Holy Grail Acne Fighters – Jan Marini and Renee Rouleau
I have tried SO many acne products over the years! Some are useless, some are just okay, and some really work! Here are my holy grail acne fighters. I highly recommend checking these out if you’re a teenager or still struggling with adult acne (like moi!).
Solution for Cystic Acne
Cystic acne is the clinical term for those giant underground zits that take forever to go away. Cystic acne seems to be mainly hormonal, and I tend to get these giant mountain zits right before my period. If you’re dealing with cystic acne, add Renee Rouleau Anti-Cyst Treatment (now called Anti Bump Solution) to your arsenal. It’s a thin, non-drying gel that goes deep into pores to help heal the inflammation and kill the infection beneath the skin.
The key ingredients are: ethyl lactate – which decreases bacteria, reduces inflammation, Lactic Acid (purified) – which helps dissolve cells blocking the pore as well as purifying within the pore, and Carboxymethyl Cellulose – which acts as a delivery system to carry action ingredients deep within the skin where cysts are present. I find that this product is helpful for cystic acne, but doesn’t do much for regular acne. Renee Rouleau also has a Post Breakout Fading Gel, that I love. Have any of you tried Renee Rouleau products? I’d love to hear what you think.
Acne Solution – the Big Gun!
No matter what type of acne you have, Jan Marini 10% Benzoyl Peroxide, can help. This product was recommended to me by a really great esthetician at Stript Wax Bar. I call it my big gun, because it really works, and it works fast. I don’t know how Ms. Marini did it, but the formula is gentle and not super drying like others I’ve tried (although if you use it too frequently it will dry out your skin and cause flaking – so go easy). I believe the benzoyl peroxide is buffered, which makes it great for combination and sensitive skin. It can dramatically clear the appearance of acne, and also prevents the P. acnes bacteria from feeding on buildups of dead cells within the follicle at the beginning of the acne process. The preparation of small particles of benzoyl peroxide and specialized non-acne forming emollients minimizes dryness and irritation, while providing maximum results. Also the bottle is huge, and you only need a small amount – so the cost savings is great (as you can see from my well-loved bottle in the pic above)!
When you use active ingredients like benzoyl peroxide and lactic acid, your skin will be more sensitive, so always wear an acne-safe sunscreen to prevent spots and wrinkles!
Have you ever tried zinc for hormonal acne? I stumbled upon it online and looked into it… 90% of the reviews out there for it are amazing!!!! So, I’ve been using it for a couple months and I still get pimples, but the cystic pimples have gone away completely!!!! Couple notes if you do decide to try it… make sure you talk to your doc b/c you don’t want too MUCH zinc and take it with a substantial meal because if I don’t I get suuuper nauseous!
Thanks so much for sharing this!! I want to try that big gun 🙂 I once had a dermatologist tell me that 10% BP was too much for my skin though :/
Just saw that they sell 5%!! YAY!
Hi Amanda – yes I definitely recommend zinc! I try to remember to take 60 mg every day the week before and week during PMS time. I don’t take it every day because it can lower your copper levels which hurts your immune system.