Ten Products that Kill Acne Bacteria

Last Updated on November 20th, 2021

Many acne care products can kill acne bacteria. The problem with some of these products is that they can also damage the skin. We’re examining the pros and cons of the 10 most commonly used products for getting rid of acne bacteria. But first let’s take a closer look at how acne bacteria cause, or don’t cause, blemished skin.

Acne bacteria can actually help control excess sebum but can cause skin problems when they multiply out of control.

Summary of The Best Products To Treat Acne Bacteria

• Problems with acne bacteria only occur when they multiply out of control. In small numbers, they actually help the skin by feeding on excess sebum.
• You should first spot-test any product you put on your skin to kill bacteria. Place a small dot of any new product on the skin of your inside forearm. Wait 8 to 12 hours to make sure you are not allergic before putting the product on your face.
• Benzoyl peroxide kills bacteria, but won’t work unless you also have an acne treatment system to keep the skin clean.
• Tea tree oil helps relieve inflammation. It gets the red out of pimples as well as killing bacteria. But again, this won’t cure acne alone, and should be used as an ingredient in a science-based, effective acne product.
• Retin-A, Accutane, and Differin are not primarily anti-bacterial, but they can deprive acne bacteria of their food. These are extremely potent treatments and should be used only after an effective skincare routine isn’t working.
• Oral antibiotics for acne can stain the teeth in people 22 years old and younger. Plus, antibiotics should be the last resort, as antibiotic resistance is a huge issue.
• The safest and most effective way to treat acne bacteria and see actual results in your skin is with a simple, effective and science-based skincare routine. We like Exposed Skincare for its conscientious ingredients and super strong money-back guarantee, which lets you return the products if they don’t work, even if you’ve used them all.

Acne Bacteria Don’t Cause Acne

Let’s start with how acne is actually formed. Most of the time, the acne bacterium, Propionibacterium acnes, is a natural fixture on human skin. The skin makes an oil called sebum to keep it flexible and lubricated. The skin produces extra sebum when the skin is stressed. This production of extra oil can be part of a generalized reaction of the entire body to stress, or it can be part of a specialized reaction with the skin to stressors that only affect the skin itself, such as allergens, irritant chemicals, rubbing, or heat.

Acne bacteria feed on sebum, but they are only naturally active when there is too much sebum on the skin. When “fresh” sebum is overabundant, acne bacteria have an abundance of food. As sebum production declines, “stale” sebum begins to release essential fatty acids. These are useful for the skin’s health, but toxic to acne bacteria.

Most of the time, acne infections are self-limiting. They are only a problem when the passage of oil and bacteria to the surface of the skin, where they can both be washed away, is blocked by tightening of the skin or hardening of sebum.

When pores are clogged, acne bacteria have a way of “breaking out” of the pore so their descendants can go to live in another pore. They release chemicals that sensitize skin cells to the immune system. When the immune system attacks the bacteria, it also kills healthy skin cells. This reddens and inflames the skin, and at some point, some bacteria will escape when the pimple bursts open. That is, they will escape if the pimple bursts open.

Mashing or squeezing pimples presses bacteria into the skin so that healthy skin traps them inside the skin for good. The result is replacing pimples with nodules and cysts.

Killing Acne Without Further Harming The Skin

Many products prevent the formation of nodules and cysts by killing the skin. This works, but it leaves scars, and it’s not very pleasant for the user of the product! It’s a common misconception that an acne ingredient must burn, itch or cause severe reactions to have an effect. If your products are painful and irritating your skin, that isn’t good!

Some acne products, however, control acne infections without causing irritation or inflammation or damaging the skin. Let’s take a closer look.

1. Benzoyl peroxide

Benzoyl peroxide, also known as BP, or, since the BP oil spill, as BPO, is the active ingredient in the majority of acne products you can buy over the counter or get by prescription. Benzoyl peroxide breaks down into two compounds that both kill bacteria and reduce the sensitivity to the skin to the immune system. Almost all the bacteria in a pore will die within 48 hours of exposure to BP.

Benzoyl peroxide only stops the new inflammation—it does not remove existing inflammation. Also, very high concentrations of BP can dry out the skin, which tightens it and creates new clogged pores elsewhere.

If benzoyl peroxide is all you do for you skin, you do not have an effective blemish treatment program. You’ll just get rid of pimples in one place and create whiteheads and blackheads in another. But, when used as part of an overall acne treatment plan, benzoyl peroxide is essential. Look for lower levels of BP, like this 3.5% gel Acne Treatment Serum from Exposed Skincare, and avoid products with 10% benzoyl peroxide. That level is simply too high and will harm your skin.

Results after using Exposed Skincare routine for 24 days.

2. Tea tree oil

Tea tree oil is the leading herbal remedy for acne breakouts. Like benzoyl peroxide, it kills acne bacteria in pores, although it takes about 72 hours instead of only 48. Unlike benzoyl peroxide, tea tree oil also is anti-inflammatory. It “gets the red out.” Tea tree oil also does not dry out the skin and does not cause new blemishes.

