This article is written for the female of the species — all you hunter-gatherer types should go off and kill something to keep your hand in. The reason why your body produces acne is well understood. There are glands called sebaceous in the skin of your face, neck, chest and back. They are really useful because they release an oily substance to keep your skin supple and, more importantly, waterproof. Just think how embarrassing it would be if you became waterlogged in the tub. Which emergency service would you call? If there is too much androgen (those are the male hormones) in your body, the glands can produce too much oil. This confirms your deepest suspicion that all your problems are caused by men. This builds up and blocks the pores. Pimples are the result. If bacteria infect the pores, you get the usual swelling and sometimes painful redness. So here we go with the stark fact. Women do produce androgens but, you will be pleased to know, only in small quantities unless something goes wrong. The first sign of this is facial hair. But this is relatively rare and material for a different article. A word of reassurance. Acne has nothing to do with poor hygiene or the diet you eat although it does help the skin to heal if you keep your skin clean and eat healthy foods. Since the theme of this article is hormones in women, we need to talk about the use of oral contraceptives as a treatment for acne. Because the cause of excess oil production is a male hormone, use of a contraceptive which contains cyproterone is ideal because it blocks the effect of androgens in the skin. You should ask our local healthcare provider to recommend which of the oral contraceptives is best for this purpose. However, we also need to dispose of another myth. A story is put about (often by those who oppose the use of any contraceptive precautions) that long-term use of an oral contraceptive leads to infertility. This is completely untrue. Although the effect of the pill is to prevent the release of the egg from the ovaries each month, your body will almost immediately return to its normal cycle when you stop. If, for some reason, there is a slow response, there are standard drugs available to prompt your body to ovulate. Whilst on the subject of pregnancy, we should also remind you not to use Accutane if you could become pregnant. The iPledge system requires you to be on a course of two contraceptives before, during and after you take this drug. Accutane is the ultimately successful medication for the treatment of acne. It is almost always successful although it is not uncommon for the acne to return when you stop the treatment. But this drug is likely to damage a fetus in your womb. You must avoid pregnancy if you propose to use this powerful medication. The removal of acne is not worth the price of deformed children.