5 Little Lifestyle Changes To Fix Forehead Acne
It doesn’t matter how old you are; you can fix forehead acne. We know how it can come with a vengeance at the worst possible time, like immediately before a big event, pictures, or just plainly on the day-to-day sapping your confidence.
In a general sense, acne is something we all wish would go away and never come back, but unfortunately, loads of factors can keep bringing it back for more and make it really challenging to clear up.
Sure, a pimple here or there isn’t terrible and can be often concealed relatively well with the magic of make-up, but forehead acne leaves us with many pimples and a rough and bumpy complexion that makes it hard to hide.
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So how can we get rid of acne on our foreheads, or at least make some impact with reducing that acne? Read on.
5 Little Lifestyle Changes To Fix Forehead Acne
We’ve got five little steps you can do to help you see big differences! But, before all else, we have to understand what acne on your forehead is all about.
What Causes Forehead Acne?
Forehead acne is caused by excess oil production inside the sebaceous glands. This excess oil blocks pores and sometimes leads to bacterial build-up, causing an inflamed pimple or acne.
There are many reasons for excess oil production. When studying acne, it’s often broken down into the following categories:
- Hormonal Acne
- Clogged Pores/Excess dead skin cell build-up
- Sensitivity To Certain Products (like oils and other ingredients in cosmetics)
However, acne on the forehead usually falls under the category of clogged pores since this acne can be caused by excess oil alone.
It is also possible to get the combination of both hormonal acne and clogged pores that lead to cystic pimples, and those are much more of a challenge to clear up!
Yet, if we’re speaking strictly about acne caused by too much oil, what can cause excess oil production on the forehead?
Well, there are tons of possibilities! Of course, stress and our diet play a role in acne as a whole. But specifically on our forehead, acne can be caused by hair products.
What?
Oh yes. Using hair products on our hairline can cause build-up on our foreheads.
Many hair products have oily ingredients that can clog the pores on your forehead if you’re not being careful about cleaning them off regularly.
This leads us to regular hygiene. If we are not showering regularly and getting hair products out of our hair or cleansing our face from the day’s or night’s oils, this build-up can come about pretty quickly.
The same rule applies to not making facial exfoliation a regular part of your skincare routine.
Additionally, putting sunscreen or foundation on our forehead too thick can block pores and encourage excess oil to start producing.
You might even find that wearing hats consistently may be a high culprit for the acne on your forehead.
We know this sounds like almost everything can cause acne on our forehead; how can we ever eliminate everything that can cause acne?
Well, we can’t permanently eliminate everything, but we have a few helpful tips for you to keep it from being so much of a challenge.
But before we take a look at those- can forehead acne mean anything else going on in our body?
Persistent Forehead Acne Tips
Persistent forehead acne could mean that you’re dealing with a far more serious skin condition such as rosacea or perioral dermatitis, even P. acnes bacteria.
Perioral dermatitis is characterized by facial inflammation and red patches surrounding the nose, cheeks, chin area.
- acnes bacteria can be a challenge to get rid of. This bacteria forms deep inside pores and causes cystic pimples to develop rather than the typical whiteheads and blackheads you’re used to seeing.
Persistent acne on your forehead can also be a sign of high testosterone levels in men…or women!
Either way, if you are suffering from acne on your forehead that won’t seem to go away no matter what you do, it is always advised to see a dermatologist to get it under control and help find out the root cause.
If your acne comes and goes, has flare-ups and flare-downs, here are our five little changes that can help make huge differences with your acne!
How To Get Rid Of Forehead Acne
You can get rid of forehead acne by keeping up with a regular cleansing schedule (including your hair!), exfoliating, moisturizing properly, washing your pillowcase and make-up brushes regularly, and avoiding hair and skin products that could lead to clogged pores.
Cleansing:
The first step with cleansing is to religiously wash your face twice a day with an oil-free acne cleanser (not all of them are created equal!) You don’t want an abrasive wash or one with tons of unnecessary ingredients.
