Acne is the most common skin disorder known today. In United States alone, nearly 60 million people are infected with acne, where 85 per cent of teenagers suffer from it.

Skin experts and aesthetic practitioners recommend several natural acne treatments you can use for your regular home-based routines.

1.Wash your face twice a day (thrice at most) with gentle and unperfumed cleanser. Avoid using soaps as they contain harsh chemicals and ingredients that can damage your skin.

2. Avoid touching your face. Stop putting your hands by your face! I am often guilty of this resting my hand on the side of my head while reading. Also rubbing or bracing your chin is another common problem when thinking. Avoid rubbing, touching, or itching your skin with your hands. Your hands contain a lot of bacteria that can cause acne flare-ups. It is probably one of the most difficult things to avoid since much of the hand to face contact throughout the day we are unconscious of. Make it a habit to avoid hand contact and be conscious of it during the day to avoid bacteria.

3. Avoid the temptation to pick, prick and squeeze your acne. This will send the infection deeper into the skin and can cause severe scarring.

4.For mild to moderate acne, you can use over- the- counter topical ointments, solutions, lotions or gels that contain benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid or azelaic acid as an alternative to benzoyl peroxide. Benzoyl peroxide is best at killing P. acnes and may reduce oil production. Resorcinol, salicylic acid, and sulfur help break down blackheads and whiteheads. Salicylic acid also helps cut down the shedding of cells lining the follicles of the oil glands.

5. Topical antibiotic solutions and lotions can also be applied.

6.Tea tree oil is a natural antibiotic and antibacterial agent and has a drying effect on the skin. It keeps the P. Acnes bacteria at bay along with decreasing facial oiliness, which makes this oil a worthwhile investment.

7. Sulfur helps to heal existing blemishes by unblocking pores.

8.Alpha or Beta Hydroxy Acids (AHA or BHA) works by keeping the skin exfoliated. Glycolic acid, the most well-known of the bunch is a useful adjuvant therapy for mild acne. Mandelic acid, a lesser known one, but one that combines the keratolytic properties of glycolic acid with natural antibacterial properties that help reduce the presence of P. acnes, may be considered a more effective alpha hydroxy acid in treating acne lesions. It is also much less irritating than glycolic acid, a factor that may be very important to those with sensitive skin who are unable to use other agents such as Retin-A, benzoyl peroxide, sulfur, or salicylic acid. It is effective in treating mild cases of acne on its own, and can be used successfully with other therapies on moderate acne.
These treatments are usually effective for mild to moderate acne problems only. The effectiveness usually takes several weeks or approximately three to six months to be noticed. For more severe and serious acne conditions, do not hesitate to consult your dermatologist.

These days dermatologists and aesthetic physicians prefer to use laser treatments to control severe acne and resurface acne scars. Experienced physician will prescribe a regimen, which may include some medication but mostly a series of laser treatments, which will be very effective on your acne.

If regular cleansing routines and a laser-assisted treatment plan are not followed or disrupted, some people with severe teenage acne may end up having acne scars, which may never flatten out if left untreated.

The most common laser treatment for acne scarring is laser skin resurfacing, which can be done by a variety of laser modalities.

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Get this from the pros: “These days, it’s perfectly reasonable to expect your skin to get better as you age — no matter what the date on your driver’s license,” says Dr. Ranella Hirsch, president of the American Society of Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Surgery and a cosmetic dermatologist in Cambridge, Mass.

There are many “secrets” to good looking skin for you 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond. Dr. Hirsch published a very good decade-by-decade skin care guide on MSNBC today. Strongly recommended read. It is an excellent blend of skin care recommendations and professional laser treatments.

All basic recommendations are very good and applicable to many. However, the true secret to your healthy and young looks is knowing what will actually work on your skin. It’s hard to figure it out without a little help from an aesthetic professional, and an educated consumer can get a lot more from a visit to an aesthetic laser clinic.

Regular skin care may be beneficial in the long run. You can spend thousands on latest cosmeceuticals and medical grade creams and lotions. Provided you can afford the expense and the time needed to follow the regimen you may have great skin well into your 50s. Bear in mind though, sun exposure may ruin months of hard work and patience in a few minutes.

Sun avoidance and sun protection are by far the most important factors determining health and looks of your skin. Everything else is secondary.

