Acne help

[mama003]

I'm going to be 40yrs old at the end of this your. I never had ance problems as a teen. I started having acne problems about a year ago. I wash my face with soap regularly and use a clean & clear cleanser and only wear makeup occasionally and I always wash it off before bed. 

A year ago I started working a wearhouse job and it is a very physical job, not sure if that's why.

What would be a good product for me at my age? 

[WinglessOne]

@mama003  Does your face get sweaty while you work? Sweat is sometimes a party zone for acne-causing bacteria that invade your pores. During work, wipe your face periodically with a towel if you can. ASAP after work, wash your face with a gentle cleanser (consider a non-lathering cream cleanser like e.l.f. Pure Skin Cleanser or CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser) and apply a moisturizer while your skin’s damp, and/or sunscreen if the sun’s up after work. You could do this over a sink at work before you leave. If you don’t have time or energy for cleanser, then at least wipe your face with micellar water after work and follow with moisturizer and/or sunscreen. 

Does your Clean and Clear cleanser, or anything else in your skincare routine, contain 2% salicylic acid? 

[Sofia192]

Hi, Im not an expert but possibly swap your soap/clean and clear cleanser for a hydrating cleanser? Ive heard that many people had dry skin after cleansing with those products and that can cause acne. Pair that with a regular moisturizer, if you'd really like Ive been using The Ordinary salicylic acid serum and had pretty good results. Being consistent with this routine is key, as well as it being simple. Hope this helped!

[LissDS]

A gentle cleanser that is not too stripping - some examples are the Ordinary glucoside foaming cleanser, the Inkey List hyaluronic acid cleanser, or the Sephora brand clean skin gel cleanser. There are lots of options out there, these are just some of my favs! When you have makeup on that needs to be washed off it's best to use an oil-based cleanser to get the makeup off, and then cleanse again with a regular water-based cleanser (like the ones I listed above!). Some examples of oil-based cleansers are the Ordinary Squalene cleanser, the Inkey list oat cleansing balm, or the Farmacy green clean cleansing balm - again there are lots of options aside from these ones. Just ensure you use these on dry skin, use it on your face for at least 1 minute, wet your hands to turn it into a milk on your face, then thoroughly rinse before following with you second cleanse.

For soothing the skin after washing I like the Ordinary Aloe 2% NAG 2% solution and for a hydrating serum I like the Sephora brand hydrating serum (with hyaluronic acid and polyglutamic acid) and they are acne-safe/don't clog your pores. 

From here you could use some acne/pimple treatments like the Inkey List succinic acid, directly to the blemish, and additionally you could put some pimple patches over them - you can buy hydrocolloid BandAid's at a drug store and cut them to size to save on the cost of them or Peace Out has some really good ones as well.

As for a moisturizer, I use the Ordinary natural moisturizing factors + beta-glucan and then I add 2-3 drops of the Ordinary 100% squalene oil to it before applying it to my face. The moisturizer is very light and acne-safe but it is not moisturizing enough without the oil and that oil is acne-safe as well.

Everything I mentioned is also fungal acne-safe, except the succinic acid, the inkey list hyaluronic acid cleanser, and oil-based cleansers. Since the oil-based cleansers are washed off and your face is cleansed a second time, they will not clog your pores There are lots of product scanners if you google them and they can help you ensure the products you choose are acne-safe, for anything else you wanted to check out!