It’s not you… it’s your acne.
A new survey, conducted by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts, revealed people struggling with the common skin condition are more likely to be discriminated against when it comes to dating, friendships and job opportunities.
The study results, published in JAMA Dermatology on Dec. 6, which involved 1,357 participants, found that stigma against sufferers was all too real.
“Our findings show that stigmatizing attitudes about acne can impair quality of life, potentially by affecting personal relationships and employment opportunities,” said Dr.John Barbieri, a dermatologist who led the study.
Researchers presented images of twelve different individuals — with clear skin, mild, and severe acne — randomly to volunteers, asking them questions regarding stereotypes or any interest they had in socializing with the individual in the photo.
Participants — the median being a white female around 42 years old, from a highly educated background — were asked to respond to statements such as, “I would feel comfortable with someone like this being in an image I post on social media,” “I wouldn’t mind having close contact with this person” and “I would feel comfortable being friends with the person in this image.”
The majority of participants had no issue posting photos on their social media with someone who had acne — 60% said that was fine, roughly the same as for a person with clear skin (65%).
However, when it came to dating, only 25% of respondents said they’d go out with an individual with severe acne, with 45% preferring a prospective partner with clear skin.
And while beauty may only be skin deep, it definitely impacts a prospective candidate’s chance of being hired.
The results revealed that 65% of people would prefer to hire someone with clear skin, compared to 50% who wouldn’t mind hiring an employee with severe acne.
To determine how responses differed when skin color was involved, researchers included two acne images of people of color. Results showed that people with darker complexions faced greater prejudice from the respondents.
Many respondents viewed people with dark skin and severe acne as unattractive, unintelligent, untrustworthy, or suffering from lack of hygiene. Many preferred to avoid them altogether.
Acne is the most common skin condition in the United States, afflicting 50 million Americans, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association.
Obtaining treatment can be difficult, however.
“Many insurers poorly cover acne and rosacea treatments, claiming that it’s cosmetic,” Dr. Barbieri said. “It’s important that people with this medical problem get access to treatment, just like any other condition.”