Skin's Disappearing Acts

 By B. Lee Cash

"It's well-known that people associate a healthy person with healthy skin," says skin specialist and esthetician Emily Allen of Heaven Day Spa in San Francisco, California. "Radiant skin is beautiful." Allen is here to explain what a girl can do to temporarily and permanently get rid of blemishes, blotchiness, redness, and more.

"The modern customer is really savvy, and there are so many products and procedures for skin issues," says Allen. "There is a solution for every skin problem."

Skin Issue: Acne
"There are the four different grades of acne," Allen explains. "Understanding each is step one in creating a healthier complexion."

• Grade 1 Blackheads and open comedones. "A comedone is like a blackhead with a hardened ball that looks like a yucky pearl which is comprised of bacteria and dead skin cells, and it accumulates in the follicle until it gets so big the follicle stretches open, commonly on your nose," says Allen.

• Grade 2 Blackheads and papules. "Papules are raised red bumps, which are minor, and there's no puss inside or a white head -- a typical blemish," says Allen.

• Grade 3 Papules, open blackheads, and some pustules -- typical teenage-type acne. "It's getting heavier at this grade, becoming chronic and can leave scarring. The face is red and inflamed."

• Grade 4 Cystic acne. "This is a case where a dermatologist is needed," says Allen.

"For all skin types, start with a foaming cleanser -- nothing milky or creamy, and preferably one that is soap-free," explains Allen. Next, Allen advises that you use a topical product with salicylic acid. Moisturizers, pore-openers, and blemish spot-treatments are all available at drugstores nationwide. "Salicylic acid is one of the most effective products for mild to moderate acne," says Allen. "The key to acne is to keep the inflammation down, and salicylic acid not only acts as an exfoliant, it's the only acid that's an anti-inflammatory."

"Finally, benzoyl peroxide is really great as a spot treatment," says Allen. "Apply it right on the blemish. The reason that it's so great is it puts oxygen in the skin, and it exposes that blemish-causing bacteria so it literally dies."

Style Sessions Tip: Sulphur is a great drying agent, and also helps diminish redness that often remains when a blemish heals. "I like a good sulphur mask when I have a breakout," says Allen. "Then I spot treat with benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid at night."

Skin Issue: Redness & Blotchiness
"Redness is caused because capillaries are extremely close to the surface of the skin, and when we get flushed, the capillaries are expanding and opening allowing more blood to come through," explains Allen. Therefore, the redness is literally blood near the surface of the skin. Allen says there are a few key ingredients to look for when combating redness.

• Aloe "This is great to soothe and cool the skin," says Allen.

• Arnica "Like aloe, this is a natural botanical, available at any health food store in an oil form," explains Allen. "It's commonly used to minimize bruising and inflammation after plastic surgery."

• Propolis "This is sap from a tree which some honey bees use to bind their honeycomb together, and is usually only available in spas," says Allen. "This is great for girls with really inflamed acne."

Style Sessions Tip: A medical spa photofacial is highly effective for reducing redness, vein pigmentation, and even freckles and sunspots. "Photofacials are great," says Allen. "A photofacial is an intense pulse-light laser -- only available at medical spas -- which emits a high-intensity light that penetrates down to the lower layers of the epidermis and breaks up the melanin concentrations deep in the skin."

Skin Issue: Freckles & Moles
"I recommend a photofacial [see above] for most freckles and sun spots," says Allen. "Some freckles are really superficial and will go away with exfoliation. But there are some interesting products available." Here are four that Allen likes.

• Hydroquinone Available over the counter at a 2% -- any higher is dermatologist prescribed. "It's a lightening agent, and very powerful," says Allen.

• Kojic acid A natural lightening agent available in various products at spas and medical spas.

• Chemical peel Glycolic and tetinoic and lactic acid are all chemical ingredients in peels. "The reason these work is you are exfoliating the skin intensely," explains Allen.

• Scrubs "I like scrubs with jojoba beads," says Allen. "People like to use apricot scrubs, which are bits of the shells ground up, and this literally causes microscopic cuts on your face."

Style Sessions Tip: Don't mess with moles. "There's not a lot you can do about most moles," says Allen. "They are already mutated skin cells, and some can be cancerous. Definitely talk to a dermatologist about moles."