But as an adult in the workforce, the breakouts returned and intensified.
asserted
breakouts → return → workforce
The acne on her cheeks and chin made her hesitant to look her bosses in the eye.
asserted
her → make → eye
“It really took a toll on my self-esteem and my self-confidence,” said Montalbo, a marketer and content creator who lives in the Philippines.
asserted
who → take → Philippines
Pimples and acne are an uncomfortable hallmark of teenage years, but adults can have breakouts too.
asserted
adults → have → breakouts
Acne can also happen on other parts of the body like the chest and shoulders.
asserted
Acne → happen → chest
The best treatments vary from person to person depending on what’s causing the acne and how it looks.
asserted
it → vary → acne
And breakouts can leave behind dark marks and scars that take even longer to heal.
asserted
that → leave → marks
Pimples come and go, but if breakouts stick around and cause discoloration or changes in skin texture, it’s a good idea to see a dermatologist.
asserted
it → come → dermatologist
“We know how to treat acne.
asserted
We → know → acne
We know the cause of it.
asserted
We → know → it
So don’t suffer alone,” said Dr. Crystal Aguh, a dermatologist and director of the Ethnic Skin Program at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
asserted
Aguh → suffer → Medicine
The causes of acne can vary
asserted
causes → vary → acne
Teenage acne tends to affect the forehead, nose and cheeks.
asserted
acne → tend → forehead
Older adults and women in particular can experience hormonal acne that pops up along the jawline and chin, Aguh said.
asserted
Aguh → experience → jawline
Taking steroids can also trigger acne for some people.
asserted
Taking → take → people
Pimples happen when tiny pores in the skin get clogged by oil, bacteria and dead skin cells.
asserted
pores → happen → oil
They can fade over the course of weeks to months, but if patches persist and spread, it could be a sign of acne, which dermatologists consider a medical condition.
uncertain
dermatologists → fade → which
“Essentially, you’re not getting a break from a breakout,” Aguh said.
asserted
Aguh → get → breakout
Acne is caused by many factors including genetics, hormones, environment and even diet — like eating excessive amounts of dairy.
asserted
Acne → cause → dairy
The causes of facial and body acne are similar, although skin bacteria sometimes plays a larger role in body acne.
asserted
bacteria → play → acne
Breakouts can look like milder, painless white bumps or dark specks known as whiteheads and blackheads, or more painful red bumps and deeper cysts — a mark of cystic acne.
asserted
Breakouts → look → acne
There are OTC and prescription treatments for acne
Don’t pick or pop your pimples, no matter how strong the urge or how satisfying it might be.
“Everyone wants to pick and squeeze.
uncertain
Everyone → be → pimples
That will almost always make things worse,” said Dr. Lauren Fine, founder of Fine Dermatology in Chicago.
asserted
Fine → make → Chicago
Picking can drive inflammation deeper into the skin and cause acne to spread.
asserted
acne → drive → skin
It also increases the risk of marks and scarring.
asserted
It → increase → marks
For darker-skinned people, those marks take longer to go away because their skin produces extra pigment when stressed, Aguh said.
asserted
Aguh → take → pigment
Treatments for acne range from over-the-counter creams and lotions to prescription-strength medications.
asserted
Treatments → range → medications
Dermatologists say it’s somewhat easier to treat acne on the face compared to the rest of the body because the face has more sweat glands and doesn’t dry out as easily.
asserted
face → say → glands
It’s also harder to apply some treatments like creams to hard-to-reach areas like the back, so doctors often prescribe oral medications.
asserted
doctors → ’ → medications
For milder forms of face acne, dermatologists may recommend face washes or creams containing benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid or retinoids like adapalene.
uncertain
dermatologists → recommend → adapalene
For more frequent breakouts, they might prescribe higher-strength regimens like antibiotics or medicines with tretinoin.
uncertain
they → prescribe → tretinoin
Isotretinoin may be an option if those medicines don’t work, or for cases of severe cystic acne.
uncertain
medicines → work → acne
Treatments for adult hormonal acne, particularly in women, can differ from what’s done for teens.
asserted
what → differ → teens
Some dermatologists recommend birth control, which can help stabilize hormones, or treatments like spironolactone.
asserted
which → recommend → spironolactone
Shots of cortisone can help treat active acne spots in a pinch, but they aren’t a long-term fix, Fine said.
Pimple patches containing a gel called hydrocolloid can absorb fluids from oozing pimples and stop you from picking at them.
asserted
patches → help → them
Aguh said they are suited only for mild forms of acne; Fine said the patches have given some of her patients discoloration and she doesn’t recommend them.
asserted
she → say → them
Treat discoloration with exfoliants and face washes
Experts say exfoliants and face washes containing glycolic acid can help discoloration fade.
asserted
discoloration → treat → acid
Over-the-counter products containing adapalene and retinol creams can also help.
asserted
products → contain → creams
For more serious scarring, dermatologists can recommend more aggressive treatments like lasers that probe deeper into the skin.
asserted
that → recommend → skin
It can take time to develop the right treatment plan, and longer still to see results.
asserted
It → take → results
…and 8 more, not listed.
The Aporia
