Forehead acne

Hi

I just turned 24 and am male and for the last 6-8 months I seem to be getting alot of acne on my forehead and temples.

When I was a teenager I had no more or no less acne than most people and I dont think it would have been considered problem acne. As I got older it for the most part subsided but in the last 6-8 months I am getting more acne than I have ever had before and it is mostly all on the forehead and temples with a very small amount on my chest and rest of my face.

On the temples it mostly follows a horizontal line.
On my forehead its mostly about halfway between my hairline and eyebrows or lower. On both temples and forehead it is what I guess is called "whiteheads" and they do produce pus. When it is at its worst my forehead looks reddish with several large infections but up close it is all individual infections.

Finally I did notice that in this time period I have been eating alot more dairy products specifically cheese. I have reduced it to almost none and I think it has helped a little. Also I have tried a couple non prescription acne creams.

My question is do you think this acne that just happens to be on my forehead or is this a type of acne specific to the forehead/temples (I have heard a little about acne caused by oil in the hair)?

Finally what do you think are my best options for treatment?

Thanks in advance for any help

Andrew

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Oil glands are all over the face.  There's usually no particular reason why acne chooses, say, the forehead versus the shin.  Local factors like sports equipment and sweaty headbands occasionally are a factor, but most of the time they're not.  Food is very unlikely to be related.  My advice is to consult a skin specialist about this annoying but actually rather common problem of post-adolescent acne.  Topical and oral treatments are available and effective.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff