Home Remedies for Acne

Many people want to be able to treat there acne at home, without buying expensive treatments that may or may not work. Unfortunately, almost all of the home remedies for acne simply will not help.

However, it is not impossible that these have and will work for some people. For example, hydrocortisone cream may reduce the swelling of an inflamed pimple. Also, I have heard on more then one occasion that a dab of non-gel toothpaste will ‘dry out’ a pimples (I tried this several times and it has never worked for me.)

The following is a list of acne home remedies that have been recommended to people in the past:

• Toothpaste- place a dab of non-gel toothpaste to dry out zits
• Hydrocortisone Cream- place a dab on an inflamed zit to reduce swelling
• Lemon juice- use as a drink or apply topically
• Baking soda paste- use as a gentle exfoliator
• Egg whites- use as a facial mask
• Milk of magnesia- apply a thin layer and use as a facial mask
• Raw garlic- eat a few cloves daily
• Cornstarch- combine with water and use as a mask to absorb oil
• Hydrogen peroxide- Use as a toner that does not dry out your skin (I tried this but it never helped my acne)
• Vinegar- use as a toner (beware, this will probably dry out your skin too much and cause redness).
• Aspirin- mash with some water and apply to skin like a mask
• Green tea- drink a few cups daily
• Eye drops- use drops that reduce eye redness to decrease the redness in your pimples

That said, there is one home remedy for acne that is very useful in almost all cases: ice.

In Dr. James Fulton’s book, Acne Rx, he describes how you can use ice to reduce the swelling caused by inflamed pimples and cysts on your skin. Basically, he recommends that you rub ice over your acne blemishes for 2 to 3 minutes each day. The ice will reduce the inflammation and also allow acne medications you are using to penetrate better.