Teenagers are never thought of as having a lot of stress in their lives. After all, most don’t have to go to work or worry about their homes or how they will pay the bills. This is a huge misconception especially with teenagers today. They must always be worried about fitting in, and in most cities, they have to worry about what weapon a classmate may be carrying. Teenage life is filled with stress. Passing classes, living up to parents’ expectations; yes, teens are full of reasons to be stressed. This is one of the many reasons why teens are so prone to acne flare-ups.
Another reason behind teen acne is the major changes in hormones going on throughout the teenage years. The glands that produce hormones are just maturing in the teenage years so hormone imbalances are very common in teenagers. It is a major problem for female teens as they are just getting into their normal menstrual cycles. Acne flare-ups in any age person are greatly increased by hormone imbalances, but since teenagers hormones are constantly fluctuating, they are more prone to acne flare-ups than any other age group.
In male teenagers, a major contributor is the testosterone increase in their blood. This is also a cause in female teens, but is much more prominent in males. The increase of testosterone increases the amount of oils produced to keep the skin moisturized. Dead skin cells block the pores and trap all of this extra oil being produced causing bacteria growth.
Unless someone has taught teenagers about the causes of acne, they generally do not give much mind to keeping their faces free of dirt and dead skin cells. These two factors alone in combination is enough to cause acne.
Then there is the heredity factor that also comes into play. If the mother or father of the teen has had an acne problem in their teenage years then they are more prone than the average teen. Regardless of the changing hormones, these teenagers will have a harder time avoiding acne flare-ups because the process of making excess oils has been passed from their parents to them.
All of these factors together make the teenage population much more prone to acne flare-ups than any other age group. Teenagers have, by far, are the most prone because of all of the major changes going on in their bodies, and due to the huge amount of stress that teens today are under.
