Lemon juice is a home-based acne treatment that has soared in popularity in recent times. There are several factors that have allowed lemon juice to become such a widely used treatment in the fight against acne. For one, it is a completely natural remedy. You know from the minute you apply it to your skin that there will be no adverse effects from harsh and foreign chemicals often found in other treatment kits. Further, lemons are cheaply available. You can buy ten or more lemons without even coming close to the astronomical costs of modern day acne kits. In order to understand why lemon juices makes the perfect acne treatment, we will have to explore the properties of lemon and how each respective property helps stop acne in its tracks.
Those of you that enjoyed chemistry back in school may recall that lemon juice is slightly acidic. On the pH scale, it ranks in at a 2. The pH scale is used to specify the acidity of a particular substance – 14 indicates a very basic substance, 7 a neutral one, and 0 a very acidic one. The acidic makeup of lemon juice makes it an ideal exfoliator. It can be used as a skin peel to help slough off dead skin cells. These skin cells are often responsible for clogging pores and thus causing acne breakouts. By making quick work of these troublesome cells, lemon juice helps combat acne. As a refresher, when our pores become inundated with dead skin, they clog and consequently allow sebum to pool within the poor. This sebum fuels acne bacteria within, ultimately surfacing in the form of an inflamed lesion on our skin. Although the peeling effect described above is beneficial and effective, it must be induced with caution. Applying sunscreen is but one of the precautionary steps that must be taken to avoid problems. It will protect your sensitive, peeling skin from the sun’s harmful rays. A sunburn is something you don’t want when your skin is already very sensitive. It is highly recommended that you minimize or simply avoid sun exposure during your lemon juice treatment. Once the peeling and sensitivity has subsided, you can stop using the lemon juice and start increasing your sun exposure.
Curing acne lesions is only part of the battle. Acne can leave discolored areas on the skin, which can be just as irritating to deal with as acne itself. These can be fortunately treated with lemon juice. Lemon juice has been used by skin care professionals for decades to create a lightening effect on the skin. This lightening effect can help diminish the appearance of the hyperpigmentation which acne leaves behind. Some even report improvement in the severity of their acne scars. The exfoliating effect which lemon juice provides, as well as its skin tightening properties, helps make acne scars less noticeable. To see any sort of measurable results, you will need to give the lemon juice time to work its magic. Be patient!
An avoidable, negative effect often reported by those who’ve used lemon juice in the past is tight, dry skin. This is to be expected when applying an astringent such as lemon juice to the skin. Fortunately, problems associated with dry skin can be mitigated by applying a non-comedogenic moisturizer. Some are even available with an SPF for additional protection. Those of you with oily skin will also need to wear moisturizer. If not, you may experience increased amounts of oil on your skin, likely trying to compensate for the dryness.