Treating acne has become so complicated. Every health and beauty company out there has their own acne solutions the promise to work, but at what price? Acne medications don’t have to cost and arm and a leg. In fact, most mild to moderate cases of acne and some bad acne can be treated at home with over the counter products. There’s one sigh of relief you can go ahead and let go.

There are actually a handful of products you can get at your local supermarket or pharmacy that will help you treat your acne. I’ll go over them for you so you can get your acne solution started ASAP.

Salicylic Acid – You can get this as a toner or as a pack of soaked pads.  The acid is able to get deep into the follicles pores and unclog them. It is useful for getting dead skin cells to break away which helps clear the pores of excess debris. By reducing the amount of blockage in your pores, you will reduce the amount of acne breakouts on your face.

Benzoyl Peroxide – The bacteria responsible for acne is called Propionibacteria acnes, which is an anaerobic bacteria which thrives inside a clogged pore lacking oxygen. Benzoyl Peroxide, when introduced, makes its way into the pore and adds Oxygen to the mixture.

In addition to that powerful attribute, Benzoyl Peroxide also helps get rid of dead skin cells. It is a powerful medication that is used in many popular acne treatments like ProActiv and AcneFree, just to name a couple.

Aloe Vera – Aloe is a great moisturizer and healer of scars, which makes it great for helping in the fight against acne. Aloe Vera is able to heal the skin because it contains the proper polysaccharides to repair damaged skin. It also helps reduce swelling and redness, which is also why it’s great for sunburns.

Facial Cleansers & Acne Soap – You can also purchase soap and facial washes that will help wash off excess oil and dirt from your skin to better prepare it for the application of a medicated acne cream. Some soap’s will contain 10% Benzoyl Peroxide, and others will have natural oils and minerals.

Tea Tree Oil – Tea tree oil has been getting some recognition for having great anti-microbial properties that help get rid of Propionibacterium acnes, the bacteria that live in the skin and cause acne. It is Benzoyl Peroxides’ closest rival mainly because it has less side effects than its competitor. Mainly, users experience less itching, burning, and dryness.

Aloe Vera and Tea Tree are the two main natural products that will help you with your acne, however, there is no efficient natural remedy for acne. You can use the citric acid from a lemon to dry out the top layer of your face, but too much will actually cause more damage than good. Drying out your skin too much will cause too much dead skin to form, which will make it more likely that the dead skin will clog your pores.

It may surprise you that acne can go well into adulthood. Some men will actually experience it into their 40’s. Men experience acne more than women because of their high levels of testosterone. Luckily, treating acne as you get older doesn’t get any more complicated. The same products mentioned above can be used to treat acne when you’re in your 20’s, 30’s, or 40’s.