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What is "Back Acne"?

Acne can affect people from ages 10 through 40 and up. Back Acne can show up as any of the following; congested pores, whiteheads, blackheads, pimples, pustules, or cysts (deep pimples). These blemishes occur wherever there are many oil (sebaceous) glands, mainly on the face, chest, and back. Back acne is commonly referred to in slang as zits.

You can do a lot for your back acne if you understand what brings it on and what really doesn't (despite what people tell you)--and if you know what you can get at a drugstore or cosmetic counter without a prescription. For tougher cases, you should consult a physician.

What causes back acne anyway?

No one factor causes back acne. As physicians understand it, back acne happens when oil (sebaceous) glands come to life around puberty, when these glands are stimulated by male hormones that are produced in the adrenal glands of both boys and girls. The oil glands, which are located just beneath the skin, continuously produce and secrete oil through openings in the skin. The oil lubricates and protects the skin. Under certain circumstances, cells that are close to the openings of the oil glands block the openings. This causes a buildup of oil underneath the skin. Bacteria, which live in everyone's skin but generally mind their own business, feast on this oil, multiply, and cause the surrounding tissues to become inflamed.

If the inflammation is right near the surface, you get a pustule; if it's deeper, a papule (pimple); deeper still and it's a cyst. If the oil breaks though to the surface, the result is a " whitehead." If the oil becomes oxidized (that is, acted on by oxygen in the air), the oil changes from white to black, and the result is a "blackhead."

What doesn't cause back acne?

These factors DON'T cause back acne, at least by themselves:

Heredity: Except for very severe back acne, most people don't have the problem just the way their parents did. Besides, some degree of back acne is almost universal, so you'd expect to have more than one relative that has been affected at some point.
Food: All over the world, parents tell teens to avoid pizza, chocolate, greasy and fried foods, and junk foods. While these foods may not be good for overall health, they don't make back acne worse.
Dirt: Oil is a natural secretion of the oil glands, though some people are naturally oilier than others. "Blackheads" are oxidized oil, not dirt. Sweat from exercise, whether washed off promptly or not, also doesn't cause back acne. On the other hand, excessive washing can dry and irritate the skin.
Stress: Some people get so upset by their pimples that they pick at them and make them last longer. Stress, however, does not play much of a direct role in causing back acne. The good news is that to improve the back acne, people would not be required to calm down and reduce stress, unless it is causing them to pick at their skin.
Hormones: Some women break out cyclically, but most women (and all men!) don't. Likewise, hormone tests and treatments aren't much help. (See below.)
When should you start to treat back acne?

Since everyone gets back acne at some time, there is no "correct" time to treat it. Some acne medicines that you use on your face can be used on your back or other parts of the body, check with the manufacturer or your doctor first. Other medicines, like BBB acne treatment are designed specifically for back and body acne, The best advice is to take action when you think it's out of control. This can be when severe back acne flares suddenly, mild back acne that just won't quit, or even when a single pimple decides to show up the week before your prom or wedding. The decision is yours.