Acne and Shaving Bumps – Tips on Preventing an Adult Acne Breakout After Shaving
Have you often felt excruciating pain while shaving your beard and then noticed some swollen outgrowth at the spot of the pain? If this has happened to you, then you have probably suffered from “shaving bumps” or adult acne outgrowths. In medical terms, they are known as Pseudofolliculitis barbae. They appear when after you have shaved or waxed you skin, your facial hairs try to grow back, but get stuck inside the follicle. This may result in excruciating pain in the affected area.
After shaving, the human skin causes irritation. The shaving bumps soon come out as swollen outgrowths, causing pain. The cause of these bumps is more or less similar to the development of acne. Research has shown that men with curly hair suffer more from shaving bumps because this kind of hairy outgrowth completely cuts off the contact of human skin with air. But do not fear! It is possible to avoid the shaving bumps completely, read on.
You can stop the shaving bumps from surfacing if you follow a few procedures. You need to know to shave in a way so that the bump formation is easily avoided. The things that you can do are as follows:
– Always use lukewarm water for shaving. Using lukewarm water makes the skin soft and full of moisture.
– Try using a shaving cream that does not produce much lather and allows your razor glide swiftly on the skin, preventing it from getting swollen.
– Using a razor that suits your skin type is very important. The blade that you use must be changed every next time you repeat the act of shaving. You can also give the electric razors a try. They might not give you a clean shave but are mild on skin. Never use triple edge blades for shaving since they cause swelling of skin by shaving the hair completely from under the epidermis. When the skin grows back, it covers the mouth of the hair follicle which on turn blocks the growing hair and causes irritation. This is noticed particularly a few days after a fresh shave.
– Do not shave in different directions. Always shave in one direction, preferably downward. This is true in the case of both men and women. Shaving downwards also lowers the possibility of the skin getting scratched and almost eliminates pain.
Toning Up
After finishing shaving, do not forget to put an antibacterial gel or a soft alcohol-free toner on your skin. In this way you can stop the bacteria from growing back inside the follicles. If you need more protection for your skin, you can apply salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide to your skin. In these days many good shaving gels actually contain these chemicals. So you can look for them in the market.
Following these guidelines, you can easily fight Pseudofolliculitis barbae. If you follow the methods prescribed here, you are most likely to avoid the shaving bumps. However, if they still seem to return back, you should see a good dermatologist, who can cure you with the help of the various other advanced treatments available in the market.
For years I was an acne sufferer but I was fortunate because I found a solution that cleared my face up and eliminated all of my acne. You can have acne free skin now using the same solution!