get when we’ve been bingeing on Netflix until 2am instead of getting beauty sleep. For others it might be cystic, painful eruptions which cover their face, neck and back, resulting in nodules and scarring. There’s a big difference, right? So I thought we should talk about it!
Because acne is largely observer-dependent (i.e., the client will often determine if they have acne), a diagnostic tool called the “Leeds Revised Acne Grading Scale” (LRAGS) has been developed by scientists and dermatologists. This tool compares a patient’s lesions with benchmark images, assessing the degree of inflammation, lesion type, lesion size, and redness. From there, the patient’s acne is assigned a severity rating based on grade 1 (least severe) to grade 12 (very severe).
Over my years in clinic, I have seen many skin conditions which have been incorrectly identified by clients. And the problem here is that if you’ve incorrectly identified your skin condition, it’s not going to go away, and all those topicals you’re self-prescribing are probably not going to help. Let me give you an example. I spoke to a client last week who assumed she had had oily skin and acne because she occasionally got pimples. So, she went to a beauty store and spent hundreds of dollars on products designed to ‘treat acne’. Her skin got worse, because she was using the wrong topical products – instead of nourishing her skin she was stripping it of its natural oils by using acne-type products. Her skin barrier became dysfunctional, and now she had a skin problem – even though in the beginning she didn’t!
And I get it girl, it’s a skin care minefield out there. It is so confusing to work out what type of skin you’ve got, let alone what sort of skin condition you have. The other confusing factor is that society has trained us to believe that if we have a few pimples, we have a problem. This simply isn’t true. Pimples are a normal part of life. But even if you don’t have Leeds Scale-verified severe acne, it doesn’t mean that you don’t have skin barrier dysfunction or hyperkeratinisation happening. There are always things that can be done to improve skin tone and texture. But it is important not to self-diagnose and then self-prescribe topicals, because using the wrong topicals and overusing topicals can be the very cause of skin barrier breakdown, which can speed up the process of problem skin (especially if you’re already getting congestion and redness).
The difference you can make to your skin when you’re under the care of a health professional – instead of going it alone – can ultimately save you a lot of time, heartache and money. No more guesswork, no more 18-step skincare routine, no more wondering if the products are causing an issue. Imagine… not having all that added stress (especially when stress can be a driver of problem skin!).
If you’re not sure if you have acne, don’t rush out and buy whatever is being marketed to you. It could do more damage!
This is why I created my Skin Care Consultations as well; so we can talk all things skin and I can prescribe you a skincare routine that will work for your skin, not against it. If you’d like to reach out, I’m here and ready to help! Book a Discovery Call for a free, no-obligation 20-minute chat to see how we can work together.
Much love,
Em (Founder, Naturopath & Skin-thusiast)
