:Clear Skin Blog

The Zeno acne clearing device is getting a lot of press these days, but is it the real solution for your skin? While the cost has fallen from its initial $250 price tag, Zeno is still a fairly big investment for the average acne sufferer (especially after replacement tips), and it’s always smart to do your homework about a new health product. Here’s a brief Zeno review that lays out some of the benefits and downsides of this popular acne gadget.

Pros:

- Zeno’s approach of heat treatment is fairly unique, so if you’re one of those who has had poor luck with typical acne treatments such as those using benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid, this presents a more hopeful solution than simply trying another brand of cream or cleanser that still relies on the same active ingredient.

- When properly used, the heat-shock response that Zeno stimulates does kill p. acnes bacteria, which can effectively end many acne blemishes.

- Zeno regulates its temperature to your skin type, providing a safer treatment than most of its imitators or competitors (such as handheld laser acne devices).

- A built-in timer helps make Zeno more user-friendly, beeping every thirty seconds to let you know the device is active and how long you have been applying it.

Cons:

- Zeno needs to be applied for 2 & 1/2 minutes per pimple. This may not be that inconvenient if you only have very mild acne, but if your acne is more in the moderate-to-severe range, using the Zeno device can become a serious exercise in patience. More serious acne spots may also require multiple applications per day, making Zeno far more of a pain to use than standard topical creams or simply taking a pill.

- Currently, the standard Zeno tip is good for 60 uses, and then must be replaced at a cost of about $25. Again, for those with moderate or worse acne this can be equally or more expensive than typical acne treatments, even after the high initial price tag of the device.

- As a topical heat-based device, Zeno’s effectiveness decreases for deeper-lodged cystic acne blemishes, and prolonging the application to try and treat these cysts may result in damage to your skin.

- Zeno targets the p. acnes bacteria, but does nothing about the excess sebum that allows this bacteria to grow in the first place (p. acnes feeds off the sebum secreted by your glands). As such, Zeno does basically nothing to prevent future acne spots from forming.

Zeno is a good idea, and may certainly be a smart choice for those suffering from mild acne who have built up a resistance to treatments such as benzoyl peroxide (BP). However, Zeno definitely has some weaknesses for those with more substantial acne problems, and in practice provides very little benefit over BP-based creams which kill the same bacteria with less effort (and a lower investment) from the user. The lack of effective acne prevention also keeps Zeno from really competing with internal treatments such as vitamin B5 or Accutane.