Body Acne: How to Treat It?

As promised, here’s an article about body acne: its causes and solutions. This will be my last post in the “acne“.

From now on, I’ll be sharing my Beauty & Cosmetics articles on my blog Mehach, which is dedicated solely to cosmetics.

Sebaceous glands are more concentrated on the face (and scalp) than on the rest of the body. So, if there’s ever an excess of sebum, it’s more noticeable on the face than elsewhere. However, when you do get body breakouts, I find they’re tougher to treat because they’re not regular pimples but often very deep, and you don’t know how to get rid of them easily.

There are internal and external causes, a bit more complex, so I’ll discuss them in this not-at-all-glamorous article.

Internal Causes

The skin is an emunctory organ, so when the other emunctory organs can’t keep up, toxins get expelled through our skin, the body’s largest emunctory organ. This often happens after stopping birth control pills or after the holidays (when you’ve eaten an industrial amount of foie gras, cured sausages… things that take a while to digest and clog up your liver).

In that case, you’ll see a breakout not only on your face but also on other parts of your body (décolletage, back, buttocks…). The sudden appearance of acne on multiple body parts should alert you to internal causes.

In such cases, you need to review your diet and, if possible, see a naturopath if it’s a recurring issue. I won’t go on about this because I’m not a good student when it comes to eating. I eat very poorly (lots of fat and sugar), but on the flip side, I hate dairy products and I load up on probiotics to boost my gut flora and improve liver function.

The SOS solution after overly rich holiday meals is to hit a good sauna to sweat out all those toxins, before eating healthily again and drinking plenty of water.

External Causes

Acne on the neck

can come from your perfumeor your earrings (yes, even if they’re precious metals, it happens). In that case, spray your perfume elsewhere and avoid wearing earrings that touch your neck.

Neck acne can also be caused by cosmetics : you know, when you have leftover creams, it’s recommended to slather them on your neck. That’s a good idea, but the skin on your neck is more delicate than your face, and some ingredients or concentrations aren’t as well tolerated there. Generally, anything safe for the under-eye area will be fine for your neck. In short, choose lighter creams and hydrating serums specifically for that area.

Those who love turtlenecks might also get neck acne. If you’re into turtlenecks in winter, I’d suggest opting for real wool, 100% wool, not blended with synthetic stuff. Wool is antibacterial and won’t give you pimples. I have a merino wool mock-neck top for hiking, and I can wear it for days without washing it, no problem.

In 2018, due to improper use of oils (I mixed two very active ones: black seed oil and rosehip oil), I dealt with unsightly pimples for months, with no clue how to get rid of them. Even though I immediately stopped using both oils, treating the existing breakouts was mission impossible. Only one product helped me get rid of them within just a few days, which is why I adore it and recommend it in every article: the Steam Cream from Benton (Amazon link, Yesstyle link), featuring niacinamide, snail mucin, and bee venom. I highly recommend it!

Acne on the Décolletage

can come from your necklace (yes, even if it’s made of precious metals, it happens). To find out, it’s very simple: take off your necklace for 7 days and observe what happens. If it really comes from your necklace, you can then opt for shorter necklaces without a pendant. Some people tend to touch their pendant with dirty hands (like a tic), and then transfer the dirt to their décolleté => pimples.

Then, in summer, it can come from sweat. You’ll need to wear more breathable clothing (cotton, linen, silk) and avoid materials like nylon, viscose… which are widespread these days because they have a silky effect like silk, but they’ll turn you into a walking sauna.

In summer, this area is particularly exposed to the sun, and the red bumps that suddenly appear might be more related to lucite (sun allergy) than actual pimples. In that case, cover up and slather on sunscreens with high UVA protection (PA+++ for example)

Murad Acne Control Clarifying Body Spray (Lookfantastic link, FeelUnique link) is a product that’s won awards everywhere for its effective action on the body. It contains AHA, BHA, allantoin, and blue lotus extract (to soothe the skin), niacinamide, and glycerin. It’s an American brand renowned for all its anti-acne products. This one is a multitasking product if you want to use just one.

On existing pimples, Etude House AC is a very effective spot treatment (BHA, zinc, sulfur) and the pimple will disappear without leaving a mark.

Back acne

or bacne in English.

Very common in teens and less common in adults, back acne causes a lot of ink to flow and many tears. Even though psychologically it’s less devastating than a huge facial acne breakout (you see it much less), it becomes problematic in summer and is a source of suffering if it also hurts and prevents the person from sleeping.

In adolescents, the main cause is more related to excess sebum, caused by the significant hormonal variation during this period. In girls, the easy solution: the contraceptive pill will likely be suggested. Personally, I think you should try other methods before taking pills. This excess sebum is easily managed in adolescents with a sulfur-based soap, which is cheap and sold everywhere in Latin America (they have many inactive volcanoes so sulfur is an easy ingredient to find). You can find the equivalent in France on Amazon, here. Use it on the areas with pimples. It’s a bit drying, so don’t hesitate to apply aloe vera on top, or give a spritz of Uriage thermal water (Amazon link) after the shower to remove the hard water from the shower.

In adults, the main cause is quite simple and mainly related to shampoo and conditioner. Shampoos contain ingredients that create lather, which aren’t at all compatible with our skin. In conditioners, you often find oily and greasy ingredients. So, by finishing your shower with shampoo and conditioner, the residues from these products remain… on your back, and cause unsightly pimples. The easy solution would be, quite simply, to wash your hair first. Then, if you have long hair, tie it up while you wash your body to remove shampoo residues.

