Avoid These Acne Mistakes! At All Costs. What Not To Do Guideline By Dr Alek Nikolic
Check Dr Alek Nikolic’s Advice On How Not To Make Acne, Pimples, or Blemishes Worse
“People who suffer from acne often do the strangest things and without knowing are actually making things worse.” – Dr Alek Nikolic
Read this helpful What Not To Do Guideline and get the best advice on how to handle your acne or blemishes from getting poorer.
Most Common Mistake: Squeeze and Pop
As tempting as it is Don’t
“Don’t pick your face, no matter how tempting it is. There’s a really good reason why you hear this advice all the time. Squeezing, picking, or popping pimples will make them worse.” – Dr Alek Nikolic
‘Squeaky Clean’ No More:
Only cleanse twice a day – I promise that is enough (AM and PM). Excess cleansing (as tempting as it is) causes the following:
Stripping your skin of essential lipids as removing too much oil disrupts the barrier function. Find a cleanser that doesn’t leave your skin feeling tight or dry. See below for Dr Alek All skin needs hydration (water). Even if you have oily skin, you still need to moisturize.
Everyone needs water. But not everyone needs oil.
Fast Tips:
- Blot your face with tissue or blotting paper to absorb excess oil
- Rinse your face with cool water (with clean hands) and dry it with a paper towel. This will provide some temporary relief
- Choose moisturizers and makeup with oil-absorbing ingredients – See below for Dr Alek Nikolic’s recommendations.
Moisturise, Moisturise and Moisturise
All skin needs hydration (water) even if you have oily skin you still need to moisturize but we need to do it correctly: avoid the oils but add the water.
Fast Tip:
“Everyone needs water not everyone needs oil. Consider adding hyaluronic acid to your skin care regime.” – Dr Alek Nikolic
Exfoliate Correctly Not Roughly:
Exfoliate with Salicylic Acid or an Alpha Hydroxy Acid such as Glycolic Acid or Mandelic Acid.
Exfoliation loosens dead skin cells and speeds up shedding. This accomplishes 3 things:
- Excess sebum flows out more easily from the pore onto the surface of skin
- An exfoliating ingredient opens up the clogged pore
- Alphahydroxy acids cleans out pores preventing new inflammatory lesions in the pores from forming
The Obvious One: Using None Comedogenic Skin Care Products or Makeup
Fatty emollients or oily ingredients will just make thing worse so choose all your topical products that clearly state non comedogenic.
Need More Info?
- Further Reading & Recommended In Depth Articles:
- For More Skincare Advice:
- Take Our Skin Assessment: see immediate recommendations for your skin type and/or skin concern
- Take Dr Alek Nikolic’s Face2Face Skin Consultation: get personal recommendations for your skin from Dr Alek
- See Our Full Treatment Product List For Acne: please click here
- Dr Alek Nikolic’s Top Acne Treatment Picks:
- OBAGI CLENZIderm
- SKINCEUTICALS BLEMISH + AGE DEFENSE SERUM
- NEOSTRATA OILY SKIN SOLUTION
- DERMACEUTIC ACNE-PRONE SKIN HOME KIT
- DERMAQUEST DERMACLEAR SPOT TREATMENT
- DERMAQUEST DERMACLEAR BHA CLEANSER
- DERMAQUEST DERMACLEAR PADS
- OBAGI CLENZIderm M.D. THERAPEUTIC LOTION
