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Acne forms when hair follicles and pores become blocked and produce sores on the skin surface. These lesions can take many forms, including pimples, abscesses, cysts, blackheads, and in some people even permanent scarring.

Acne most often appears during the adolescent period that is known as puberty. This is when the human body begins to have big variations in hormone levels as a result of the devoloping an adult, grown-up body. Acne can affect both genders at all ages; sometimes throughout their complete adult lives.

Pimples inflammation is the most apparent symptom in regard to the appearance of the skin. Inflammatory acne can mostly be located on the face, but can appear on a variety of other spots on the body like the chest, scalp, upper arms, shoulders, neck, back, and legs. The most prevalent form of acne is the pimple. A pimple forms when a pore or hair follicle becomes irritated and the skin surface is then marked with small red sores. Before the blemish is fully formed there are symptoms that can be seen. These symptoms include closed comedos, open comedos, pustules, and cysts. Blackheads are blocked pores that have a darker color with an opening at the surface of the skin. Whiteheads are a bit different in that they don't have an open ended pore. If they are left alone for a couple of days, they will commonly turn into pustules. If the zits are squeezed or popped, they will generally develope a more serious infection and could end up in a scar. So leaving pimples alone is a good idea.

Non-inflammatory and inflammatory are the major types of acne. Two categories compose the non-inflammatory type: closed and open comedos. A closed comedo is usually known as a whitehead and develops on the skin as a small white or yellow lesion. The open comedo is otherwise known as a blackhead.

Pustules are pus filled, discolored sores, and have a yellowish or whitish color. They can form from blackheads or whiteheads. They are round lesions that have become inflamed because of damaged sebaceous glands. The skin has many sebaceous glands that secrete an oil-like chemical known as sebum. When the skin is exposed to too much sebum, the pores and hair follicles become infected and irritated. Cysts are larger pus filled sores that can be seen on the surface but are in reality in the lower layers of the epidermis.

Whatever types of zits or scars there are, there is a good treatment that is available. Understanding about the different types of acne will give the acne sufferer a better idea of the best treatment product for a particular problem. Remember, you don't have to live all your life with an acne problem. With a bit of time and research, anybody can find the treatment that is right for them.