There are many contributing factors for acne. When I talk about acne, I’m talking about the usual, less severe form nicknamed “zits”, “pimples” or “spots”. Anything more severe such as deep, painful acne that causes scars needs to be seen by a doctor for treatment. Also, please don’t use this article on aloe vera for acne home treatment in the place of a qualified doctor’s advice. Use your common sense, please.

The Usual Suspects

You get acne because your pores are dirty somehow. That’s the basic reason for acne, but getting those pores dirty in the first place is a more complex subject. For some reason yet unknown, puberty seems to trigger the body into making excessive amounts of sebum – the topical oil our skin naturally produces to keep it soft and supple. Excessive sweat, dirt, makeup, pre-menstrual syndrome or even too much stress can trigger break outs of acne.

There is no one magic product or medicine that will clear up acne. If you decide to use aloe vera for acne, use it as part of an arsenal in your fight against acne. Aloe vera gel has been shown to help some people keep away any infections from burst pimples and to help keep their skin soft. Some very gentle skin cleansers contain aloe vera for acne and sensitive skin conditions.

But aloe vera for acne skin cleansers, topical creams or gels alone will help you with acne unless you do certain things. First off, you only need to wash a couple of times a day. If you wash obsessively with scalding hot water, this actually gives you more acne. Sure, your skin will feel clean, and your pores will be clean, but all of your sebum will be stripped away.

The body is programmed to have a certain amount of sebum on the skin at all times. If the sebum is entirely gone (like when you wash your face a million times a day) then the body gets panicky in wondering where all the sebum went. The skin goes into sebum making overdrive, in order to compensate for the lost sebum. This serves only to clog your pores up even faster than before.

Sensible Skin Cleansing

Wash your hair regularly, more if you get it sweaty a lot. This can contribute to facial and neck acne. Also, wash your bed linens regularly, as old oil and dirt can build up to clog your pores even if you can’t see or smell it. And, of course, you need to wash your pimple prone areas one to four times a day, depending on how sweaty and dirty you get in the course of a day.
Use warm water, not scalding hot. Don’t scrub at your face – wash gently and pat dry with a towel. Try not to pop your pimples – especially blind pimples. This squeezing makes the pimples redder and more noticeable.

You can use one of the many aloe vera for acne products available in pharmacies and health food stores. You can also use the plant, aloe vera, for acne in a more direct manner. However, keep in mind that you might need several plants. To use aloe vera plants for acne, break off a small portion of the plant and rub the pulp directly on your skin.

Aloe vera for acne products (whether home made or ready made) have a tendency to dry out the skin. This might be what you want, if you have very oily skin. However, if you already have dry skin, then you want to use an aloe vera product that also contains a moisturizer.