TOOTHPASTE ON PIMPLES

If you have a pimple and you want it gone fast, one very popular solution is to use toothpaste. Many people have been asking: “Does toothpaste work on pimples?”. This isn’t an overall treatment as you wouldn’t use it on your entire face. It is only used as a spot treatment for an individual zit. This method does tend to be effective in clearing up pimples, which is great, but using toothpaste isn’t a perfect solution. It is more of a trade off. While this does work, toothpaste will irritate your skin potentially leaving a red mark or causing dry skin. Often times, this is worth it.

Selecting a Toothpaste

When selecting a toothpaste you will want to choose the white colored paste. The ingredients you want, have an affect on pimples are contained in this part. Other parts that are either colored or clear are useless. White toothpaste contain things like triclosan and baking soda. These are what help provide the pimple fighting action that you are looking for.

You will want to skip any toothpaste that contains whitener. These will cause discoloration of your skin. They will leave marks and patches. They may even burn your skin depending on how sensitive you are.

It is best to avoid toothpaste with fluoride if you are planning to use it to treat pimples or zits. This is because it tends to irritate the skin and can actually cause a skin rash. If you can find fluoride free, then great, if not, just go for the lowest amount possible. This might be the best you can do since most toothpaste does contain fluoride.

Another category of toothpaste to avoid would be gel based toothpastes. These are different from actual paste based toothpastes. The ingredients are completely different and will not help to clear up pimples. It isn’t so much a problem of side effects or problems. They simply just wont work.

Different people will have different feelings about how important this is but it is highly recommended to look for an organic brand. This is generally a good idea for most things and it holds true for toothpaste, even when using it to treat pimples and zits. With an organic solution you will avoid many of the potentially harmful chemicals that would normally be included and instead have much safer natural ingredients.

Getting Started

Before starting, make sure you first wash your face. Use warm water and whatever soap or facial cleaner you prefer to remove any dirt or grease from your face. After washing and drying off you will be ready to apply the toothpaste to remove your pimple. Start off by squeezing a small glob of toothpaste onto your finger. You will only need a small quantity. Just use enough to cover the pimple. Apply it directly onto the pimple. This is important because it can cause skin irritation and you will not want it to come into contact with any area of skin that it doesn’t need to.

How long should you leave it in? At the longest, some people choose to leave the toothpaste on their face over night. This will give you the best results but isn’t recommended if this is your first time. If you have never tried it before, you will need to do a test run to see how your skin reacts. If it turns out that your skin is very sensitive, you will probably only leave the toothpaste on the pimple for somewhere between 15 to 30 minutes. If you do seem to be handling it all right, you will probably want to leave it on for at least two hours. As you get a better feeling for what your skin can handle you may want to go as long as over night ( approximately 8 hours ) before washing it out.

When you have decided that it has been on long enough and you are ready to remove the toothpaste, just wash your face as you normally would. The big difference here is that you will want to be careful not to rub too hard as you need to be extra careful not to irritate your skin. You will want to be sure that you remove all of the paste. After trying off, it is strongly recommended that you use moisturizer on your skin as it will likely be very dry.

Remember – Use Caution

If you have a bad breakout, you may be tempted to spread the toothpaste all over your face. Don’t try it! It will dry your skin out and may cause significant irritation. Never spread it over a larger area. Make sure to only use it in a very small concentrated area to treat an individual pimple or zit. This is intended as an emergency treatment. While it is effective, it isn’t an every day cleaner or preventative. Because of these same reasons, you shouldn’t use this treatment more than once per day. You may use it two or maybe even three days in a row to treat a single zit but try not to use it more than a few times in a single week. How irritation you experience will depend on how sensitive your skin is. Start out slow and see how it works for you.

Alternative Methods

As we have covered, using toothpaste to treat pimples isn’t an ideal solution. It is meant as a quick fix or a hack if you will. It is not recommended by doctors. It is great in an emergency but if you have the time, you are better off just getting the real deal. Ultimately, it is best just to ask your doctor and get something recommended just for you. Here are some of the alternate choices you will probably end up wanting to use.

The best option that I have come across is sulfur soap. This is great as it doesn’t have the disadvantages of using toothpaste. Sulfur is actually very gentle and is great for sensitive skin. Despite this, it is still very effective at fighting pimples. It will dry them out without drying out the rest of your skin. The only negative aspect of using it is that it does smell very bad. You will want something to counteract that smell.

One terrific option is to use salicylic acid. This has the advantage of being very good for people with sensitive skin. It is available in a variety of strengths and forms. You will want advice on which is best for you. It works through exfoliation. It also works through reducing inflammation.

One common medication is Benzoyl peroxide. It does have a similar side effect of causing dry skin, almost similar to what happens with toothpaste. Still though, you will probably be better off with this. It is know to be very effective. It wipes out microbes inside your pores and is great against a whole range of pimples and zits. You won’t need a prescription to buy this so you can just go down to your local pharmacy and pick some up.

Of course we can’t forget to mention tea tree oil. This is a very popular essential oil that is used for so many things. Not surprisingly, the treatment of pimples and zits is one of those things. It will not dry out your skin since it is an oil. It smells great and it is all natural if you buy it in its pure form. It kills microbes and disinfects. One more plus for this treatment is that it is potentially effective as a preventative. It is best applied directly to the pimple. One precaution is that it is very strong. Of course, you need to make sure that you don’t ingest it. Also, don’t let any get in your eyes as it could cause blindness.

If using toothpaste can be an effective treatment for pimples, then why not just directly use baking soda? Well, as it turns out, this is a very effective treatment. Not only that but it is considered very safe. You can mix baking soda with water to form a paste that can be used on zits. It doesn’t have to be just a spot treatment. You can use it on your entire face since it is great for your skin. It is almost like having a form of toothpaste without the negative side effects.