Pro Activ Acne Treatment - any good?

**A*O** · July 25th, 2008, 07:22 PM

My kids are both hormone/zit bombs at the moment. Nothing too serious but it needs to be sorted. I've heard good thinigs about Pro Active and wonder if anyone here has used it and with what results? I don't necessarily believe what Jessica Simpson says! I know it's expensive but I reckon if two kids are sharing it and it actually works it's worth it.

**DeadDwarf** · July 25th, 2008, 07:35 PM

I know this isn't what you asked, but I thought I would throw it out there.

About proactive- I haven't tried it, but I have read on the web many times that it's the hydrogen peroxide in the solution that helps with acne.

I break out sometimes around my period and I started using HP. It's worked great for me. I just make sure to avoid my hair and eyebrows so they don't turn orange. My skin is naturally dry so I use a good mosturizer afterward using HP and it hasn't made my skin dry or anything.

You can see some home remedies for acne here:

Safe, simple remedies to cure Acne from Earth Clinic.

I follow this woman's suggestions (from above website), works perfect for me and I spend like $5 total for months of acne treatments!

Tammy from Wellston, Oklahoma writes: "Alright guys and gals, I just want to inform you of something, a little "experiment" I did after a bit of research on pricey Acne products ... Proactiv--or the cheaper but same version Acne Free. The main ingredient in these is Peroxide .. oh yes. The product is made up of a 3 stage process. First to cleanse your skin .. for those of you with oily skin, plain ole alcohol will do wonders as it not only cleanses the skin better than anything it also rids of excess oil and tightens the face, but ONLY for oily skinners out there

.. Followed by number 2, which is a astringent and toner ... use some witch hazel, cost about 5 bucks ... Finished with the over all killer of acne ... Peroxide .. yep. Peroxide. Thats the secret to those pricey products .. why pay so much when you can pay only 7 bucks for your own put together kit of the same ingredients?? After the Peroxide, get you some baby oil and DAB it onto your face .. rubbing any mosturizer into any part of your skin only aids in the stretching of the skin ... who wants that?? Literally DAB it on your face and neck before bed, acts as a wonderful moisturizer and a protectant of whatever your pillowcase might try to share with your beautiful face. One more thing, get ya some Castor oil, it too is cheap, few bucks a bottle, DAB it around your eyes and get yourself some good 8 hour sleep. Ladies and Gents, don't forget this great free tip, DAB .. never RUB. I am 33, and in all my life have never had a zit/pimple/blemish thingy until just 2 years ago I reached what looked like adult puberty .. in these few years I have tried all. Even the ACV (which Im not knocking as it works too .. just not as well for me as this biz). Give it a shot .. for under ten bucks you too can look like lil miss jessica simpson when she commercialed for proactiv

... good luck to you all. we are all different so find what works for you best.

**Folieadeux** · July 25th, 2008, 11:47 PM

Hi A*O

I used to have moderate scattered acne. I did at one point order proactiv. And unfortunately I wasn't impressed. I will say that my face didn't feel as oily, and my pores were slightly smaller, but that was the extent to which it worked. I think if you have those pimples that seem to form immediately with a whitehead, it would work quite well.

After I stopped Proactiv I broke out massively on my forehead - I researched this and and found that a lot of ex-users had this happen to them. Essentially it's because the ingredients in the Proactiv do dry out the skin and the layer where the pimples forms and once that is taken away, the oil production goes into overdrive - particularly if you have only used Proactiv for a short time. Not good.

Proactiv has a no questions asked money back guarantee, so I rang to organize a return. Well, I was told that proactiv cannot just be a one off, it should be used for over a period of several months to see effective results (well that was going to cost me some $100.00 dollars with no guaranteed results. No way!). If you watch the ads, you will notice how long the customers with great skin have been using proactiv. It usually says anywhere from a year, to six years!

I went to my Doctor and he put me on Minomycin (Minocyline), an oral antibiotic which did work to a degree! I later found my hormones were slightly out of balance, so I went on the pill which was fantastic. After being off the pill and a recurrent breakout I'm on Doxycline.

Basically, Proactiv does have a supposed 'no questions asked' return policy after 60 days, even if the bottles are empty. It's worth a shot if you can afford it and are prepared to wait out the results. However, the bottles are tiny! Much smaller than they appear on the ads, so I think it would be a stretch if one kit could be shared between two people.

I know many people aren't comfortable with visiting Doctors for medication because they feel it's not an issue that needs medication. But if you have a good Doctor, take your kids in and see if he suggests and oral antibiotic or a topical acne prescription. I have found that is the best way to go.

So to sum it all up. I give Proactiv a 1/10. But like I said, if your kiddies get those pimples that seem to always have a visible whitehead, you would probably see better results than I did. I seemed to have acne that was either cystic or that didn't really have a whitehead until the whitehead was drawn up by acne cream.

