Mind Your Body TV Episode 53 and Tanya Kormeili, M.D.
You’re over age 50, so you’d “think” your acne would have gotten the message by now. Right? You thought it would disappear after your teens. You want to stop adult acne.
But you still awaken to uninvited guests of the red, sore sort and aren’t sure why. Adult acne isn’t a myth, according to this research:
- A 2008 University of Alabama study: Acne is a problem for 50 percent of women ages 20-29; for more than 25 percent ages 40-49.
- A 2011 Massachusetts General Hospital study: 45 percent of women 20-29 and 12 percent of women 41-50 still had problems with acne.
The American Academy of Dermatology classifies acne as inflammatory (the most severe form of acne, also referred to as nodulocystic acne) when deep nodules are widespread, or non-inflammatory acne marked by blackheads and whiteheads.
Spots be gone!
The academy says newer treatments can help stop existing adult acne, reduce future breakouts, and in some cases, improve signs of aging:
- topical retinoids
- hormonal therapy
- laser therapy
Mind Your Body TV is pleased to present Tanya Kormeili, M.D., who practices medical, surgical and aesthetic dermatology in Los Angeles, Calif. Dr. Kormeili is also an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at U.C.L.A.’s David Geffen School of Medicine and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Her skin is its own “role model.”
Stop adult acne for good
I asked her about a subject not so dear to my heart—but near and on my own face. I’ve struggled with cystic adult acne since I was a teen. I’m not recommending—I am not a medical doctor—but I will share with you that my integrative internal medicine specialist prescribed a bioidentical hormone regimen for me of 80 mg of progesterone in capsules, along with a progesterone cream to apply on the inside of my arm AND on my battle-scarred chin. Magically, I haven’t had any boomer acne breakouts in several months, for the first time in my life. And yes, I also use an estrogen cream.
Ask a board-certified dermatologist like Dr. Kormeili—one who stays current on the latest research—about new therapies if breakouts continue to plague your skin and you want to stop adult acne. Hormones remain a controversial and personal decision for all women, so you’ll do what’s best for you.
Finally, I think you’ll like this story from the New York Times‘ Booming section on baby boomer acne. Also check out this Mind Your Body TV video on how lasers can stop precancerous lesions—they also help control and lessen the effects of adult acne.