Light-based and radio frequency based technologies offer a totally different level to skin care. There are many safe and non-invasive lasers, intense pulse light and LED machines, which will make a big difference in providing a real skin texture improvement, new collagen formation, skin tightening and plumping.

More about aesthetic lasers and skin.

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Skin care after any laser treatment is very important for healing and for the best overall results of any skin photorejuvenation procedure. Darker skin type patients require extra attention to prevent laser surgery hyperpigmentation.

The melanocytes (skin cells producing melanin – the pigment in the skin) of dark-skinned individuals tend to be more hyperactive to any stimulus, particularly inflammation after laser surgery. Therefore, the use of hypopigmenting agents both pre and postoperatively is of considerable importance. Many combinations of tretinoin, hydroquinone, topical steroid, α-hydroxy acids, kojic acid and/or azealic acid have been advocated by aesthetic physicians.

For the treatment of the hyperpigmentation that follows several laser procedures, many practices favor 0.025% tretinoin cream mixed with 4% hydroquinone to be used initially at night. To assess the degree of irritation, the patient is instructed to apply the cream to back of their ears, and if tolerated, the application is continued on other exposed areas. If any irritation develops, corticosteroid in topical form is added to the combination (1% hydrocortisone).

Patients are typically advised to use 5% glycolic cream in the morning, and if the pigmentation still persists, mild glycolic acid peel (20-30% solution) is performed 9 weeks after the laser procedures. Combinations of Vitamins C and E and glycolic acid as well as many other medical grade skin care products are commercially available and may be very useful for the prevention and treatment of hyperpigmentation after laser skin resurfacing and all non-invasive laser treatments.

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More skin care products recommended by LaserOffers.com

Being bold is no longer embarrassing. Being hairy is. In the U.S., and more and more so in many other countries, women’s legs and underarms are expected to be hair free. A mustache, hairs on the chin and sideburns may seriously affect a girl’s life in high school. A hairy back may freak out many men in a locker room. It’s a hair free world!

Shaving, waxing, plucking is a daily and boring routine, that costs tens of thousands of dollars over a life time. Electrolysis is more or less history due to pain and never-ending treatment sessions. Laser hair removal is the golden standard of hair therapy of the day. Chin, upper lip, cheeks and sideburns, underarms and bikini are the most popular areas for laser hair reduction.

The primary principle behind laser hair removal is selective photothermolysis of the hair follicle: the laser beam heats and distroys the dark matter (melanin) in the hair bud, while not heating the skin around it. The principle works great on dark hair, which has a lot of melanin, and light color skin, which does not have much pigment.

Many light-based devices, lasers and IPLs, with wavelengths ranging from 300 to 900 nm, are very effective and safe for dark hair removal on light color and untanned skin. But what happens if you have dark or tanned skin with a lot of pigment?

The laser does not know the difference between melanin in the hair follicle and melanin in your skin – and, you guessed it, – it will damage both, resulting in a loss of pigmentation (hypopigmentation) in your skin, blisters and, sometimes, permanent scarring. Does that mean that Asians, Latinos, Africans and even Norwegians permanently living in Florida cannot have laser hair removal? Is there a laser that will “know the difference between melanin in the hair follicle and melanin in the skin?

The answer is a firm “yes’! Nd:YAG laser technology with 1064 nm wavelength is best for darker skinned individuals. If you come to a medical aesthetic practice, your physician should determine your skin type and choose the right laser modality for you. Beware of flight by night spa type facilities with IPLs, diode or Alexandrite lasers. If you have dark skin, make sure that your hair removal facility has a 1064 Nd:YAG. If the provider does not have a 1064 YAG but pushes a sale of another laser or IPL to you, you need to understand that this provider will have to use low energy (fluence) to avoid burns and hipopigmentation. This strategy will result in many more treatment sessions than you expect and potentially low percentage of hair reduction. As a side effect, your hair may weaken but develop resistance to further therapy, and you will end up with fuzzy baby hair, which will be impossible to remove by any laser.

What about laser hair removal for blonde and grey hair?

Use the question as a test of your provider knowledge of the business. If the answer is yes, you can turn around and leave. In laser hair removal, no pigment – no result. Period.

More about Laser Hair Removal on LaserOffers.com
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Everyone wants clear and acne-free skin. Unfortunately, a lot of people have various skin disorders, and many flock to drugstores to buy the latest miracle cure for that naturally beautiful skin.

