Acne affects more than 20 million teenagers, and hundreds of adults according to AAD (American Academy of Dermatology). It is most common problem in United States. Many over counter remedies exist and hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent yearly on them. I have come up with some inexpensive home remedies that work perfectly well and are healthier for skin.

ACNE Symptoms: Persistent, recurrent pimples or skin blemishes on skin. Acne is commonly found on face but can also occur on chest, shoulder, neck and upper portion of back.

What is going on? Usually because of clogging of pores in sebaceous hair follicles, from oils and dead skin cells that build up bacteria in blocked follicle, thus causes inflammation in that area.

Prevention: Keeping area clean, eating less fatty foods and sugars will most times prevent acne.

Cleanse::

Cleanse (not scrub) your face at least twice daily with a gentle natural anti-microbial herbal soap such as calendula (Calendula officinalis), lavender (Lavandula officinalis) for both treatment and prevention.

After cleaning, apply one drop of tea tree oil - a natural anti-microbial - to each blemish. *For an overnight treatment that will dry and heal, use a clay poultice, worn all night. Use either green clay or bentonite as a base. (Can be obtained at most health food stores). Combine 1 teaspoon of clay with enough water to make a paste consistency of toothpaste. Mix in 3 drops of tea tree oil and apply to blemishes. Rinse off with warm water in morning.

Facial Steam:

Give yourself an herbal facial steam treatment twice a week to gently and deeply clean pores. Into a heat-proof bowl pour 1 ½ quarts of boiling water over 2 tablespoons of dried lavender, which is both and anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory. Cover your head and bowl with a large bath towel, steam your face for 10 minutes, taking care not to burn yourself with steam.

Natural Alpha Hydroxy:

From your own kitchen comes a great natural alpha hydroxy healer. ~ Wash well and put into a blender: 2 or 3 ripe unpeeled pitted apricots, ~ 2 large or 3 medium sized fresh Strawberries preferred, but frozen will work as well, ~ ¼ of a medium to large avocado (equivalent to a 3"X 2" piece, ~ 1 heaping tablespoon of honey. Put in blender and liquefy until frothy. Apply to face, leave on for about 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse with warm herbal soapy water. Then open a capsule of vitamin E and apply to face.

If leftovers, store in a glass jar for no more than 7 days. Use this facial twice weekly for soft blemish free skin. To remove small wrinkles leave on overnight.

Natural Blemish Healing Astringents:

To Frank(not his real name), and thousands of others like him, difference is a matter of life and death. Our story begins when Frank was admitted to a hospital with breathing difficulties. His physician ordered usual breathing treatments, tests and medication.

After a few days in hospital, Frank's recovery had progressed steadily, but he still wasn't strong enough to return home. Arrangements were made to admit him to a skilled nursing facility for continued care and convalescence.

One of medications doctor prescribed for Frank was Bumex, which is typically used to treat respiratory problems such as those experienced by Frank. The doctor ordered Bumex one time, every other day. That is exactly what was written in his medical chart: "Bumex, 1 tablet, QOD" (QOD is Latin abbreviation to indicate "every other day").

When Frank was transferred to skilled nursing facility, a copy of his doctor's orders accompanied him. These orders were typed and placed in an envelope. When Frank arrived at facility, nurses on duty opened envelope and noticed that Frank was taking Bumex, 1 tablet, QID. Remember, Frank's doctor had ordered Bumex, 1 tablet, QOD. In transcription of orders, someone accidentally typed "QID." What's big deal, you might ask?

In medical language, QID means four times a day. So at skilled nursing facility, instead of receiving this extremely powerful medication every other day, he was being given eight times ordered dosage. Within a week, Frank had died.

Frank's story is an example of a tragic but avoidable situation. To prevent these types of scenarios, we must take an active role in our own health care, especially when dealing with medications. Our health care system demands that we comply with strict and often confusing instructions about medications. Without an organized system in place, unforeseen medication errors can happen.