The downside of some tea tree oil products is that they contain enough tea tree oil to smell good but not enough tea tree oil to fight acne bacteria. Usually a product has to be at least 5% tea tree oil to do any good. If you want to incorporate this ingredient into your routine, look for a product line that pairs tea tree oil with other effective acne-fighting ingredients.

There is a single report in the medical literature about tea tree oil possibly interfering with the way hormones work in boys who have not entered puberty, so just to be on the safe side, don’t use this product for acne in babies or in children under 12. Always test a dab of tea tree oil on the forearm and wait 12 hours to make sure there are no allergic reactions.

3. Calendula

Calendula is the botanical name of chrysanthemum petals. This natural ingredient is used in skin care soaps and washes for eczema and insect bites as well as acne.

Calendula contains natural anti-inflammatory compounds related to aspirin. It also contains compounds that kill both acne bacteria and staph bacteria. Staph infections create bumps that look like especially nasty pimples, with circles of yellow pus visible in the center. You will get better results from a gel left on your skin than from an acne wash. Always test for possible allergic reactions before you use the product for the first time.

4. Triclosan

Triclosan in higher concentrations can kill both bacteria and skin cells by breaking down their outer membranes. In lower concentrations it kills bacteria by shutting down their ability to use fatty acids. Since acne bacteria feed on fatty acids, triclosan causes them to starve.

The issue with using products that contain triclosan, such as Body Shop Tea Tree Clearing Lotion, is that using it at high concentrations damages the skin, and using it at low concentrations kills acne bacteria but has no effect on staph bacteria. Triclosan just removes the bacteria that compete with staph bacteria for moisture and food, so instead of pimples, you may wind up with boils caused by staph infection.

Don’t rely on products based on triclosan to get rid of acne on your skin. They may just cause you even worse problems.

5. Topical tretinoin (Retin-A and Avita creams applied directly to the skin)

Tretinoin, the active ingredient in topical Retin-A and Avita, does not actually kill acne bacteria. This potent acne treatment works primarily by stimulating the growth of the skin so that pores open and their contents can drain. It also counteracts the effects of stress on the skin and desensitizes skin cells to the immune system, reversing their sensitivity caused by bacteria.

We always encourage people to try an effective yet gentle acne skincare routine like Exposed Skincare before moving to topical tretinoins. That’s because there are many potential side effects of tretinoin treatment, and it must always be used under medical supervision.

6. Isotretinoin (Accutane, taken as a pill)

Isotretinoin, also known as Accutane, is another potent acne-fighting drug that stimulates growth of the skin. By shrinking sebum-producing glands, however, it slowly starves acne bacteria as it helps open pores. Accutane has a long list of serious side effects, and it should only be used under medical supervision and after all other acne routine options are exhausted.

7. Adapalene (Differin)

Sold under the trade name Differin and available as a cream, gel, or pledget (small compress), adapalene opens pores and counteracts the inflammation caused by acne bacteria. The bacteria are removed, however, as pores open and they can drain to the surface. Adapalene has little or no direct antibacterial action.

8. Minocycline

This antibiotic is commonly prescribed for acne in teens in the United States but usually not prescribed for acne in teens in Europe. It fights both acne and other common skin infections, but it has the side effect of staining the teeth brown, gray, black, or blue, especially along the gum line. American doctors typically don’t give the drug to young acne patients who still have their “baby teeth,” but European doctors seldom give it to anyone under the age of 22.

9. Tetracycline

This antibiotic used to be very popular for treating acne. The problem with tetracycline and many related antibiotics is that they have potential for kidney damage. Plus, many antibiotics have undesirable side effects. Finally, antibiotic resistance is a concern—they may work for a bit, but once the bacteria adapt to the antibiotic, they’ll be back, and even harder to kill.

10. Medicinal honey.

Medicinal honey, especially Manuka honey, is available in sanitary skin preparations—you don’t have to dip your fingers in the jar. It fights a wide range of bacteria, yeasts, and molds that can contaminate the skin. Manuka honey, in particular, is collected from hives of bees that feed on the plants used to make tea tree oil, and offers all the benefits of tea tree oil plus the power to kill a broader range of infections.

The Best Way To Kill Acne Bacteria

The most effective way to get clear skin and kill acne bacteria is with a good, easy-to-follow skincare routine. This approach will work for most people with acne, and is the safest and most cost-effective way.

We recommend finding a product line that uses benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid in low, yet still potent amounts. This way, you’ll be able to kill acne bacteria without destroying your skin in the process.

Exposed Skincare products work—or you can return for your money back.

We suggest Exposed Skincare a lot because they are the only product line that we’ve reviewed that achieves consistent results. Here are a couple of the pros of Exposed Skincare:

• The brand uses lower levels of acne-fighting actives, meaning you aren’t destroying your skin while trying to fight acne.
• Exposed products are SLS- and paraben-free, use naturally-sourced ingredients and are made in North America.
• The company offers a money-back guarantee. You can return your kit within a year and get your money back, which is almost unheard of in the skincare industry.
• We’ve seen the results. Click here to see some before-and-after photos of Exposed users.