ACNE MYTH: ACNE IS CAUSED OR WORSENED BY CERTAIN FOODS, SUCH AS CHOCOLATE, SWEETS, AND GREASY JUNK FOOD.
Acne Fact: Despite occasional personal anecdotes and persistent cultural myths, acne is probably not significantly influenced by diet.
ACNE MYTH: OILY SKIN CAUSES ACNE.
Acne Fact: Oily skin is more often a consequence of acne, which increases sebaceous activity, rather than a primary cause. Although the severity of acne is associated with the amount of oil produced by the skin, not all people with oily skin have acne.
ACNE MYTH: OILY SKIN IS UNLIKELY TO BECOME IRRITATED.
Acne Fact: Acne sufferers with oily skin are as likely to experience irritation as are acne patients with normal or dry skin.
ACNE MYTH: A DIRTY FACE EXACERBATES ACNE; THEREFORE, SCRUBBING THE FACE DAILY WILL HELP TO CLEAR IT UP.
Acne Fact: Scrubbing and rubbing a face that has acne, particularly inflammatory acne, will only serve to irritate and redden an already inflamed complexion. Instead, the face should be washed daily with a gentle cleanser.
ACNE MYTH: BLACKHEADS ARE CAUSED BY DIRT.
Acne Fact: They are black because of oxidized melanin. Blackheads, or open comedones, are collections of sebum and keratin that form within follicular openings and that, when exposed to air, become oxidized and turn black.
ACNE MYTH: FREQUENT FACIALS ARE BENEFICIAL.
Acne Fact: Professional facials and at-home scrubs, astringents, and masks are generally not recommended because they tend to aggravate acne.
ACNE MYTH: COSMETICS, PARTICULARLY OIL-BASED PREPARATIONS, “CLOG PORES” AND CAUSE ACNE.
Acne Fact: Cosmetics probably pose much less of a problem to women’s skin than was previously thought. Their use rarely, if ever, causes adult acne. More commonly, cosmetics can be irritants and may cause contact dermatitis.
ACNE MYTH: ACNE SHOULD DISAPPEAR BY THE END OF ADOLESCENCE.
Acne Fact: Some women have acne that persists well past adolescence. Others have an initial episode in their 20s or 30s. (Men who did not have acne in their teens rarely develop it after adolescence.)

Future Acne Facts
-Because acne is a visible disease, acne patients may suffer from anxiety, impaired self-image, depression, employment insecurities, social withdrawal, self-destructive behaviors, and even suicidal ideation.
-The two H’s, heredity and hormones, play the most important role in the development of acne. One or both parents of a patient with acne probably had the condition. As previously discussed, hormones may influence outbreaks, as the high prevalence of acne in teenagers attests.
- Acne tends to improve temporarily during summer months. Exposure to the sun, in small doses, diminishes acne, and tanning promotes a blending of skin tones.
-Fall and winter acne flare-ups are quite common and are often influenced by mood swings.
-Some women may note improvement of acne during pregnancy or while taking birth control pills. Others may note a worsening of acne or no change at all.
-Adult acne is often more persistent than is teenage acne.
-Severe, unremitting, scarring acne is more prevalent among men.