Most young adults are very concerned about their face, and acne in particular. But have no fear. Lift has asked Dr Thay Kea, who specialises in skin diseases at the Phnom Penh Skin Clinic, to share his expertise on why acne happens, how to chase it away and how to keep it at bay.

Why Acne comes up

Hormonal Acne: This type of blemish is the inevitable fate of both girls and boys who are hitting their teenage years. This acne is created by angtrosen, which are small bubbles that appear on your skin and go away after some time. Some people want to use powder to rid their faces of this acne, but it is useless to do this. Powder can actually create more acne. The best thing to do is to keep your face clean and let the blemishes go away by themselves.

Drug-related acne: Acne can be accelerating by taking pain killers or steroids, which make you want to eat more food. While these drugs may have benefits for pain or fighting disease, it is likely that they will increase acne.

Sun-related acne: Sunshine can make your face form more oil and make you have rougher skin. Staying out of the sunlight, or wearing oil-free sunscreen can not only help prevent acne but improve your complexion in general.

Stress-related acne: Being stressed has been shown to cause acne, even among older people who don’t usually have acne problems. Touching acne also makes your problem greater and more painful. To prevent stress-related acne check out Tith Chandara’s article on this page and learn how to manage stress and take care of your mind and body.

How to protect your face

There are plenty of things you can do to protect yourself from acne, and most of them are quite natural and only involve some slight behavioural changes. You can protect your skin from sunlight by using hats or shirt-sleeves. You should not use powder mixes or creams unless they have been specifically prescribed by a doctor. Furthermore, you should not eat greasy food, which will surely make your skin more oily and increase the likelihood of an acne break-out.

Getting rid of acne

If your face has problems, you should go to a clinic that specialises in skin care. Otherwise, you may make the problems with your face more serious.

Keep your dirty, oily fingers away from your face and follow the drug or lotion regimens laid out by a doctor.

You should not use cucumbers, honey, bananas or other fruits on your face. It is better to eat them so you will have more protein and vitamins in your system to keep your skin fresh and your face beautiful.