Yukkers! LoL. Anyway, best of luck to you and the kids.

**fatguyinalittlecoat** · July 26th, 2008, 12:58 AM

A girl in hischool had beautiful skin and swore by ProActiv--but I don't think she really had acne at all.

I just know when I went to the dermatologist for acne nothing topical like this would help as the real problem was just crazy hormones and medication was the only solution.

**A*O** · July 26th, 2008, 04:43 AM

Thanks for the feedback guys. My daughter is really over the worst of the acne now - basically she's growing up - and it's mainly the dreaded pre-period breakouts and/or too much chocolate problem for her. My son is 14 and he has the whitehead/pimples, not a oily, large pore skin (thank God) so I think the treatment will work. If it doesn't I will go to Plan B but it doesn't look like the type of clogged pores/blackhead acne that I had as a teenager and that's a bugger to get rid of.

**aabbcc** · July 26th, 2008, 07:14 AM

If you google proactiv, you'll find comments about it. From what I've read, proactiv is just a stronger version of the cheaper stuff you can buy at the store. One of the most common complaints about proactiv is that it is harsh, and if used for too long, dries out the skin quite badly. Not long after reading that, proactiv started pimping moisturizer, so I think there is some truth there.

Personally, I would skip it and buy something more gentle that isn't going to fuck up your skin.

INFOMERCIAL SCAMS.COM - PROACTIV SOLUTION COMPLAINTS

Another slam for Chestica ...

Proactiv ruined my face and made me feel ugly. It is a horrible product and the only reason Jessica Simpson endorses it is because she's a washed up singer/actress trying to make money any way she can.

**CherryDarling** · July 26th, 2008, 09:58 AM

My brother had horrible acne problems and Proactiv is the only skin care system that cleared him up, it was quite remarkable. There's my 2 cents.

**DeChayz** · July 30th, 2008, 02:35 PM

I've used ProActiv for a few years now, and honestly saw results within a couple of days. My skin is a hundred times better and I've never had any dry skin issues with it, either.

KD · July 30th, 2008, 07:10 PM

Used it, among every prescription available, and it did not work for me.

Wiping my face once to twice a day with a cotton ball and rubbing alcohol (less than a dollar) is the first and only thing that has worked for me.

**Hummus** · August 1st, 2008, 11:53 AM

I used Proactive for about 6-7 months, it really did nothing for me. And it bleached my pillowcases and tasted awful on my face. I would have to wait until after sex for the night to put it on because my hubby wouldn't want to kiss me with that on my face.
KD, I think that maybe rubbing alcohol is bad for your face? I might be wrong, but I think it is a little too harsh? Like it would maybe dry out your skin too much and then cause problems.
I have used non alcohol antiseptic cleaners on my face, not for blemishes but for piercings, and it has cleared up my skin in the area it was applied.
Sorry no help with the Proactive, I guess it works for some.

**waikiki** · August 1st, 2008, 11:56 AM

Ask your Doctor.

**gas_chick** · August 1st, 2008, 01:10 PM

I bought it for my daughter and it did not help at all unfortunately. We ended up at a dermatologists office. He recommended a wash called Cetaphyl which is inexpensive and seems to be working a lot better.

KD · August 1st, 2008, 02:09 PM

Originally Posted by Hummus

I used Proactive for about 6-7 months, it really did nothing for me. And it bleached my pillowcases and tasted awful on my face. I would have to wait until after sex for the night to put it on because my hubby wouldn't want to kiss me with that on my face.
KD, I think that maybe rubbing alcohol is bad for your face? I might be wrong, but I think it is a little too harsh? Like it would maybe dry out your skin too much and then cause problems.
I have used non alcohol antiseptic cleaners on my face, not for blemishes but for piercings, and it has cleared up my skin in the area it was applied.
Sorry no help with the Proactive, I guess it works for some.

It doesn't dry out my face, except to clear it up. Just saying, it is the only thing that has worked for my acne.

I have used by prescription: Tetracycline, Cleocin, Benzamyacin, Retin A and Accutane.

OTC: Natures Cure, Oxy, Noutrogena, Salyic (sp) acid and Pro Active.

Nothing worked for me, until I started using rubbing alcohol.

**Hummus** · August 2nd, 2008, 05:45 PM

^^^Well, I'm glad you've found something that works for you. I had just never heard of it, that's all.

I used to suffer terribly from breakouts on my back, until I started using Head and Shoulders shampoo (the dandruff stuff). There was something in my normal shampoo that was triggering breakouts.

**Penny Lane** · September 14th, 2008, 03:39 PM

I know I'm late to this but my cousin used this on her acne and it literally made it 10 times worse. Her face was already acne prone, but this made it acne prone and dry to the point of it being red and flaky. I guess it depends on the skin type it's used on, but if you even think your skin might be even a LITTLE sensitive try to get a dermatologists opinion before you resort to this stuff.