Back Breakouts – What's The Deal With Acne On Your Back?

One of the most annoying types of acne is back acne, or bacne as it's humorously been called. This type of acne can come in various shapes and sizes, and include white heads to more serious acne, such as cystic acne. You can also find black heads, pimples and pustule. Back acne can affect anyone, though the most common seems to be in people between the ages of ten to forty. To combat it, it's important to know exactly what causes it.

The trouble with back acne is that, just like other forms of the affliction, there's not one set cause of it – it can happen for a myriad of reasons. However, one thing that experts agree on with regards to back acne is that it's most susceptible during puberty, since this is when the body’s oil gland start to work faster. The extra oil that results from this is found in the androgen glands, which result in the body’s pores, or air ducts, becoming clogged. When this happens, dead cells soon build up, and this in turn leads to the bacteria that is so common in causing acne.

Although it's known as back acne, this type of acne can actually be found on other parts of the body. Some of the more common effects of this particular type of acne include large and painful cysts or lesions. There are many reasons for getting back acne – it may be that you are just one of those unfortunate people who are prone to skin afflictions. Or it can also be caused if you use backpacks regularly, or wear tight clothing. Due to the fact that people need to wear clothing, back acne is one of these types of acne that is hard to prevent, although treating it is somewhat easier.

The good news is that your back's skin is some of the toughest on the human body, therefore you can use stronger treatments than you might use on your face or other tender areas. One such product is 10% Benzoyl Peroxide, highly effective yet unsuitable for many other areas of skin. Since back acne includes numerous types of acne, such a black heads, cysts and papules, to name just a few, the stronger the treatment you can use the better.

Although you can get back acne on other parts of your body, it's important to remember that it does not always share the same type of causes that other acne does, and this can mean you need to treat it differently. For instance, whereas your genes can cause other types of acne, this isn't the case with back acne. Similarly, whereas oily or greasy foods usually contribute to most forms of acne, back acne isn't one of them, or at least a link hasn't been found yet to suggest it is. Indeed, as more information is gleaned about the causes of back acne, the more it's agreed on that back acne is generally caused by each individual's own genetic make-up.

Another difference between back acne and more common types is that generally it's not caused by dirt or oil build-up on the skin. Even if you sweat a lot, and don't shower regularly, this still doesn't seem to be a cause of back acne. And whereas stress can cause other bouts of acne, it doesn't seem to affect the chances of getting back acne either. However, one thing that is agreed is that if you do have back acne and you're stressed in any way, it will cause a longer healing process where back acne's concerned.

If your back acne is relatively straightforward, then you can probably treat it with normal over-the-counter methods from your local pharmacy or drugstore. However, if it's more serious types such as cystic acne, then you will need to see a specialist in order to be treated.

Although cleansing and lotions can treat most forms of acne, cystic acne is a deeper type of acne and the one most likely to cause scarring around the area. If you're unsure, speak to your doctor or physician, and never, ever try and treat really serious back acne on your own, as it can cause more problems than you already have.