Does the sun help acne & pimples?
What can you do?

Does the sun help with acne & pimples or not? Find out the effect the sun has on acne-prone skin & the care you can take.

Read Time

6 min

In short:

Does the sun help with acne & pimples?
How to treat acne symptoms & pimples caused by the sun
Prevention is the best treatment
Sunscreen & blemish-prone skin
Does the sun help acne scars?

Does the sun help with
acne & pimples?

Overexposure to sunlight can cause serious damage to your skin, especially if you’re already dealing with acne. The sun's UV rays can worsen acne breakouts as well as scarring, because time in the sun can strip away your skin’s natural oils. Your skin responds to this by increasing sebum production, which often contributes to blemishes and pimples. Taking the correct precautions for acne-prone skin in the sun will help to keep your skin happy and healthy.

It’s no surprise that many people are misled into believing that sitting in the sun is good for the skin. Friends and family often talk about their skin glowing when they come back from a summer holiday, so you might think it clears your skin too. However, this isn’t the case and the damage may not be visible straight away, but it’s definitely there.

Here, you’ll find answers on whether the sun is really beneficial for acne-prone skin, we’ll debunk the common rumours and share approachable tips to help you tackle those persistent pimples.

Why do people believe the sun is good for acne & pimples?

It may look like your acne and pimples improve when you’re in the sun, and that’s because the sun's UV rays can offer mild anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial effects. But this doesn’t last, and in the long run it actually causes more harm than good.

Acne may also seem less visible after you’ve spent time in the sun because tanned skin can conceal red spots. It could also be because you feel more relaxed on holiday – high levels of stress are commonly associated with worsening or even triggering acne breakouts.

Does the sun cause or worsen acne?

After you’ve been in the sun, the top layer of your skin thickens and dries out, and your body reacts by producing more oil. The sebaceous glands that naturally produce oil start working in overdrive to replenish the lost moisture. This leads to excessive sebum, which is a common cause of acne breakouts. This reaction doesn’t happen instantly, so it’s very common not to connect your time in the sun with later breakouts.

When you’re out in the warm sun you also tend to sweat more, and sweaty skin creates the perfect environment for bacteria and acne to develop.

How to treat acne symptoms & pimples
caused by the sun

Acne-prone skin needs higher UV protection because many acne treatments peel away dead skin and expose fresher layers underneath. That’s why it’s extra important for you to apply high-SPF sunscreen whenever you’re using acne products and stepping out in the sun.

NIVEA Derma Skin Clear

The Derma Skin Clear range from NIVEA includes specially formulated products for anyone dealing with blemish-prone skin. These vegan-formula skin care products nourish your skin while helping to reduce the visibility of blemishes, for a clean and healthy-looking complexion.

The Derma Skin Clear range combines three key ingredients – Niacinamide, Salicylic Acid and Glycolic Acid – all well-known ingredients that help rejuvenate blemish-prone skin.

Explore Derma Skin Clear

Prevention
is the best treatment

To manage sun pimples, the obvious first step is to cut down the time you spend in the sun and wear SPF30+ whenever you do go out. To stay on top of further acne breakouts, you can also try a few simple prevention methods:

Care for your skin correctly

This could mean washing your face twice a day, or choosing the products that suit your skin type best. Everyone's skin is different, so it's important to listen to what your skin is telling you and notice which products or ingredients work for you and which don’t.

Moisturise dry skin

Because your skin often dries out in the sun and then starts producing more oil to compensate, it’s important to stay ahead of this by topping up your skin’s moisture regularly. You can do this with a serum or a moisturiser – it really depends on what works best for you and your skin.

Keep low-stress levels

High stress levels make your body produce more hormones, which in turn boosts your glands' production of oil. By keeping your stress levels low with simple everyday habits, you can help avoid an overproduction of sebum that leads to acne breakouts.

Eat healthily

Your daily diet can play a big role in either helping or worsening your acne breakouts. These are some usual suspects that tend to make acne worse:

Processed foods
Alcohol
Sugar
Dairy products

Limit makeup

It can be tempting to use makeup to cover up pimples, but heavy makeup on the skin can actually worsen acne. Thick formulas tend to clog pores and trigger breakouts. If you don’t want to skip makeup altogether, look for fragrance-free, lightweight options. When you’re washing your makeup off, be gentle and use a specialised cleanser made for sensitive skin.

Sunscreen & blemish-prone
skin

If you feel like your pimples get worse when you’re in the sun, your sunscreen could also be part of the problem. It’s essential to wear sunscreen outdoors, but there are different types and some work better for blemish-prone skin than others.

When you’re choosing a sunscreen that doesn’t worsen acne-prone skin, try to avoid heavy, greasy textures. These are more likely to clog your pores and increase the chances of breakouts. NIVEA Protect & Dry Touch Invisible Spray SPF 50 is a lighter sunscreen that offers high protection against UVA & UVB rays while also being sweat- and water-resistant.

People often wonder whether to pick mineral or chemical sunscreens – both are okay to use and it usually comes down to your individual skin type and how it reacts. For facial sunscreen, mineral sunscreen is often considered the better option because it tends to be less greasy and gentler on sensitive skin.

The UV Face Specialist Triple Protect Sun Fluid SPF50+ is a non-greasy, ultra-light and hydrating face sunscreen. Its SPF 50 helps protect your skin efficiently from UV rays while still being gentle on sensitive, acne-prone facial skin.

Does the sun help
acne scars?

Acne scarring refers to the different marks that acne breakouts can leave behind. A tan can sometimes give the illusion of reduced scarring, but unfortunately that’s far from the truth. Once the tan fades, the UV exposure is likely to leave scars even more noticeable and less likely to fade over time.

Acne scars often worsen or deepen in the sun because of the Collagen breakdown that happens. Over time, UV rays damage Collagen and Elastin, which are the proteins that give your skin structure and firmness.

There are many acne scar products out there, but in most cases, using a good daily SPF is the most essential care you can give your skin.