One thing you shouldn't do is pop your chest pimples. I know, I know, it's tempting. The zits aren't on your face, so you may not care as much about the popping resulting in a large red blob, but Dr. Shamban assures that "it's not a good idea because there's a higher risk of scarring" with pimples on your chest.
Use gentle scrubs and noncomedogenic creams so skin pores don't get clogged. Over-the-counter body washes that include salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide can provide some relief of mild inflammatory acne. Avoid coarse or rough body scrubs, since they're traumatic to the skin.
Acne appears most often on the face, but breakouts can also occur on the chest and any parts of the body where there are oil glands. Chest acne is typically caused by changes in hormones, overproduction of sebum oil, poor skin cell turnover, and other factors that lead to acne on the face.
Squeezing also can lead to scabs and might leave you with permanent pits or scars. Because popping isn't the way to go, patience is the key. Your pimple will disappear on its own, and by leaving it alone you're less likely to be left with any reminders that it was there.
Some people can treat chest acne with over-the-counter solutions and lifestyle changes. Others may need to seek medical treatment to help clear up the acne. Anyone experiencing severe cases of acne or acne that does not clear up should see their doctor to make sure it is not another skin condition.
And just like acne on other parts of your body, breast acne is likely due to one of four things: Oily skin, clogged follicles, inflammation, or bacteria on the skin surface. Other factors contribute to breast acne, including hormonal changes, stress, diet, and certain medications, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Acne scars on the face, chest and back are very common. Some 80% of people between ages 11 and 30 will get acne, and one out of five of those people will develop scars. Reducing the scars requires treatment either over-the-counter medications or one or more procedures performed by a dermatologist.
Although people can pop some noninflamed whiteheads and blackheads if they take the necessary precautions, they should never try to pop or extract inflamed acne. This type of acne is deeper in the skin and may be more likely to cause scarring and infection if a person tries to squeeze it.
While waiting is never fun, it's worth it when it comes to pimple-popping. Basically, what happens if you don't pop a whitehead is that it goes away on its own, usually in 3 to 7 days. It may happen that you wake up one morning and notice the pimple is gone. Or you may notice the pimple draining.
As a general rule, you should never attempt to pop your pimple yourself. If you attempt to pop a pimple and end up breaking your skin barrier, you risk permanent acne scarring.
A sebum plug can look like a tiny bump under the surface of the skin or it may stick out through the skin like a grain of sand. When a sebum plug forms, bacteria that normally lives harmlessly on the surface of your skin can start to grow within the follicle. Inflammation follows, causing a breakout.
If you're bleeding, she says to “gently blot the area with a clean tissue or cotton pad and clean the area with alcohol.” Once the blood has stopped, she advises applying a spot treatment containing benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid as mentioned above.
When treated, pus-filled pimples will start to dissipate on their own. You may notice the pus disappears first, then the redness and overall acne lesions lessen. Above all else, you must resist the urge to pop or squeeze out the pus. Picking at acne can cause the inflammation to worsen.
Popping pimples releases dopamine
A lot of people find popping pimples satisfying. After feeling and hearing that “pop”, some people get an immediate sensation of pleasure and relief. That's because dopamine — the happy-hormone — is released when you feel a sense of accomplishment.
Popping a pimple — whether you're successful or not can spawn more spots. “The bacteria, oil, and debris that are being contained by the acne papule, pustule or cyst once released, can spread and lead to more acne,” Shah says.
If you push some of the contents inside the pimple deeper into the skin, which often happens, you increase inflammation. This can lead to more-noticeable acne. Some people develop acne scars and pain. When you pop pimples yourself, you also run the risk of getting an infection from the bacteria on your hands.
If a long period of time passes without any results, it may be time to see your skin care specialist. Your skin care specialist can help treat chest acne for good by prescribing topical or oral acne medications. Such products are used regularly to help treat and prevent severe acne.
Acne conglobata is one of the most severe forms of acne. It involves many inflamed nodules that are connected under the skin to other nodules. It can affect the neck, chest, arms, and buttocks.
If you do experience acne from your bra, it's likely on the skin touched by your bra straps, bra band or bra cups. Every time you wear your bra, sweat and body oils rub off onto the materials. Those oils can irritate your skin as they accumulate, especially as your bra continues to rub and heat up against your body.
Here are some ways to identify acne on your breasts: Whiteheads look like bumps just under the surface of the skin. Blackheads are darker bumps on the surface of the skin. Papules are small pink bumps that may feel a bit tender.
Pimples on the breasts are generally caused by the same things that cause pimples on your face and on other parts of your body, which is a build-up of sebum, dead skin cells and bacteria. Sebum is an oily substance that's produced by the sebaceous glands, which are connected to your hair follicles.
So unless you're sweating profusely every day, you can get away with washing your bras after every third time you wear them. When it comes to a properly fitted bra and under-boob acne, this means ensuring that your bras aren't too tight, which can cause friction and excess sweat, and, there go, breakouts.
“If you pop the pimple, it becomes a micro-wound,” explains Kazin. At this point, it's best to apply a little antibiotic ointment like Neosporin ($6, drugstore.com) at night to help speed up healing. Allowing it to “breathe” during the day without anything on it, if possible, will also help it mend faster.
Nodules are a type of hard pimple that can be large and painful. They form when an infected skin pore or follicle is located deep below the skin surface. Cysts are found deep below the skin when a pus-filled membrane forms around the infection.
Those tiny white or yellow bumps under the skin are not worrisome, but they might get frustrating. Milia develop under the skin when bits of dead skin cells, made up of proteins called keratin become trapped and create really hard, little white balls. Milia are essentially harmless and usually don't need treated.