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A Sensitive Subject – Teenage Acne

SchneiderPeeps - Acne

With a house full of teenagers we’ve had to deal with the sensitive subject of acne quite often. Fortunately, none of my children have what would be considered severe acne but they’ve all had “bumps” from time to time.

Now, I’m no acne expert, I’m just a mom, but I do know that no one wants to go around with “bumps”. So when a couple of my children were getting bumps a little more often, we began reading and experimenting.

We’ve tried a variety of products including ProActive (don’t judge, we were desperate) and everything we tried gave some results but they weren’t lasting and I didn’t feel like they were really good for the long haul.

We’ve also talked a lot about how diet affects our bodies, including our skin. I’m gonna be honest here, the idea of telling a teenager he/she can never eat certain foods again doesn’t appeal to me so I’ve asked them to just be aware of what they are eating and how their bodies are reacting. That’s not an area I can control anymore, they need to take responsibility for it.

While we were on vacation I read The Medicinal Gardener’s Handbook and read that sage can help draw out things like splinters, pus and heal skin. And it’s used to treat acne. I’ve also read that apple cider vinegar is very good for skin and people use it to treat acne.

I think it’s important to keep notes on the herbs I’m learning about. I use a plant profile worksheet to do this. If you’d like a copy of the worksheet, just fill out the form below.

So, I decided to make a homemade toner for my kids.

Here’s what you need:
40g of dried or wilted sage leaves
100ml Raw apple cider vinegar (I used Bragg’s – make sure it says it has the “mother” in it)
100ml Distilled Water

Sage tea for acne relief

Heat about 2 cups of distilled water like you would for making tea. Then put the sage leaves and the hot water in a bowl and let steep for about 30 minutes. I put a plate over the bowl so it wouldn’t cool off. Strain out the sage leaves and put the “tea” in a jar. I measured out 1 2/3 cups. Add 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar. Put a lid on it and put it in the bathroom.

To use: dip a cotton ball into toner and squeeze out excess. Wipe over face and neck (and back, if needed) after washing. Let air dry.

Apple cider vinegar can be very drying. If find that it’s drying your skin out too much, then dilute it with distilled water.

SchneiderPeeps - DIY Acne Relief

Everyone agrees that it smells bad but that their skin is softer. The smell goes away after it’s dry. After a couple of days several of my kids were breaking out worse but I encouraged them to keep using it, hoping that is was just drawing out deeper impurities. Their skin is looking much better now.

I’m glad we’re doing this during the summer when their social life is a little less active.

If you just absolutely cannot stand the idea of putting apple cider vinegar on your face, one of my children found this herbal Acne Relief to work very well. We’re not using it now since I want to see how this toner does on it’s own but I’m open to using it in addition to the toner if they still need a little more help.

Natural Skin Toner for Acne

Natural Skin Toner for Acne

This sage toner is perfect for helping with teenage acne.

Prep Time 5 minutes
Active Time 30 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Materials

  • 40g of dried or wilted sage leaves
  • 100ml Raw apple cider vinegar (I used Bragg's - make sure it says it has the "mother" in it)
  • 100ml Distilled Water

Tools

  • Cooking pan
  • Jar for storage
  • Strainer

Instructions

  1. Heat distilled water like you would for making tea.
  2. Then put the sage leaves and the hot water in a bowl and let steep for about 30 minutes. I put a plate over the bowl so it wouldn't cool off.
  3. Strain out the sage leaves and put the "tea" in a jar.
  4. Add apple cider vinegar.
  5. Put a lid on it and put it in the bathroom.

Notes

To use: dip a cotton ball into toner and squeeze out excess. Wipe over face and neck (and back, if needed) after washing. Let air dry.

Did you make this project?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

SchneiderPeeps - Acne pin

So, tell us what you’ve used for acne or “bump” that has worked well for your family.

Thanks for sharing with your friends!

Rhonda Hair

Thursday 11th of August 2016

I bet your toner will smell a lot better and have some additional purifying power if you added some mint, lavender, or rosemary, either fresh in the decoction, or drops of essential oil in the finished toner. Just be careful of the amount of mint and avoid putting it near your eyes.

Angi Schneider

Thursday 11th of August 2016

Thanks for the tip!

dorianLA

Tuesday 30th of September 2014

My daughter just entered her teens and on came the acne. She had tons on her forehead and hairline. We tried spot treatment, noxema, oxy, etc. and nothing worked fast or well. Figured we try the Citrus Clear products more before seeing a dermatologist. Glad we did because Citrus Clear did the trick! Saw big results overnight! Was 90% better day 2 and has remained under control (when used consistently). She has very sensitive skin and Citrus Clear products did not make her turn red, itch or dry out. It's given her self esteem a much needed boost.

Angi Schneider

Tuesday 30th of September 2014

oh, that is good to know, Dorian. I might have to try Citrus Clear with one of my teens, this is helping but not completely clearing it up. Thanks for sharing!

Teri

Monday 7th of July 2014

Thank you so much for posting this. I have been dealing with adult "bumps" forever. I'm trying to not go back on chemical cleansers or medications. I just tried the oil cleanse method and it didn't work well for me at all. My skin had a bad reaction to it, so now I'm back to square one. I have tried everything under the sun except this, so I will definitely give this a try as well. Thanks!

tessa

Thursday 3rd of July 2014

Love that stuff! Thanks for sharing at Green Thumb Thursday; come back this week http://homesteadlady.com/green-thumb-thursday-7314/. My oldest is eleven but her diet is so clean that I'm hoping we miss a lot of the acne trouble I had when I was her age. We'll see! If not, I know what to do now.

Angi Schneider

Friday 4th of July 2014

I hope so, too. My kids all eat pretty much the same and 1 has had acne worse than the others and 1 rarely ever gets a pimple. Its very interesting to me. I also see the breakouts coming and going and I believe a lot of it is caused my raging hormones.

april

Tuesday 1st of July 2014

Does it have to be fresh sage leaves? I have dried in my seasoning cupboard.

Angi Schneider

Tuesday 1st of July 2014

No, it doens't have to be fresh. I would let it steep longer if I were using dried, though. Let me know how it works out for you.

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