Pimples are like bad days: It’s usually not just one thing that causes them. That’s why you need to fight them several ways at once. Try these tips:
Alternate ingredients. Use a spot treatment or cleanser with zit-zapping benzoyl peroxide one day, and one containing pore-clearing salicylic acid the next. That way, your skin doesn’t become tolerant to one formulation. Let both types of treatments absorb for 20 minutes before you put on any moisturizer—that ensures the ingredients penetrate as deeply as possible.
Tempted to pick at your skin? Wear makeup! I find I’m less likely to go to town on blackheads or a breakout when I take time to hide the suckers in the morning. (Or better yet, when I am lucky enough to have a makeup artist to do it for me!) I know this can come as a surprise: Many women with acne think makeup will make their breakouts worse. But as long as you choose foundations and powders that are noncomedogenic (code for non–pore clogging), you’ll likely be fine. And many fantastic formulas are made with salicylic acid, so you can actually fight acne while you’re hiding it.
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