There is little end in sight on the long journey to find a cure for acne. Although more innovative approaches to combating the skin condition are constantly being introduced, millions upon millions of adults and teens continue to be plagued by this debilitating disease. Most skin care professionals will readily admit that thousands of factors can contribute to the development of acne. For instance, the particular shampoo you use to wash your hair, as well as the detergent you use to clean your clothes can have some bearing on your skin's health. What few people fail to notice is that the most basic substance that comes into contact with our skin may be contributing to acne breakouts. This substance is none other than water. Like it or not, water is something that we constantly use to cleanse our skin. Could water be potentially responsible for cases of acne that have been non-response for treatment? Perhaps.
For the purposes of this article, there are only two broad categories of water with which we are concerned with: hard and soft water. Hard water is a term used to describe water with a high mineral content. It is the most common type of water distributed to homes in the United States. This form of water comes with some baggage, namely hard water deposits and soap scum. These nuisances can render bathroom fixtures quite unsightly. If this water has so many drawbacks, why is it in such widespread use? For starters, it is far less corrosive than soft water. It doesn't require any expensive treatment for preparation like soft water does. Hard water collects minerals, predominantly Calcium and Magnesium, as it flows through the ground.
Soft water is essentially the exact opposite of soft water. It contains negligible traces of minerals, leaving only pure water. It is available in smaller percentages around the United States, and is often avoided for its corrosive properties. Hard water is converted to soft water though a process known as distillation. The water is boiled, allowing the pure water vapor to rise and the minerals to remain. The resulting vapor in liquid state is soft water.
Hard water is not optimal for use in skin care applications. Water, when combined with soap, should form a lather. This lather provides for a cleaning effective. However, creating a lather is difficult with hard water unless harmful additives are included. Rather than forming a lather, the soap reacts with hard water to form soap scum. Soap scum clings to whatever it comes into contact with, including glass doors and shower tiling. Soap scum also clings to our skin, forming an irritation inducing layer.
There are a number of routes you can take to reduce the harmful effects of hard water. You can have a water softening system installed in your home for a comprehensive solution. However, this can be substantial investment. More affordable options include replacing shower fixtures regularly, as to prevent further water contamination from deposit buildup, and taking cold showers as opposed to hot ones. Your pores become enlarged from hot steam, which leaves them more susceptible to becoming clogged with soap scum as well as minerals from the hard water. Using soft bottled water (such as distilled water) in your skin care regimen is also an option. A spray bottle may come handy if you decide to go this route.
For the purposes of this article, there are only two broad categories of water with which we are concerned with: hard and soft water. Hard water is a term used to describe water with a high mineral content. It is the most common type of water distributed to homes in the United States. This form of water comes with some baggage, namely hard water deposits and soap scum. These nuisances can render bathroom fixtures quite unsightly. If this water has so many drawbacks, why is it in such widespread use? For starters, it is far less corrosive than soft water. It doesn't require any expensive treatment for preparation like soft water does. Hard water collects minerals, predominantly Calcium and Magnesium, as it flows through the ground.
Soft water is essentially the exact opposite of soft water. It contains negligible traces of minerals, leaving only pure water. It is available in smaller percentages around the United States, and is often avoided for its corrosive properties. Hard water is converted to soft water though a process known as distillation. The water is boiled, allowing the pure water vapor to rise and the minerals to remain. The resulting vapor in liquid state is soft water.
Hard water is not optimal for use in skin care applications. Water, when combined with soap, should form a lather. This lather provides for a cleaning effective. However, creating a lather is difficult with hard water unless harmful additives are included. Rather than forming a lather, the soap reacts with hard water to form soap scum. Soap scum clings to whatever it comes into contact with, including glass doors and shower tiling. Soap scum also clings to our skin, forming an irritation inducing layer.
There are a number of routes you can take to reduce the harmful effects of hard water. You can have a water softening system installed in your home for a comprehensive solution. However, this can be substantial investment. More affordable options include replacing shower fixtures regularly, as to prevent further water contamination from deposit buildup, and taking cold showers as opposed to hot ones. Your pores become enlarged from hot steam, which leaves them more susceptible to becoming clogged with soap scum as well as minerals from the hard water. Using soft bottled water (such as distilled water) in your skin care regimen is also an option. A spray bottle may come handy if you decide to go this route.
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