The latest risk to healthy skin is a condition that some refer to as Super Acne.  Super acne is acne caused by antibiotic resistant bacteria.  These forms of acne are difficult to treat and bode ill for public health reasons as well.

To begin, we need to understand how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics in the first place.  By now, most people have heard of methacillin resistant staph  (MRSA).  Frequent use of antibiotics led to the development of resistance.

Bacteria multiply rapidly and as they do mutations can develop.  Eventually, this process will lead to the occurrence of a gene that conveys antibiotic resistance.

Groups of bacteria compete for the nutrients needed to grow and multiply.  The resistant bacterium is just one of millions. When an antibiotic kills off all the sensitive bacteria it removes that competition.  The resistant bacteria is then free to grow rapidly.

When penicillin was first developed no bacteria were resistant to it.  Now almost all bacteria are resistant to it. For the same reason, using antibiotics to treat acne has made the bacteria that cause acne are becoming more resistant the more anitbiotics are used.

Because of this, physicians are getting away from using antibiotics for acne.  Not too long ago physicians frequently recommended a daily low dose of an antibiotic, usually tetracycline or erythromycin, for acne.  They’re much less likely to do that today.

The good news is that we have good treatment programs today that don’t require antibiotics.  A program that’s helped a lot of people is Acne Free In Three Days.

The three day part may be a bit of an exaggeration but the treatment program does can clear up problems very rapidly for most people. And it doesn’t call for antibiotics.

There are a lot of good sources on acne treatment available and I suggest you do some research.   Best Acne Answers is a site I visit frequently.  They have  page on super acne you should see:The Rise Of Super Acne - Is Anyone Safe?

If at some point a physician does want to prescribe an antibiotic for acne talk about the reasons why very carefully.  It may be the best move for you, but should probably be used only after all other options have been exhausted.

BTW – family physicians are more likely to prescribe an antibiotic for acne than dermatologists are.  If your family doc recommends antibiotics, you may want to get a second opinion from a dermatologist first.