Why Mask Could be Causing Acne to Appear?
Because of the long-term effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, people are required to be cautious about their health safety and one of the precautionary measures that we must do apart from regularly washing our hands with soap is to use a clean face mask to protect our mouth and nose from catching the virus.
During the outbreak, face masks were sold like pancakes. There are face masks that are artistically designed for fashion, some are just plain surgical and medical face masks that people often use. Oftentimes, people would use colored medical face masks and even cloth face masks to protect their face but have you ever wonder why face masks could also cause acne to appear on your face even if it is the surgical or medical-grade masks?
This skin condition is called maskne. It is brought on by prolonged wear of facial protective equipment or face masks. It happens when the substances like oil, bacteria, and dead skin cells block your pores, according to Dr. Joshua Zeichner, MD, a New York-based dermatologist. The mask also traps the humidity due to breathing and sweating that may also increase the risk of having acne.
There are various ways to prevent and treat acne and some of the basic ways are the following:
Wash your face regularly with a lukewarm water
Use a gentle cleanser. Avoid using those that contain alcohol and perfume.
Take a break from wearing make-up. Beauty products like foundation, concealer, and other face powder can block your pores.
Always wash your face mask every after use. Yes! We need to wash it with hypoallergenic laundry detergent.
If your mask is disposable, toss it after each use.
Some studies also say that choosing the right mask is essential in preventing acne to break out because there a lot of face masks in the market that we can practically use. Dr. Zeichner however, recommends using a face mask made of natural fiber because it is gentler to the skin. But whether the mask is disposable or reusable, it is very important that we wash our face regularly to clean the impurities in our skin caused by the sweat and humidity that is drying out while we are wearing our mask.
There are, however, some masks that irritate the skin because of its uncomfortable side effects of keeping your nose and mouth covered for a prolonged period of time. Such effects are skin breakouts, chafing of skin, rashes, and maskne.
While we already know what causes acne to appear in our skin due to prolonged use of face masks, it is also essential to know how we can prevent acne from breaking out. Acne occurs when a pore is clogged because of the accumulation of dead skin cells and when bacteria penetrate the skin and inflames the pore.
There are ways on how you can protect your skin from that stubborn maskne, you can take effective acne solutions that are recommended by skin experts. Retinol is one of the most effective oxidative components recommended by OC Facial Center.
Masks, whether expensive or relevantly affordable, may damage our skin if used improperly and unhygienically. Below are the proper care and disposal of face mask:
Every time you have to take off your mask, make sure that you place your mask in a clean pouch or wrap it with a sanitized cloth to avoid gathering more dirt that may be transferred to your face once you put it back.
Avoid removing your face mask every time you are in a public area to avoid contaminating your face mask with bacteria that are looming in the air unless it is really necessary to remove it when you need to eat. The minute you remove your face mask, the bacteria can easily stick to your skin and to your face mask.
When putting back your face mask on, spray alcohol on your hands first before holding your face mask. Our hands may look clean but are actually soiled and have accumulated enough bacteria that we need to disinfect first before touching our face mask.
After using a disposable face mask, you may wrap it in a clean tissue before disposing it in a non-biodegradable trash bin.
Putting an additional filter to your face mask could also help you lessen the virus transmission to your body.
When your skin starts to have acne breakouts and you think that it cannot be helped, it is advisable that you consult a professional skincare expert who knows the different skincare ingredients you may use to treat your skin.
For ladies, treating maskne may be different from men. It may be hormonal for some ladies but having acne breakouts because of prolonged use of a face mask may look normal but it can eventually lead to a more serious skin condition. For some people, it can be another dreaded adult acne that we can prevent from happening if we know some simple beauty hacks that we can incorporate into our daily routine.
Men, on the other hand, are typically low maintenance when it comes to treatments and remedies, and keeping acne away from their skin looks easier and more basic for most men. They only follow the simple skincare regime that is so magical that they always look good every time but that does not discount them the chances of having acne breakouts by using face masks.
Men or women, we are not excused in getting acne especially when we are unaware that we are either repeatedly using the same soiled face mask and we are not disposing or washing it or we are not keeping our face masks in a sanitized pouch that it gets exposed before we even use it.
We need to be cautious about the face pieces that we are using because it can affect our skin in various ways like having acne. In case of acne breakout, visit https://www.ocfacialcarecenter.com/ to book a professional skincare appointment before it gets out of control.