OTC Acne treatments for teens? About This Page:

[dejavu]

We've hit "those years" at our house and have been wondering what to try first. The ProActiv commercials lure you in, but does it work any better than Clearasil?

Does anyone have any success stories from their teens?

[wvugrrrl]

At the youth center I work at, we buy ProActiv for the kids. It works very well - but only if you use all the products, and not just the face wash, or the scrub. You have to use the recommended "process". And your kids have to be really good about washing their faces (not saying that your kids are dirty - but I know sometimes I'm tempted to just roll into bed with all my makeup on ) - our kids are required to do hygiene when they wake up in the morning and before they go to bed, so we can monitor their actual usage of the acne medication.
ProActiv is our preferred treatment for Acne, and we try to at least get them on that for a few weeks. However, for really bad cases, sometimes it's just better to take them to the dermatologist for some good 'ole Retin-A.

[HiddenMickey]

I didn't have much success as a teen in ridding myself of acne.

As an adult, I still had frequent flare-ups and what I found helped most, was to keep my skin moisturized. I'd been overcleaning and astringinting (is that a word?) my face to death. Adding some moisture helped to keep my skin happy. My dermatologist said a few years ago, that my skin is the best he's seen it (and he's seen me for nearly 30 years). I'm suggesting moisturizer now to my own two teens and so far they are looking pretty good.

I wish I could be of more help, but I will be paying close attention to the anwsers you get, in case we need to up the facial care at our house.

[tndisneyfam]

As a teen, Pro Active was the only thing that worked for me. I have a friend who still uses it as an adult. Her acne was way worse then mine though. Clearasil and washing with Noxzema never worked for me. Good luck!

[MouseGirl1]

My daughter who is just eleven has an awful time already with acne. Like you said the Pro-active commercials kind of lure you in thinking its a "Miracle Worker" overnight. We did get it for her and she is having very good success with the product. You do have to use it by the book and her being only eleven, I really have to stay on top of whether she is doing it properly and daily. Good Luck!

[BelmontBelle]

Question here for you Pro-Active users. My teen DD's only have occasional break outs and I've heard that Pro-Active really dries your face out, so I've never purchased it. What's your opinion? Is it really best for only bad cases of acne or is it good for prevention too?

[graygables]

I never had the problem as a teen, but once I hit about 38, egads. I use a Tea Tree Oil astringent (I think Kiss My Face makes one) and MSM cream. I still get the monthly 2 or 3 pop up, but for the most part, the combination works for me.

[my2girls]

I have rosacea (which is a form of adult acne), and I use Purpose Face Soap and Prosacea (OTC lotion). It works for me great! My DD11 uses the same for her monthly flare ups and it works great for her also. Prosacea is an OTC cream that works for Rosacea, redness, and acne. I am taking DD11 to the dermatologist at the end of the month for a visit anyway.

[dejavu]

Ok. I need to find some Prosacea for myself. Is it in the local stores?

[disneyprincess]

I have to say oldest DS, 15 1/2 has had it for a couple of years now. In that time we have tried almost every OTC without success. We tried proactive, didn't work. We even had some prescription creams and topicals from the ped. no go. Now we just started on Acutane (sp?) DS has been on it since the beginning of March. So far he hasn't had any bad reactions except the dry skin. He has sever acne w/scaring. This was our last option. I think it depends on how bad it is as far as what you will use. Good luck with what you choose to do.

[kmurburg]

For everyone here at my house, we used a soap called Panoxyl. It comes in 2 strengths - a 5% and a 10%. We used the 5% and it worked great. DD's rarely had big breakouts. My DS and sometimes the DD's would have a breakout on their backs and this soap was very good for those also. It can be very drying so a moisturizer is recommended too. It used to be sold only by prescription but now is available over the counter. We have to ask for it at the pharmacist's window at WalMart.

[BostonTeaParty]

My oldest son is 19 and he has been having breakouts for the past five years or so. We tried Proactive and it seemed to work for a while. But it wasn't effective for him over the long haul. He is scrupulously clean with his skin too. Didn't make a difference. We ended up at the dermatologist for his skin problems and he now has two prescriptions that seem to help. But that will cost you. If you think Proactive is expensive, try prescriptions - yeesh! He does get a bit dried out on his lower cheeks and chin, so I've taught him to use a tiny bit of moisturizer and that helps too. He freaks out that at 19 he still has breakouts, so I talk to him about his diet, remind him to drink lots of water, get adequate rest at night, in addition to keeping his skin really clean. I also remind him of how cute he is. He has no problems with the ladies. He's very good about it, poor kid just has his Dad's skin DNA. My youngest son has my skin type, which luckily, has never broken out.

[my2girls]

Renee, Prosacea is available OTC - all drugstores, Walmart, and Target's carry it. It's in the aisle with the skin rash medication, not the face soaps. Took me a little bit to find it. It's $9.99/tube. I love it. It doesn't dry my skin out too much, but I also use my Olay mosturizer with it.

[dejavu]

Thanks Kristine. I already use Olay moisturizer and love it, so now I'm putting Prosacea on my list- I would've never found it!

I'm going to check out the Panoxyl soap too.

I read a million reviews, both good and bad, for ProActiv today. I think I'm first going to try this: Cetaphyl face wash, Neutragena On the Spot, and Neutragena moisturizer. I've seen a few reviews that suggest a gentle combo like that one.

[BostonTeaParty]

I think I'm first going to try this: Cetaphyl face wash,

Good choice. That's another thing my dermatologist recommends. For moisturizer he recommends Eucerin, which I use as a general body moisturizer. I'm currently using Philosophy's "Hope in a Jar" for my face, but I like to try new products whenever I'm at Sephora's.