If the product claims to prevent acne, treat acne or cure acne, I will buy it. Sometimes, I think about the thousands of dollars that I have spent trying to stop the sebaceous scourge and I get really upset. But that doesn’t stop me from being sucked in by the siren’s song over and over again.
For Christmas, my parents gifted me a $300 TRIA Skin Clarifying Blue Light system. It worked on some of my acne, but not all of my acne. And since that $300 could (and has) kept me in makeup for five months, I decided to return it for a gift card. But the experience definitely proved to me that blue light does help my acne, so when I discovered the Tanda Zap and its reasonable $49 cost, I had to buy one.
Unlike the TRIA, Tanda’s Zap is smaller, easier to use, and doesn’t require a charger, special serums, replacement cartridges, or any other accoutrements. All you need to make the Tanda work is three AAA batteries, which are helpfully included.
To treat an existing blemish, you place the light head on the skin, push the button and hold it there for two minutes. So simple. And instead of being limited to one treatment per day, you can treat the area 2-3 times for maximum effectiveness.
Also, unlike Zeno (which I’ve also tried) and TRIA, you don’t need to buy replacement tips or cartridges after 50 or 200 uses. The Tanda Zap allows for about 1,000 uses before it wears out. Then you just toss it away, and buy a new one. That’s five cents a treatment. Much, much cheaper than a spa.
I think the Zap is a great product. I think it’s a useful tool to have whether you get a lot of acne, or just want something for the occasional problem zit. It couldn’t be easier to use, and after 3-5 treatments, the blemish is essentially dead. (Hallejulah!) And unlike TRIA, the big Tanda or the Zeno system, it’s affordable. If you have the means, I highly suggest picking one up.
I too have bad adult acne (what a cruel phrase). I recently got off the pill and it has been even worse. Anyway out of desperation I booked a signature facial at the Salon in Cannon. I cannot speak more highly of the Facialist there. Not only did she work on me for an hour and a half, use more creams, masks, cleaners and infrared and electron therapy than I could count it also came with arm, shoulder, hand, neck and scalp massage. Her extractions were painless too! Check put the salon! It is awesome! Btw, they did not ask me to say this or anything like that! The best part is it was $65!!!!
I too have bad adult acne (what a cruel phrase). I recently got off the pill and it has been even worse. Anyway out of desperation I booked a signature facial at the Salon in Cannon. I cannot speak more highly of the Facialist there. Not only did she work on me for an hour and a half, use more creams, masks, cleaners and infrared and electron therapy than I could count it also came with arm, shoulder, hand, neck and scalp massage. Her extractions were painless too! Check put the salon! It is awesome! Btw, they did not ask me to say this or anything like that! The best part is it was $65!!!!
Belle, What kind of acne does this work best on? I usually get cystic acne on my chin and cheeks (I guess it keeps me looking younger than my 25 years) and have been trying to find a treatment to get rid of it before trying something drastic like Accutane.
It's really more for moderate acne, surface acne, if you will. But I have cystic acne as well, and this helps with the swelling. You know that, I can feel it forming and there's nothing I can do about it sensation.
I had a cyst coming up on my jawline last week, and I put this baby on it first thing. When it did form, it was a lot smaller and healed quicker. So while it only fixes moderate acne completely, it does help the cystic acne.
Who would have guessed a light could help with acne!
I have been on birth control since I was eighteen to “cure” mine. Every time I think, okay, I'm old enough, there is no way that I can still have the pre-pubescent acne problem, I can get off these pills now… it comes bubbling back like a cancer.
Even with BC, I still get spots on my chest and a little bit on my back, with the occasional whopper every two months or so near my mouth, so this might be a good option. Thanks!
Thank you for the review, Belle!
I get hormonal breakouts (thanks to PCOS) and have tried just about everything. Before my wedding I went on a low dose of doxycycline once a day and I was breakout free for months. Not wanting to be on that forever, though, I was in search of another solution after the wedding. (Also had to stop taking the pill due to migraines, so that was awesome — it had worked perfectly before as Charleigh noted.)
Long story short — now I use an Rx benzoyl cream in the morning and a small amount of Retin-A at night, which is working great. At some point (babies?) I will probably have to steer clear of that stuff; if so, I will definitely pick up the Zap.
I'm curious- have you spoken to a dermatologist about this? Even with prescription treatments, I still have the occasional breakout. That said, no over-the-counter treatments are as effective as prescription-strength medicine if you continue to have problems with acne.
I strongly recommend a prescription of “differin” from your derm. Start with the low dose and move up to a higher dose with time. Its a cream, applied at night, retinoid. In addition to anti-acne, its anti-aging. What's better than that?
R-Thanks but I've tried differin, and about twenty other prescription creams. They don't work any better than the stuff you buy at the drugstore on most people with more than mild or moderate acne. It's like spitting on a grease fire.
Have any of you guys tried elimination diets to improve your acne? I didn't know that a lot of people have hidden sensitivities to dairy and/or gluten until I read it online somewhere a while ago. That's pretty much the only thing that helped my face.
I too have bad adult acne (what a cruel phrase). I recently got off the pill and it has been even worse. Anyway out of desperation I booked a signature facial at the Salon in Cannon. I cannot speak more highly of the Facialist there. Not only did she work on me for an hour and a half, use more creams, masks, cleaners and infrared and electron therapy than I could count it also came with arm, shoulder, hand, neck and scalp massage. Her extractions were painless too! Check put the salon! It is awesome! Btw, they did not ask me to say this or anything like that! The best part is it was $65!!!!
I've never been to Tides for a facial, but I've been for other things. The salon services were lackluster and the owner is a huge ass. Plus, it looks like the House is going to close the place soon.
Oh really?? I had no idea about the owner! It's my understanding that “Tides” and the owner are gone. There are two girls left, Kaye the manicurist and the facialist (blanking on the name). Anyway, it was a great experience for me but I've heard some negative things about some of the other services for sure.
Interesting. I guess I need to do some digging and see what's up.