What are spots on the neck?
Spots on the neck, like spots on the rest of the skin, are an indication of the emergence of a bacterium in the skin. In medical terms rashes of spots are called acne - but individual spots on the neck are not usually assessed as acne. But if you have between 10-40 pimples, it is often considered as acne. A few spots on the neck are quite common but can be cosmetically disfiguring.
Spots on the neck or anywhere else on the body are caused by bacteria which cause the skin to become inflamed. Spots on the neck are swellings in the skin often with an underlying yellowish puss ball that cause the skin to become raised, red and inflamed.
Spots vs. beard rash
Often spots on the neck are confused with another infection of the skin, namely beard rash. This is often a problem for men who completely shave their neck hair. But beard rash differs from a spot as it is caused by hairs that grows crookedly out of the skin so that they become trapped and continue to grow just below the surface, or when hair follicles are clogged which can also cause inflammation, but in this case by the bacteria yellow staphylococcus.
Why am I getting spots on my neck?
Have you ever woken up and looked in the mirror to find that during the night a red, sore spot has formed on your neck? You are not alone. But why do you even get spots? There may be several reasons.
Sebum can't escape out of the skin
All over your face and neck there are sebaceous glands – except for the eyelids. The sebaceous glands are important for the health of our skin because they secrete a fatty substance called sebum, to keep your skin from drying out. In a way, it's the skin’s own body lotion.
Usually, the sebum will be secreted out from the sebaceous glands along the tiny, thin down hairs that you have on your face. But when these tubes become blocked the sebum will start to build up. The glands continue to produce new sebum despite this which leads to spots on the throat and neck or any other places where the sebaceous glands are prevented from secreting the sebum properly.
Your skin's outer layer constantly renews by replacing dead skin cells, but when the dead skin cells stick together, they can block the sebum inside the gland. This can then become infected with a bacterium in the skin called Propionebacterium acnes that feeds on the excess sebum. This bacterium causes inflammation of the skin forming a red, inflamed spot.
Hormonal imbalance can cause spots on your neck
Spots and hormones are undeniably linked. Hormones are chemical signaling agents produced by different glands. They send chemical messages via the blood to regulate body functions. When there is an imbalance of hormones it can show up as spots on your neck, face or elsewhere on your body. This hormonal imbalance may be due to stress, poor diet or pregnancy.
Diet can cause pimples
You may have heard someone say they get pimples every time they eat chips. There may be something in that. While it has not been scientifically proven that fatty and sugary foods directly produce spots, large quantities of unhealthy foods can boost blood sugar levels which in turn affects hormone production and this can lead to you getting spots on your neck, face or elsewhere.
Do you drink a lot of milk? Then this may also be the reason why you get spots on your neck. Spots can appear because the skin can become irritated by large amounts of milk. This is because cow's milk also contains hormones that can affect your own hormonal balance and give you spots.
Who gets spots on their necks?
Spots on the neck can affect anyone. Sebaceous glands produce almost no sebum unless hormones are produced to stimulate them to do so. This is the reason why children don't get spots.
Spots show up during puberty
It is not until the teens that hormone levels increase. In both sexes, sex hormones increase and become more active. This causes the sebaceous glands to grow and increase the production of sebum.
The sebum makes the skin more oily. It also becomes more difficult for the sebaceous glands to express the sebum. This leads to spots in many young people during puberty. In fact, it is estimated that up to 80% of young people have problems with spots to some extent.
Spots also show up in adulthood
It's not just when you're a teenager that you can get an annoying spot on your neck, forehead or any other inconvenient place. Every adult can get a pimple every now and then – regardless of age. However, it is more often women than men who are affected.
About 5% of women aged 40 still have problems with spots. For men, it is about 1%. This is most likely because women are more affected by fluctuations in hormone levels that can cause spots, for example, because of the menstrual cycle or pregnancy.
Symptoms of spots on the neck
The symptoms of spots on the neck appear like everywhere else on the skin like red, inflamed swellings. Often, the spot will develop to form a yellowish mass under the skin.
A spot on the neck can both appear as a swelling on the skin’s surface, but it can also appear as deep lump in the skin. If you feel around the pimple, you may feel a ball-like swelling that goes deep into the skin. Often, both will be accompanied by tenderness when you touch the pimple.
Your symptoms of spots will gradually subside. The body will heal the spot and inflammation naturally over a few days, depending on how large and how deep the spot is. A spot will disappear by itself after a while, but new ones will continue to appear if you do not actively treat the problem.
How do I treat spots on my neck?
The problem of spots on the neck does not disappear by itself. New ones will keep coming if you don't get a spot treatment. Fortunately, there lots of good options for dealing with the problem effectively.
Treat with the right skin care products
The most important thing for the treatment of spots on the neck is to keep the skin clean. To do this properly choose the right skin care products, those which are designed to remove impurities, grease, dirt, dead skin cells and bacteria so that these do not able to accumulate in glands or pores.
The complete face care kit from Australian Bodycare is specifically designed to reduce and prevent spots on the neck and face. The kit includes Face Wash, Face Tonic, Face Cream and Spot Stick, all of which work to cleanse congested skin and clear spots. They do this by using the power of 100% natural active Tea Tree Oil, which, with its unique properties, counteract bacterial attacks. All these products help to place a membrane over the skin that effectively protects it against bacteria. This means that the bacteria cannot penetrate pores or sebaceous glands and cause inflammation – and so spots.
Use the mild Face Wash to wash both face and neck morning and evening to keep skin clean during the day and night. The wash cleans gently without drying out the skin. Do not wash more than twice a day as the skin will become irritated.
After the facial cleaner, use Face Tonic to deep clean the pores, leaving you complexion fresh and clean. Face Cream gives you the final layer of protection against bacteria and keeps the skin feeling soft and supple. Spot Stick is your first aid to treat a spot. Apply a little to the spot as soon as you feel it start to develop, the active ingredients soothe the skin and help heal the spot faster.
Medical treatment in severe cases
If you have a few spots on your neck, the most effective treatment is to keep the skin clean with the good skin care products. But if it is a bad outbreak of acne it may require medical treatment instead.
In this case you should go to your doctor, who will recommend you to a dermatologist specializing in skin problems. He or she can assess which treatment can best help you. It may be ointments or tablets or a combination of both.
How to prevent spots on your neck
The very best treatment of spots on the neck is simply to prevent them. You can do this easily with a few simple steps that will help keep your throat and neck free from spots.
Keep up a good skincare routine
To prevent spot outbreaks on your throat, it is first and foremost important that you keep to a good skincare routine. Make it a habit to cleanse the skin of the throat and neck both morning and evening. It's not enough just to wash your skin at night after you've been wearing makeup. During the night, the skin also secretes a lot of sebum, which you will also need to wash off when you get up.
Take short baths
Do you love taking long hot baths where the water covers your body? Most of us do. But hot water can cause problems for your skin. It quickly dries out the skin which in turn increases the natural production of sebum. The solution: Take shorter and cooler baths.
Change your bedding often
How often do you change your bedding? If you can't answer that question, it's probably not often enough. A lot of dirt accumulates in bedding very quickly, which is why it is important to change it frequently. If you don't, bacteria and dirt from your bedding will get on to your skin and potentially cause spots.
