Do your part! Acne tips and advice

No one factor contributes to acne, making it difficult to avoid. Fortunately, there are a number of things you CAN control that will help you keep your acne in check. Begin by talking with your dermatologist and following these simple tips for healthy-skin hygiene.

• Talk to your dermatologist about ACZONE^®
  (dapsone) Gel 5%

One of the best things you can do for your acne is to talk with your dermatologist about using ACZONE^® Gel. It won’t work overnight, but after 12 weeks of treatment, 41% of patients treated with ACZONE^® Gel had minimal or even no acne. Your results could vary, of course. Be sure to follow your dermatologist’s instructions for clearer skin!

Results for vehicle: 33% of patients had minimal or no acne.

• Don't overwash

Dirt doesn’t cause acne, so excessive scrubbing and washing won’t make it go away. Try to limit yourself to 2 washings per day—anything more than that can leave healthy skin dry and irritated.

• Avoid harsh scrubs

It’s okay to exfoliate, but be sure to use a gentle formula with small, smooth grains. Avoid products with almond or apricot shell fragments as they can irritate or even tear your skin and further aggravate your acne.

• Don’t squeeze or pick

Squeezing or picking your blemishes—with fingernails, pins, or anything else—can force bacteria deeper into the skin, causing greater inflammation and infection. You’ll also increase the damage to the surrounding skin, so the blemish is more likely to leave a permanent acne scar.

• Say no to alcohol

Avoid using products on your face with high concentrations of isopropyl alcohol, or common rubbing alcohol. Alcohol strips the top layer of your skin, causing your sebaceous glands to produce more oil. The result? Dry, red skin—and possibly more blemishes.

• Eat right and get plenty of rest

Even though there is no clear evidence that certain foods cause acne, the healthier your body is the more strength you’ll have to fight it. So try and eat a well-balanced diet, get plenty of sleep, and get to the gym every now and then. Your body will thank you.

ACZONE^® (dapsone) Gel 5% is approved for the topical treatment of acne vulgaris.

Do not use ACZONE^®: Gel if you are allergic to any of the ingredients in ACZONE^®: Gel or if you are younger than 12 years of age.

Tell your doctor about all of your medical conditions, including if you have glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency.

Like all medicines, ACZONE^®: Gel can cause some side effects. The most common side effects of ACZONE^®: Gel are dryness, redness, oiliness, and peeling of the skin being treated.

When the active ingredient of ACZONE^®: Gel (called dapsone) is taken orally as a pill, it has been related to the abnormal breakdown of red blood cells (hemolytic anemia). If you have glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, you may have a greater risk for lowering your hemoglobin level. However, using ACZONE^®: Gel on the skin is not expected to put enough dapsone in the blood to cause clinical symptoms of hemolytic anemia. You are advised to be alert for signs and symptoms suggestive of this type of anemia (sudden onset of: back pain, breathlessness, tiredness/weakness with daily activities, dark-brown urine, high fever, and yellow or pale skin). If you experience these signs and symptoms, stop use and call your doctor immediately.

Use of benzoyl peroxide together with ACZONE^®: Gel at the same time may cause your skin to temporarily turn yellow or orange at the site of application.