Reduce Acne Redness: 5 Common Mistakes

Are you making these common acne mistakes? Avoid making the mistakes that many people make over and over again, without even knowing it, aggravating their acne at the same time, causing more redness. So, hopefully we can help you avoid these mistakes by telling you what they are and helping you understand why you shouldn’t commit them ever again. In fact, making these mistakes alone could be contributing to your acne redness.

Common Mistake #1: Overcleansing

Most people view acne or oily skin as dirty, and therefore, it must make sense that to remove the “dirt”, wouldn’t it? As such, they wash their face all the time, as many as 5 times a day for some. This is a terrible mistake because every time you wash your wash, you dry it out, causing more oil to be secreted instead. Overcleansing can damage your skin and cause even more acne break outs and redness.

So, the first simple step to reducing acne redness is NOT overcleansing. Twice a day is sufficient.

Common Mistake #2: Overscrubbing

Just like overcleansing, overscrubbing your face can do a lot of damage to your acne. The common thought process is that exfoliating and scrubbing must get out all that “dirt”, right? Unfortunately, scrubbing any part of your face that has active acne is just a recipe for disaster. This is because the scrubbing not only dries out your skin, but if it burst any pimples, that spreads the pus around, and the germs end up causing even more acne.

So, the second simple step to reducing acne redness is NOT overscrubbing. Exfoliators should not be used any one than once a week.

Common Mistake #3: Not using a gentle cleanser

Washing your face is not like washing your clothes. Problem skin requires gentle cleansing. As explained above, harsh cleansers will dry out your skin. However, With so many skin care products on the market, it is hard to tell which ones are really gentle, and using the wrong products can make your skin condition deteriorate. See our list of recommended acne cleansers.

So, the third simple step to reducing acne redness is to use a gentle cleanser.

Common Mistake #4: Not using a moisturizer

Just because your skin is oily doesn’t mean you don’t need moisturizer. Moisturizers are essential for acne-prone skin to create balance. Without that balance, your skin will start to produce even more oil then before to overcompensate, resulting in more acne.

So, the fourth simple step to reducing acne redness is to use a moisturizer religiously.

Common Mistake #5: Not using sunscreen

Hardly surprising, the last thing you would want to use on your oily, acne-prone skin is a sunscreen. Unfortunately, sunscreen is very important because many acne treatments cause photosensitivity, meaning, they make your skin hypersensitive to light. Been under the sun unprotected may cause undesirable problems like facial redness and even worse, permanent pigmentation. Not using sunscreen can harm your skin in the long run. In fact, using a broad-spectrum sunscreen daily will protect your skin from premature aging, hyperpigmentation, and skin cancer. You can also find moisturizer and sunscreen combinations, so you get your sun-protection along with your daily moisturizing.

So, the fifth simple step to reducing acne redness is to use sunscreen religiously.

Are you making any of the mistakes above? If you are, correct them immediately!

If not, continue on to Reduce Acne Redness: More Common Mistakes Part II