I propose a New Law that requires all Acne companies to post this warning with every advertisement in the same way the drug companies are forced to mention potential side effects in their commercials.

It is the irresponsible smiles of the Acne commercials that leaves people baffled and bewildered by their own failure.  They are irresponsibly making acne seem easy to beat.





To display what I see every week in the office, I will lay out the exact emotional phenomenon as it repeatedly unfolds.

We’ll use “John” as an example…

1)   John views widespread commercials showing happy people with success over a real medical condition.

2)  John buys the product as a “consumer” with the expectation that it will work as it did on the commercial.  His only responsibility in this “consumer” relationship is to pay for it and follow the instructions.

3)  John uses the product exactly as directed.

4)  John uses it patiently, “hoping and waiting” 2-3 months as directed.

5)  3 months later, John is angry that he still has bad acne despite perfect compliance.   John begins to lose trust and hope.

6)  John’s expectation was very high solely based on the commercial, and his experience did not meet his expectation.

(It is our expectations that determine our satisfaction.  In this case, John is very upset and will be slower to trust any company in the future.)

Why did John get so upset??


The exact reason John is upset is because the company who ran the infomercial did not mention that over 60% of people using their product do not get the results seen on the commercial.   And even more upsetting,  John was never told that the people themselves in the commercial were wearing makeup and altering the lighting to make the results seem great.

This upsetting phenomenon is happening every day to millions of people.  I am often left to pick up the emotional pieces in the aftermath when people come to the office or contact me online.

I believe it needs to stop, as the emotional results can be devastating to our whole community.   A society of distrusting, hopeless people who are angry at all big businesses for selling false hope.


In the world of beauty and fashion ads,  people have forgotten Acne has always been, and will always be, a medical condition that often times requires help from an expert practitioner.



To correct this widespread problem, Here is the legistlation I propose:

1) All Acne marketing be treated like prescription drug marketing as these products are also dealing with a medical condition.

-With this new responsibility will come the requirement to use zero makeup and zero camera or lighting alterations.

2)  All Acne companies are to be required to specifically disclaim the variablity in their results.

For example:

 ”Results may vary. If not improving, please seek other alternatives as time = scarring”

When a “Customer”  fails in this new scenario,  It causes much less anxiety to know the failure is more “the norm” than a special, unseen “affliction.”



Bottom Line:

Although always treatable, Acne is not always simple to fix.

There needs to be a higher level of accountability to get this message across while still giving hope to those who need.

Simple Benzoyl Peroxide and Salicylic Acid regimens have failed millions of people  (i.e. your case is not special)

When responsibly communicated.., those who fail will be less likely to self-victimize themselves as a special, untreatable case.

In a related conversation:

Are you Baffled that your dietary changes did not fix your skin??

When dietary strategies are hyped up as a “solution” for acne, maybe there should be some awareness of the warning above…?

In the conversation of “First do not harm”,  I’d like to emphasize the idea that reckless and irresponsible promises often cause real emotional wounds.

Proper Accountability and Responsibility is the key to prevent future needless suffering and self-victimization.

Acne commercials need to be held accountable for the emotional problems they have helped create,

-Dr. Neal

©2010 “Baffled by Prior Failure??” by Dr. Neal Schwartz