PanOxyl Acnegel: Review

One of the first few products that I've tried to clear acne was PanOxyl. I used this when I was a freshman in high school. PanOxyl is also known as Benzoyl Peroxide. It is one of the most effective keratolytic/anti-acne topical medication. Back then I used 2.5% concentration and it was super effective. It dried up my pimples very fast and was really happy with the results.

There are 3 variants: 2.5% for mild acne, 5% for mild to moderate acne and 10% with severe acne with numerous lesions and/or body acne, all of which I have tried and used. My thoughts on each variant would be discussed later.

For those with sensitive skin or for everyone who's going to try the product for the first time, it is always best to start with the lowest concentration which is 2.5%, unless your doctor prescribed otherwise. PanOxyl should be used once daily and gradually, you can increase it to twice daily, if needed or as directed by your doctor.

First things first. Before applying the gel, you must first cleanse your face. If I'm not mistaken, PanOxyl also has a soap free cleanser, much like Cetaphil. My sister is using it but I'm not so I can't actually say anything about this product. Anyway, it is not required to use the PanOxyl cleanser. You can use your trusty facial wash and noone would condemn you. Haha. Now after cleansing, just get a pea sized amount of gel on your fingertips and apply over areas with acne (TAKE NOTE: areas, not just spots). After which, wash your hands. If I'm not mistaken, it stains fabrics.

It is important that you don't apply too much because this product often has warm/stinging/itching side effects. It might also cause redness and peeling. Now all of these are normal in the beginning but if you use too much, you would end up with adverse effects (severe side effects) and might end up ruining your face.

So how do you know if you're using too much? Simple. If the gel doesn't run onto your skin easily, then that's a sign. You're putting too much gel on just one area. May I suggest that you just spread the excess gel to other areas needing attention.

You might ask, what should I do if I get those adverse effects? Well, first, STOP using the medication and of course, consult an expert- your doctor.

Now what are other things that you should keep in mind while using PanOxyl? First, keep the medication away from your eyes and lips. Avoid using it with other peeling medications unless of course your doctor says so. He/She's the man so learn to follow his/her instructions. Haha!

Where did I get all these info? I read the literature (paper that comes inside the box).

So yeah, back to my experience in using PanOxyl. I've used 2.5% first and had good results. However, as I went deeper into my adolescence, my pimples gradually worsened as well and it came to a point where the 2.5% gel did not help me anymore.

I then switched with the 5% concentration. After using the 5% concentration, I noticed red marks that went beyond the area where I placed the gel. It was a little bit warm and was very itchy. I naturally washed my face because I felt that PanOxyl was causing these reactions. Even after cleansing my face, the redness and itchy feeling did not go away immediately. I stopped using it until the redness was gone. I thought to myself, maybe I used too much. So after the redness was gone, I tried using it again and carefully applied a small amount onto my skin. I still had the same reaction! After that, I stopped using it and went back to using the 2.5% (this time the packaging of PanOxyl changed) concentration because I naturally thought the 5% was too strong for me. I don't know what happened but even after switching back to the 2.5%, the same reaction occurs. Ever since then, I stopped using PanOxyl and concluded that I'm allergic to whatever's new with the PanOxyl formula. Back then, I just asumed that their formula has changed along with the change in the packaging.

I just naturally switched to another gel that helped me clear the pimples I had. I'll probably do another blog post on that product next time.

Years later, I had these stubborn pimples that I couldn't clear no matter what regimen I do. I have tried a lot of products to clear acne and there are times when I'd just hit eureka- my pimples would disappear! (I'm thinking of making a post with previous things I've tried that have worked for me.) 

This time, however, was different. I opted to see a dermatologist and she prescribed me a number of products, one of which was benzoyl peroxide. While she was giving me my prescription, lingering memories about PanOxyl was running through my mind. I was aware that PanOxyl was also benzoyl preoxide. But then again, I still tried it, just to check if I was allergic to PanOxyl specifically or benxoyl peroxide in general.

I used it (spread all over the face thinly, as prescribed) and I noticed redness on areas below my eyes (chin, cheek, chest). It was soooo itchy. I immediately went back to tell the doctor what happened and she suggested for me to use it only on the areas and just use a small amount. She also told me that if adverse reaction still occurs, I should just stop using it because that only means I'm allergic to benzoyl peroxide. And so I tried using it only on the area where I have pimples and has come to the conclusion that I am allergic to benzoyl peroxide.

Now lately, my mother has been buugging me because I had few breakouts and she was bothered by how it looks. I'm using my current skin care routine (will post about it next time too) and I was happy with it. My mom, however, kept on telling me to use the PanOxyl my sister was using. She had the 10% gel and it works really well with here problematic skin. I told my mom I was allergic to it but she doesn't believe me even if I told her it was what the doctor told me. I was getting irritated (sorry Ma! ILY!) so I just told her I'd use it and show her the reactions and she agreed. I had pimples around my hairline (probably caused by the shampoo I used) and some on my chin and cheek area. A few moments later, my skin reacted and I showed her. This convinced her. But I also noticed something!

I notice that only the areas below my eyes got irritated. If I use it on my forehead area, I don't get irritated and the product works really well. So I use this whenever I try a new shampoo and I get hairline pimples. It dries pimples fast so I could easily say goodbye to brushing-my-hair-gets-tricky-whenever-I-have-hairline-pimples scenarios.

So would I buy it for myself? That's a big NO. Even though it works great on the areas where I don't get irritated, I won't buy it for myself because the other products I use can also do the same thing. Although it works a little bit longer than benzoyl peroxide, at least with other products, I don't have to worry of getting skin irritation.

So over all, I would like to say this product is WORTH IT for other people but just NOT WORTH IT for me.

Pros:

- dries up pimples VERY fast (improves pimple condition overnight)

- color is unnoticeable when blended easily

- widely distributed in pharmacies

Cons:

- a little bit expensive

- leaves a dark mark after

- stains fabrics

- noticeable peeling

- if you put too much, color turns white when gel dries up

UPDATE!!! >> click!

(I bought this/these product/s with my own money and I am not getting paid for anything I say about it. Note that these are just my opinions and I do not guarantee that what I say would hold true in everyone's case.)