Almost all of us know what acne is so we do not need to waste time going over that. Your problem is that you have acne and you need to find some way to provide acne control for your skin. Acne, also known as pimples or zits, has been affecting teens since the beginning of time, and I'm sure it is not a bigger problem today than it was way back then. But the good news is that we have the miracles of modern medicine on our side that can provide some solutions for acne control.

You need to know that the root cause of acne is dirt. Yes really. Now let's explain how that happens, since you are probably not a dirty person by nature. Acne is typically caused by an over-production of skin oils. It is obviously not practical to be washing your face and your body every 3 minutes all day long, so you have this excess skin oil. Your normal activities will also pick up dust and dirt, which of course gets trapped by that excess skin oil, and over time (a relatively SHORT period of time, by the way), bacteria will begin to grow, turning into a zit or pimple.

Obviously, one of the things you can do is to wash regularly, especially your face. This will help control acne by the use of mild astringents and non-scented soaps. You should do this at least twice a day, even if you do not have an acne problem, in order to keep the skin as clean as possible and free of excess oils.

If your acne problem is not severe but you still need acne control to an extent, there are many over-the-counter (OTC) products you can use. These include soaps, creams, scrubs and various other medications. For better acne control, you may wish to use an astringent lotion, which typically has a base of rubbing alcohol. This helps to break up the oils that cause acne, as well as removing the dirt that is blocking your pores and causing acne to form. Some soaps that contain astringents would be Neutrogena glycerin soap, as well as some acne control soaps like Clearasil and Oxy.

Remember, one of the goals to acne control is to avoid excess oils on your face. Therefore you should avoid touching your face as a habit throughout the day to reduce the amount of oils that get transferred from your hands. Wash your face daily with a good scrub, which will remove as much of the excess oil as possible, keep your pores dirt-free, and in the case of more pronounced acne, to use these soaps and astringents on a regular basis to help keep your acne under control. You should also avoid foods that are greasy or oily, because the excess oils in those foods need to go somewhere, and could end up aggravating your acne problem.

Acne control is a two step process. First, you need to get your current acne problem under control, then you need to take the necessary steps to prevent it from returning in the future. Treating it is done with the soaps and astringents mentioned above, but preventing it and keeping an acne control defense is more about your personal hygiene habits and just keeping clean.