During the teenage years of any given person, their body is undergoing a significant amount of changes. First of all, their body is sexually maturing, the evidence of which become visually obvious. Additionally, their hormones are changing, which can lead to more occurrences.
One of the most prevalent results of hormone changes is acne, and in some cases, that can result in acne scars. Cleanliness issues can also have a significant impact on the chances of a person having acne. For example, when a person sweats and does not take a shower immediately afterward, the sweat produces skin bacteria, which in turn clogs pores.
There are several different kinds of acne that a person might end up getting. The first kind involves lots of pus-filled pimples. The pus forms when the body tries to fight off the small infection in the skin that is causing the acne in the first place. Teenagers, in their wish to be acne-free, often try to pop this kind of pimple. They are also often warned against this, because popping or digging at pimples can lead to acne scars.
Another kind of pimple that teenagers tend to get is blackheads. They appear as such because of an excessive amount of dirt that accumulates in the pores (usually around the nose). Again, teenagers think that just because they can squeeze their blackheads, it should be able to solve all of their skin problems. Actually, all it does is make them more at risk for those dreaded acne scars that people go to great lengths in order to avoid.
Acne scars are immediately recognizable. They either show up on the face, or on the back, depending on the severity of the person's acne in any given area. These kinds of scars can be very disfiguring, because they leave large holes or pits. They can also leave dark-colored, circular areas where the acne once was.
How can popping a pimple result in scarring? It all has a lot to do with the bacteria that is on the hands of a person. This bacteria comes from everyday things. Of course, much of the dirt and bacteria that a person gets has a tendency to accumulate under the nails, even if they are short.
When a person uses his or her nails to pop a pimple, the bacteria gets transferred to the pimple that has now been opened. The bacteria does not allow the pimple to heal efficiently, and the result is the scarring. Also, digging at a pimple harms the upper skin tissue, which is yet another way that scarring occurs.
There are a few different ways that a person can prevent scarring. In addition to not actually trying to pop or dig at their pimples, it becomes very important to wash the affected area twice a day with acne wash that contains salicylic acid. This will work towards clearing up the acne-causing bacteria. If a person already has scars, it is important for that person to go and see a dermatologist, so that they can be provided with the right treatment options.