If this method doesn’t work, try different shampoos. I know Klorane shampoos don’t suit me at all. No matter my washing method, there’s something that stays and won’t go away. Just the friction of my hair (clean and dry) on my skin when I use these shampoos seems to cause a problem. I simply stopped using that brand.

For body wash, I think we pay too much attention to the scent and not the pH. Our skin has a slightly acidic pH to protect us from bacteria. Washing with soaps or body washes with an alkaline pH certainly makes us feel cleaner, but it disrupts the skin’s pH. So what you need to do is opt for a body wash with a physiological pH. My pharmacist sold me a pack of 2 jars of Saugella (250ml each) Amazon link, I cursed him at the time because these jars were too big and for 3 years I couldn’t use other body washes, but it was a blessing because since I’ve had them, my back is in top shape (see photo). These body washes are super unpleasant to use because they don’t lather and are soap-free, but they contain lactic acid (mild exfoliating effect) and respect the skin’s pH. They don’t smell like anything.

If you’re absolutely a fan of soaps and don’t want to hear about my body wash, you should go for super-fatted, cold-saponified soaps. I really like the donkey milk soap from Laboratoire Paysane. Get the tea tree one, it’s super gentle, effective, and can also be used on the face.

You can also opt for the Ayurvedic soap Medimix Turmeric & Argan, which also has anti-stain effects.

Once or twice a week, use this magic scrub from Thailand. It’s based on sea salt (refined, so it won’t hurt), milk, arbutin, and allantoin. Gently massage the product onto your body, and you’ll have baby-soft skin after.

Anyway, after the shower, if you’re not lazy, you can spritz a bit of Uriage thermal water (Amazon link) on your back to remove hard water from the shower.

Murad Acne Control Clarifying Body Spray (Lookfantastic link, FeelUnique link) I mentioned above is also a very good product to use after the shower.

If after trying all that you still have pimples on your back, read the ingredients of your favorite clothes carefully. Get rid of any clothes containing viscose, nylon… stick to 100% cotton, silk, bamboo, linen, wool (merino wool preferably). It’ll wick away sweat better and keep bacteria at bay. Opt for slightly looser, less figure-hugging clothes. When you’re at home, wear as little as possible: a tank top, for instance. Tie your hair up. On the other hand, when you sleep, to avoid friction with your bedding (which is dirty because we change it less often than our clothes), wear a t-shirt instead.

If you only have issues around your bra straps, it means either that area is too big, doesn’t let sweat evaporate, or is too tight. In that case, first check your size—are you wearing the right one? Then, go for bras with front closures (the back part would be smaller), or backless styles (the closure sits lower).

Butt acne

Buttne in English 😀

Here, we’re no longer talking about acne butinflamed hair follicles, in the form of sometimes painful red spots. It’s gotten much worse since lockdown, when people work from home and have their butts glued to their chairs. It also shows up during your period, especially if you use pads and don’t change them often enough.

For this, you’ll simply need an acid-based exfoliant. It can be BHA or AHA.

The Ordinary’s glycolic acid (The Ordinary link, Sephora link), on sale for €8.70 per 240ml, is a multi-purpose product that everyone should have in their bathroom. If you also have little red bumps and rough texture on your arms (keratosis pilaris), this product is perfect for that too. Anyway, with this little product that costs next to nothing, you’ll quickly get your baby-soft skin back. The only downside is it doesn’t come in spray form, so transfer it to a spray bottle. And spritz it on the affected areas once a day. Read the detailed review on my other blog here

Murad Acne Control Clarifying Body Spray (Lookfantastic link, FeelUnique link) I mentioned above is also a very good product to use after the shower.

Of course, you need to opt for cotton or bamboo underwear, and not-too-tight clothes if this problem persists.

Treating spots

A friend’s dermatologist claimed, based on her 20 years of experience, that spots on the body fade slower than on the face. The closer you get to the feet, the harder they are to get rid of. But the good news is that your body can tolerate stronger, more concentrated actives than your face. So retinol, vitamin C, hydroquinone… you can slather them on without fear, unlike on facial skin.

• Melano CC (Amazon link, Yesstyle link) is a highly concentrated vitamin C balm. My face can’t handle it at all, so I recycled it for my body. It’s a bit oily but doesn’t stick to clothes. I find the effect a bit slow, but when the spots go, they’re gone for good. For instance, if I get a tan, the old spots don’t come back.
• My friend, on the other hand, was recommended Uriage DEPIDERM WHITE SÉRUM CORRECTEUR ÉCLAIRCISSANT (Amazon link) by her dermatologist. She doesn’t have spots anymore, so it must work well
• If you have extra retinol, slather it on—your body needs retinol too

Recommended products

So, here are the recommended products:

Product name	effect	Neck	Décolleté	Back	Butt
Bento Steam Cream	hydrating, soothing	yes
Saugella Dermoliquide wash emulsion	mildly exfoliating shower gel, protects skin pH		yes	yes	yes
Sulfur soap	reduces excess sebum	yes	yes	yes	yes
Medimix turmeric & argan soap	anti-acne, anti-spot		yes	yes	yes
A Bonne Milk-based scrub	anti-acne, anti-spot, smooth skin		yes	yes	yes
The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% or Murad Acne Control Clarifying Body Spray	exfoliating and anti-spot			yes	yes
Eau Thermale d’Uriage	remove hard water after your shower, bring zinc	yes	yes	yes	yes
Melano CC or Uriage Depiderm	anti-dark spot		yes	yes	yes

From now on, I’ll only be posting my Beauty & Cosmetics articles on my blog Mehach, to avoid mixing Travel articles with Beauty articles. This new blog will be dedicated solely to cosmetics.