Three facts to keep in mind when shopping for acne products

1. The cosmetic industry makes billions of dollars from the public quest for great skin. Do not be fooled by the advertising hype.

2.  There are many factors that contribute to the clogging of pores: like dehydrated skin, improper cleansing, excessive oil production, excessive build-up of dead skin cells, hormones, excessive sweating, dirty work or play environments, genetics, makeup, fingers on the face, allergic reactions, a diet high in sugar content and many others.

3. Most skin impurities are due to clogged pores, so the best way to have that beautiful skin is to unclog your pores.

A few words of advice to keep your pores clear

• Avoid oil-based products such as facial lotions, wash and cosmetics. Look for products that are “non-comedogenic,” it means it will not clog your pores.
• Do not wear tight headband, baseball hat, and/or helmet when you exercise or play sports, and make sure you wash the sweat-soaked things each time you wear them.
• Keep the skin hydrated and moist so your cells can function properly. Moisturize your face with mild, non-comedogenic moisturizers to keep it hydrated. Moisturizing is a necessity.
• Cleanse your pores with an alcohol-free toner or skin conditioner on cotton balls. Do not try to scrub harshly or you will strip and damage your skin. Even after rinsing your face, if you do not remove the remainder of cleanser and loosened debris residues, you are only going to imbed that debris deeper into the pores as you layer serums and moisturizers on top. The absolute best way to perform this deep pore cleansing is with an alcohol-free toner or skin conditioner on cotton balls. There’s no need to harm your skin by vigorous scrubbing or harsh acids, simply wipe with toner damp cotton balls until the last cotton comes away perfectly white.
• Astringents, Salicylic Acid, retinoic acids, and glycolic acids all work to prevent pores from clogging. Be aware of some active ingredients like benzoyl peroxide - these ingredients can cause major side effects.

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Acne won’t go away? Turn to laser treatments!

Beauty starts with your skin. If regular routines are not enough, the best and the safest way to take your acne treatments to a different level is to go to an aesthetic physician for laser treatments.

A question about the use of carbon solution to enhance laser skin treatments was recently raised at a medical panel discussion.

Years ago there was a belief that if a physician applies carbon based solution to the patient’s skin, an enhanced result can be achieved in any laser skin rejuvenation treatment. Some practitioners even claimed being successful in removing grey and blonde hair by the application of a carbon gel.

I have not seen any conclusive clinical or anecdotal evidence that the technique may work. A quick review of latest research on the subject has produced a report on a study by a Chinese group (LEE, MEI-CHING et al) in Taiwan, which shows that the carbon gel application does not make any difference in laser skin rejuvenation.

The researchers used the 1064-nm Q-switched neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd:YAG) laser with and without exogenous topical carbon solution application for facial skin rejuvenation, which has become very popular in Southeast Asia in recent years.

The group evaluated the efficacy of the YAG in improvement of pore size, sebaceous secretion, skin texture, and skin tone of Asian patients. They also observed whether there is any enhancement of application of topical carbon solution applied to the right side of the face before the laser therapy.

This split-face study showed significant improvement in skin rejuvenation effect. However, there was no difference in improvement of the skin texture between the side with the carbon solution and the side without it. The study concluded that topical carbon solution application did not enhance laser efficacy.

I can only add, that the treatment of the right cheek – the one with the carbon gel on – must have been a lot more painful for the Chinese ladies.

It’s a popular trend among teenagers and those in their 20′s. We’re talking about tattoos, and more than a third of young people under 25 have at least one, according to the Harris Interactive Poll. But what happens when you no longer want that permanent art on your body?

Here is a report from Honolulu

With tattoos’ popularity (about 45 million Americans sport this permanent body art), there is a growing niche among doctors who perform tattoo removal surgery. Thanks to laser technology, the process is less painful than it used to be.

How does laser tattoo removal work?

The laser pulverizes the ink particles and the body’s immune system “eats” these particles, takes them deeper into the skin and eventually removes them from the body.

Does laser tattoo removal hurt?

The reality is, of course, a lot more complicated than the report referenced above, as 100,000 Americans get their tattoos removed each year. Pain and suffering, multiple (12-20) laser sessions, scabbing of the area, hypopigmentation (white lines and spots on the skin) are very common.

• Laser tattoo removal pictures
• Laser tattoo video