Millions of people suffer from acne at some point in their lives. Most breakouts tend to go away on their own or with help from over the counter medications, and some people require prescription treatment to help get rid of their acne. There are many over the counter treatment options for acne as well as many different types of prescriptions. In addition to all of the treatments recommended or endorsed by doctors, there are the home remedies that people have come up with through simple trial and error.
Some people use rubbing alcohol on cotton balls to try and get rid of the bacteria in a pimple. Some people use face creams, lotions, or masks to help get rid of their acne. There are a wide range of items that you can choose from if you do not want to see a doctor or if your acne is not bad enough to seek medical help. There is one item that has some people questioning if it can work to treat and remove acne at home: Neosporin.
What Is Neosporin?
Neosporin is mainly used in the treatment of minor cuts, scrapes, and burns. The active ingredients in Neosporin help heal the wound faster and help to keep it from scarring. Now people are using it as an acne treatment in place of trying other over the counter medications, simply due to the fact that most people keep Neosporin in their homes.
The zinc in Neosporin can help to improve the appearance of any scarring and help heal minor injuries, but it is not going to rid your face of blemishes. There are no research studies being conducted to see if Neosporin can actually help with acne, there are only the reviews of people who have actually used Neosporin to try and get rid of their acne.
What Should You Know Before Using Neosporin?
If you are considering using Neosporin for your acne, there are a few things you should know first.
Clogged Pores
The petroleum jelly base of Neosporin can actually cause your pores to become clogged. Clogged pores are a large contributing factor when it comes to acne. These pores are not being cleaned out and the dirt and grime in them can cause bacteria to grow. Because of the healing properties of Neosporin, it can improve the appearance of your pimple, but it will not get rid of it. In fact, it can actually make your acne worse because you will be unable to clean the parts of your face that have acne, and it will allow more bacteria to grow and more pimples to form.
Short Use Only
Neosporin is not made to be used for an extended period of time. At the most, you should only use Neosporin for about one week. Any longer than that and you can cause some damage. Using Neosporin for longer than a week can cause your skin to stop resisting bacteria, which will allow the bacteria to grow faster and in more places. If you want an acne treatment that you can use over a longer period of time, your best option is to purchase an over the counter medication or to get a prescription from your doctor.
Antibiotics
Using Neosporin on a regular basis for your acne can cause your skin to become resistant to antibiotics. This means that if you are cut, burned, or bruised and need an antibiotic ointment for your skin, more than likely, you will have a hard time using it.
The Neosporin can cause your body to become immune to antibiotics and your doctor will have to find another alternative for you if you have a skin problem that requires an antibiotic.
Less Effective on Acne Bacteria
According to research, Neosporin can be used to treat the bacteria that causes staph infection, but it cannot be used to treat the bacteria that causes acne. The reason for this is due to Neosporin being unable to penetrate the skin and get deep into the pores and clean them out. Since Neosporin sits on top of the skin, it cannot get rid of the bacteria that causes acne deep in your pores.
Not Doctor Recommended
Your doctor will probably have a long list of over the counter medications that you can use to help treat your acne, but Neosporin will not be on that list. Even though more research needs to be conducted on the subject, most doctors will not recommend using Neosporin as an acne treatment.
While it is not suggested to use Neosporin as an actual acne treatment, you can use it as a spot treatment for your acne. Since Neosporin is used to heal the skin, you can use it to heal a pimple, but only under certain circumstances. If you have popped a pimple, using Neosporin on it will not do you any good, you need a pimple that has popped on its own, or has opened on its own.
Once the pimple has popped on its own, you can apply a small dab of Neosporin to the top of the pimple only. Doing this will help to heal the skin faster and can also help to prevent scarring. If you choose to use Neosporin this way, you will need to remember that you should only use it for a few days and no longer than a week at a time. If you continue to use it for longer than a week, you can experience damage to your skin in that area.
Final Words On Neosporin
If you are having a hard time with acne, or maybe nothing you have tried has worked, talk with your doctor. Neosporin is not designed to treat or help prevent acne, it can actually cause you to have more acne from repeated use of the Neosporin. Ask your doctor for an over the counter acne medication or for a prescription. If you must use Neosporin, only use it as a spot treatment and make sure your pimple has come open on its own. You do not want to make the situation worse by adding an unnecessary component to the mix.
