Pimples are the bane of a teen’s life – just as you start to take an interest in how you look and in boys your face decides to betray you! Fear not, 98% of teens will experience pimples thanks to puberty so you are not alone. Here’s Bellaboo’s sure fire guide to make your face a pimple-free zone

You can lay the blame for pimples at Mother Nature’s feet. Always good to blame a mother! Basically, teen pimples are a result of puberty. That’s the time when your body starts to prepare you for changes that will take you from being a girl and becoming a woman. Part of that process means that your hormones go crazy. These major hormonal changes result in you being more moody, sprouting hair in places you never thought about before, and an increase in your body’s oil production. It’s the extra oil surging through your body that has a lot to do with why you are getting pimples.

Next culprit is bacteria. Your face naturally has bacteria on it, but when it’s mixing with all that extra oil it’s a recipe for disaster. Finally, your body sheds thousands of cells every minute – that’s a normal part of what happens with your skin. But, when you have the combination of excess oil mixing with bacteria and dead cells it’s sending a signal for pimples to party on your face.

The bacteria, oil and dead cells end up clogging your pores and that is what leads to pimples. The clogged pore has a build up of dirt, bacteria and dead cells, which leads to infection and forces the pimple to push up toward the skin’s surface. You either end up with a blackhead, white head or a pustule or papule. They are all classed as acne.

The difference between a white head and blackhead is simply that a white head has a closed pore and in the case of the blackhead the pore remains open and that’s what makes it change colour as a result of it being exposed.

Now, to make your face a non-pimple friendly zone is too easy. There are 3 simple steps you need to do. If oil and bacteria are major contributors, you obviously need to remove surface oil and bacteria from the surface of the skin. The best way to do that is by cleansing.

You need to cleanse skin twice a day (morning and night) to remove dirt, oil, grime, makeup, and bacteria to keep those pores clear. Be sure to use a cleanser that is non-drying on the skin.

A lot of facial washes feature an ingredient known as Sodium Lauryl Sulphate and you want to steer clear of this as it is very drying. Now, you might think that’s exactly what my oily skin needs – TOTALLY NOT!! Your skin’s job is to keep the surface nice and moist. If you use something that dries out the surface, it sends a message to the skin to pump out more oil. So, you actually make the oil cycle worse not better by using anything that dries out the surface.

We love Bellaboo All That Facial Wash for totally clean, wicked skin as it is SLS-free and has heaps of yummy things in it like tea tree oil and lemon myrtle oil. It’s gentle and non-drying; removes makeup, dirt and impurities; purifies and normalises; fights bacteria; and soothes skin. Smells like lemons! If dead skin cells on the surface of the skin lead to major pore blockages then get rid of those dead cells.

The easiest and most effective way to do that is by using an exfoliator. An exfoliator is designed to scrub or buff away those dead cells so they can’t clog pores. It also helps bring fresh, plump new cells to the surface of the skin.

Really important to use an exfoliator with super fine particles. Exfoliators with large exfoliant particles will over stimulate the skin, leading to more oil production. They can also knock the head off pimples and spread bacteria and infection over the face.

We love Bellaboo Buff Skin Facial Exfoliator to buff your way to smooth, glowing skin. It has superfine particles of Rice Bran Powder and finely ground bamboo extract to buff away dead cells; absorb dirt and oil from the pores; loosen clogged pores; and refine skin texture. You should exfoliate at least 2-3 times a week.

Use a good moisturiser. A lot of teens think they shouldn’t use a moisturiser as it will just clog their pores. The wrong moisturiser will certainly do that but if you use the right one it will have the opposite effect. As well as all the stuff happening at a hormonal level leading to clogged pores your skin is also exposed to a heap of external pore cloggers – pollution, smoke, dirt.

A good moisturiser acts to protect against these external elements to help keep pores clear. You need to use a moisturiser that is light, fast absorbing and full of ingredients that protect, nourish, normalise and renew.

We love Bellaboo Gorgeous Skin Moisture Dew as it does all that and more. It smells divine, feels divine and makes your skin look divine! Follow these three steps and you will notice a difference in your skin. Now, this doesn’t mean that the pimple fairy will never strike again.

You may still have pimples or get little breakouts now and again, which means you need some extra treatment in the form of a pimple lotion designed to get rid of pimples without drying to dry them out. See notes under cleanser as to why you never, ever want to use anything that is designed to dry out the skin surface! What you do want is a product that will work to normalise oil production, balance skin, fight bacteria, reduce redness and swelling, and help skin heal.

We love Bellaboo E Z Blitz Serum to blitz blemishes + balance skin, which is super light and super fast. We swear it gets rid of pimples in 2-3 days without any drying, burning or flaking of skin. Trust us, we’ve tried everything under the sun for pimples and some of the stuff out there is scary – it actually burns your skin and that so cannot be good for it.

So, there, you have it. Your daily cleanse, pimple serum and moisturise should take you about 2 minutes morning and night. Exfoliating is just a couple of minutes 2-3 times a week. It’s that simple. Make your face a no pimple go zone and you will notice a difference! Oh, and choose flowers and plants not nasty chemicals when it comes to what you use on your face!