Simple is key here! I use Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser every day for a good gentle cleaning. It’s a cruelty-free brand.
Cleansing allows us to get rid of excess dirt, make-up, and oil on our faces before they accumulate and cause our pores to become clogged, leading to acne.
Don’t neglect how important it is to regularly cleanse your hair to wash all the hair products out.
This will prevent clogging up the pores on your forehead due to hair in your bangs or even just your hairline.
Exfoliate:
After you’ve washed your face twice daily, don’t forget about exfoliation! Remember that every time we wash our faces with a cleanser, we’re removing the dirt and oil that have accumulated on top of our skin.
Once that stuff is off, it’s important to eliminate all of the dead skin cells on our faces!
This doesn’t mean scrubbing your face with every wash like you did when you were a teenager (If you still do, we won’t judge, but it’s time to quit those exfoliation cleansers!)
Instead, use a chemical exfoliant, AHA or BHA, that will best target the specific acne you have.
You can even use a gentle mechanical exfoliant like a washcloth to avoid causing any micro-tears in your skin, leading to acne spreading or irritating your already unattractive break-out.
Moisturize:
Alright, now you might be thinking we’re crazy.
Your skin has an overproduction of oil, causing you to break out, and we want you to put more moisturizers on top?
Yes. Yes, we do.
Here’s why: A lack of moisture can cause your pores to think it needs to produce more oil because your skin is dry.
This tends to happen after cleansing when you’ve just stripped your skin of the oils on it. I
f you don’t moisturize with a very light oil-free moisturizer, then your skin will go into over-production mode, not helping your acne but contributing to it.
Check out these cruelty-free moisturizers that are great for sensitive skin and won’t clog pores!
Many even include Hyaluronic Acid which is spectacular for your skin’s hydration.
Read more about Hyaluronic Acid on our blog post here.
Really, moisturizing correctly is one of the best things you can do for your skin if you’re prone to breakouts on your forehead!
Wash Your Pillowcase and Make-up Brushes Regularly:
Think of this, all the extra oil, dead skin cells, leftover make-up, hair products, oils from your head, and maybe even saliva (depending on how you sleep) get leftover on your pillowcase.
Every time you sleep on it, all of those things can transfer onto your freshly cleansed face.
Regularly washing your pillowcase, not just when you wash your entire set of sheets, can help eliminate the build-up and keep your acne at bay.
Plus, make-up brushes can harbor all the same things, including bacteria.
Our skin should look its best when we do our make-up; we shouldn’t be adding more grime to it!
Choose Skin and Hair Products Wisely:
Skin and hair products can adversely cause acne, so take a look at what you use and stop using or switch out your oil-based pomades, hairsprays, etc.
Try to avoid using them on your hairline right next to your forehead or running your hands through your hair and then touching your face.
And as for skin products, they can be a little bit trickier because you want to make sure whatever you put on your face does not exacerbate acne!
Acne-prone skin needs a moisturizer that won’t irritate it but will still hydrate it.
You also want to choose non-comedogenic make-up products and sunscreen to prevent your pores from clogging up.
So there they are! 5 little changes that can make a big difference in how your skin looks and feels- without over-drying or irritating it!
5 Little Lifestyle Changes To Fix Forehead Acne – Conclusion
We all dread seeing acne on our forehead, whether it is one pimple, two, or a whole bunch of them.
Acne in this location can be triggered and caused by many things, but the main culprit is an over-production of oil on our face, leading to a breakout.
We can’t guarantee you’ll never have acne on your forehead again, but we can say that if you implement our five little changes into your day-to-day life, you will see a big difference in helping to reduce or keep that acne at bay.
So to summarize:
- cleanse your face twice a day
- regularly wash out the hair products in your hair
- exfoliate weekly with a chemical or gentle mechanical exfoliator
- moisturize with a very light moisturizer, wash your pillowcases and make-up brushes often
- and choose carefully which skin and hair products you use.
We are sure these five small but mighty tips will help you as they help people with acne every day!
Don’t hesitate to get started!
