Acne Medicine

Acne is the most common skin condition to affect people. 85% to 100% of people get some type of acne at some time in their life. There are many different types of acne medicine both prescription and over the counter. Billions of dollars are spent every year by people trying to find a cure for their acne and acne related skin problems.

Acne medicine is not the answer for everyone but many people can not get rid of their acne or even control their acne without it. For these people, acne medicine might be the only answer. You should talk to your doctor or dermatologist if you are that concerned about your acne or if you have acne that can not be managed by over the counter treatments.

There are many types of treatment products, skin care clinics and more that can help you get your acne under control and clear up your skin. Treating your acne isn’t about finding a medicine you can just take and clear it up. It isn’t about some “miracle cure” that will end your acne forever. It’s about using the medicine as well as a skin care regiment to clear up your acne and keep it from coming back.

Prescription

Many people find that they have trouble getting rid of acne or that they have severe acne that doesn’t respond well to home treatments or over the counter treatments. If you have tried conventional methods and over the counter treatments and your acne is still a problem, your doctor might prescribe you a medication to treat it.

Some types of acne medicine include:

• Hormonal therapies like estrogen and spironolactone
• Topical retinoids like adapalene and tretinoin
• Isotretinoin
• Oral tetracycline (doxycycline, minocycline and tetracycline)

Since hormones lead to acne for many people, hormonal drugs are often used to help treat it. This is the same reason why birth control pills work for many women who have acne.

Over the Counter

You probably have already seen many or even most of the over the counter medications that are available for acne. There are many different types and brands but the same basic ingredients are used for most of them. There are creams and washes and astringents. There are spot treatments used to dry up existing blemishes.

For the majority of people with acne, prescription acne medication is not really needed. If you follow a simple regimen of cleaning properly and avoiding triggers then a simple over the counter spot treatment will help with blemishes. Most of these over the counter acne medicines contain sulfur, resorcinol, salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide and all are effective.

You should also know that all skin types and acne types are different. What works for one person might not work for another and in some cases can even make it worse. You should not use someone else’s prescription medicine for acne. If you feel you need a prescription, you need to see a doctor yourself.