People looking for help with acne often try remedy after remedy without much help.  For thousands of years, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners have used acupuncture and individualized  herbal formulas to treat acne. That same wisdom can be effectively applied today.

Acne is among the most common of skin conditions.  It afflicts almost all of the adolescents to some degree, and can extend into adulthood.  The degree of severity can vary widely, from a few white heads and blackheads, to extensive formation of cysts.  Sometimes scarring can occur.  But no matter how bad, acne can have a significant effect on social and emotional health.   It can also be the source of physical pain and local skin infections.

According to Western medicine, acne is a disorder of the hair follicle sebaceous gland.  This gland can get clogged up from a skin, which is normally shed off the body.   The clogged pore then becomes a pimple.  Hormones and bacteria in the skin further exacerbate the clogging of pores.  In some people, the pimple can become inflamed leading to development of large painful pimples, commonly referred to as cysts.
Traditional Chinese Medicine Viewpoint

TCM considers physical, emotional, and environmental factors of the individual when treating skin problems.  From a TCM perspective, acne is most often associated with heat and dampness effecting the organs and channels of the lungs, stomach, and spleen.

In Chinese medicine, each organ has specific functions and is connected to a channel that runs from the skin’s surface internally to connect with the organ.  The organs involved with acne are because of both the function as well as the locations of their channels.