Dermatologists Breakdown Body Acne Causes and Treatments

If you experience acne, whether or not often or simply each every so often, you recognize that there is a risk for it to look actually anyplace in your physique, not simply your face. Whiteheads, blackheads, and pimples can pop up in your chest, again, shoulders, and even your butt.

If you want a bit refresher on what precisely pimples is, it is a widespread pores and skin concern that many individuals expertise sooner or later of their lives. It’s a situation that is available in many kinds and levels of severity. Some have very delicate signs, whereas others cope with irritation and painful cysts. Your weight loss plan, skin-care habits, surroundings, and genetics can all be the supply of pimples, however have you ever ever questioned why it is showing in your physique fairly than your face?

Since discovering a pimple in the course of your again or in your butt may be uncomfortable and perplexing at greatest, we spoke with dermatologists to study the most typical physique pimples causes and the way to stop it from showing.

Experts Featured in This Article

Jacquiline Habashy-Hakim, MD, is a double board-certified dermatologist and surgeon.

Kseniya Kobets, MD, MHS, FAAD, is a board-certified dermatologist.

What Is Body Acne?

“Acne is a multifactorial inflammatory condition that can be triggered by excess oil production, sweat, hormones, environment, stress, and more,” double board-certified dermatologist Jacquiline Habashy-Hakim tells PS. “Body acne is specific to the location in which the acne is located.”

Parts of your physique like your chest and again “have a high density of sweat glands that create a favorable environment for bacteria and yeast to overgrow, potentially contributing to acne and body folliculitis,” Kseniya Kobets, a board-certified dermatologist, says. “Body pimples can seem like small pink or pink bumps with some white pustules or can be deeper, extra painful, larger pink bumps.”

Why Do You Get Chest Acne?

Chest acne happens as a result of the realm has a excessive density of sweat glands. Excessive sweating (particularly should you do not bathe instantly after), friction from clothes, and utilizing skin-care merchandise that clog pores can simply result in breakouts, our specialists clarify.

Using laundry detergents with dyes or perfumes might also result in chest pimples, in addition to solar publicity, dry pores and skin, oily moisturizers, make-up, and perfumes, per Medical News Today.

Why Do You Get Back Acne and Shoulder Acne?

Your again and your shoulders are areas the place you have in all probability seen a pimple or two – or generally extra. Similarly to your chest, “the back has more sebaceous glands and pores and sweats more,” Dr. Kobets says.

Since pimples is usually attributable to extra sweat, grime, and improper washing, this may clarify why you can get back acne and shoulder acne. “Friction from tight clothing and backpacks can accelerate occlusion in these areas, leading to more breakouts,” Dr. Hakim says.

Why Do You Get Butt Acne?

Finding butt acne isn’t a nice expertise. However, it’s attributable to comparable elements, equivalent to extra sweating and long-term sitting. It may also develop into irritated by your clothes. “Yet, ‘butt acne’ is often clinically diagnosed as folliculitis, which is the inflammation around the hair follicle primarily due to superficial bacteria,” Dr. Hakim says.

How to Get Rid of Body Acne

If you’re employed out so much, sweat often, or have oily pores and skin, Dr. Kobets says it might be helpful to make use of physique washes that may cut back extra oil, exfoliate useless pores and skin, and curb the over-growing acne-causing organisms of the pores and skin. Luckily, there are fairly just a few well-liked physique pimples therapies in the marketplace.

“Look for physique washes containing salicylic acid,” she says. “Salicylic acid is a beta hydroxy acid (BHA), which is lipophilic (oil-loving) and can penetrate deeply into oil-filled pores or pimples.”

You may also search for components with benzoyl peroxide that may clear out the pores and skin pores. Since benzoyl peroxide works each as an antibiotic and anti-inflammatory therapy, Dr. Hakim says {that a} physique wash like PanOxyl’s 10 Percent BPO Wash ($8) is all the time her go-to advice.

“It’s also prudent to take a shower right after working out and sweating and not waiting for hours,” Dr. Kobets says. “Topical retinoids, such as adapalene, are great to exfoliate the skin and decrease all production and decrease acne.”

Avoiding hair merchandise like hair gels, hair oils, or hair conditioners that make contact together with your again, chest, and shoulders whereas showering can be useful in stopping clogging up pores. “I additionally use hypochlorous acid spray, like SkinSmart Spray ($17), on the chest, again, and shoulders after showering,” Dr. Kobets says. Body pimples sprays make it straightforward to focus on hard-to-reach locations like your again and butt.

How to Prevent Body Acne

Body pimples is not best. Luckily, there are methods you possibly can stop pimples from occurring in your physique, equivalent to avoiding shampoos that include silicone or dimethicone. “These ingredients in hair shampoos and conditioners can remain on the body after washing your hair and result in body breakouts,” Dr. Kobets says. She additionally says to “avoid using oils on the chest, back, and shoulders. For example, if you get a massage, you might want to wash off and take a shower afterward.”

Dr. Habashy-Hakim’s greatest tip for her sufferers is to bathe instantly after train or extreme sweating. “If showering is not accessible or desired, change into dry cotton clothing until you reach a location where showering is an option.” Afterward, utilizing a medicated physique wash might assist stop physique pimples. “Let the soap sit on the skin for three to five minutes to maximize its ability to treat the skin.”

And if it feels such as you nonetheless cannot curb your physique pimples, seek the advice of with a dermatologist for a tailor-made care plan.

Sydney Wingfield has been a contract author within the magnificence and wellness area for six years. She has written for Women’s Health, Marie Claire, Glamour, and different publications and likes to cowl all issues skincare, make-up, and hair.