Is Your Phone Causing the Acne on Your Cheek?

Your phone can contribute to acne on one cheek, though rarely alone. Pressing a warm screen against your face during calls adds heat, pressure and friction, and the glass carries skin oil, makeup and bacteria from your hands. If breakouts sit where the phone touches, wipe the screen daily with a 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe, use speakerphone or earbuds, and watch for improvement over four to six weeks.

Below we go through why a phone can aggravate cheek acne, how to clean it without wearing off the screen coating, the other common reasons acne shows up on just one side of the face, and how to test which one is yours.

Can your phone really cause acne on your cheek?

A phone can make acne worse on the cheek you hold it against, mostly by acting like a small piece of sports equipment. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) explains that acne mechanica develops when equipment or clothing traps heat and sweat on your skin and then rubs against it, irritating acne-prone skin. A long call does a milder version of the same thing (our guide to acne mechanica covers the other common culprits): the screen warms up, sits tight against the cheek and jaw, and shifts with every word.

The second factor is what's on the glass. Cleveland Clinic's guide to acne by face area lists dirty makeup brushes, a germ-ridden cell phone or unwashed pillowcases as possible contributors to cheek breakouts. Phones pick up a lot: in a study of high school students' phones that Cleveland Clinic cites, researchers found more than 17,000 copies of bacterial genes on 27 phones. Bacteria alone don't cause acne, which starts when follicles become blocked with excess oil and dead skin cells, but oil, makeup and grime pressed into already clog-prone skin don't help.

Keep the scale in mind. A phone is an aggravating factor, so cleaning it may take the edge off breakouts on one side without clearing acne that's driven by hormones or your skin care.

What does phone acne look like?

Phone-related breakouts tend to follow the shape of where the phone touches. Look for these signs:

• Small bumps, whiteheads or red pimples on the lower cheek, along the jaw and near the ear on one side.
• More breakouts on the side you usually hold the phone to, often your dominant-hand side.
• Flare-ups after weeks with lots of long calls, and improvement when you switch to earbuds.
• Little or no change on the other cheek, even though you use the same products on both.

How do you clean your phone screen without damaging it?

Use a 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe or a soft, slightly damp cloth, and never soak or spray the phone. Apple's cleaning instructions for current iPhones allow a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe, a 75 percent ethyl alcohol wipe, or Clorox Disinfecting Wipes on the exterior surfaces, followed by a soft, slightly damp, lint-free cloth. Apple also notes that iPhone screens have a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating that wears over time, and that cleaning products and abrasive materials will wear it down further and might scratch the phone. That's the reason to stick to the approved options.

Step by step

1. Turn the phone off and unplug it. Apple recommends unplugging cables and turning the iPhone off before cleaning.
2. Take off the case. Cases trap grime around the edges and need cleaning on their own.
3. Wipe the screen and back with a 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe, or with a lens or microfiber cloth lightly dampened with water for routine cleaning.
4. Keep moisture out of the openings. Apple says to avoid getting moisture in any openings and not to submerge your iPhone. Cleveland Clinic adds that you should lightly mist the cloth instead of spraying the phone.
5. Finish with a dry or barely damp lint-free cloth, then let the phone dry. Cleveland Clinic suggests about 15 minutes before putting it back in its case.
6. Clean the case. For hard plastic cases, Cleveland Clinic suggests the alcohol solution with a cotton swab for openings; silicone cases can be washed with mild dish detergent and warm water and dried fully. Follow the maker's instructions for leather.

If you use an Android phone, check the manufacturer's own cleaning instructions, which is also Cleveland Clinic's first piece of advice for any device.

How often should you clean your phone for your skin?

Once a day is a good target if you're dealing with breakouts on one cheek. Cleveland Clinic's advice is to wipe your phone daily or more if you believe it may have been exposed to contamination. Tie it to an existing habit, like plugging the phone in at night, so it actually happens.

How else can you keep your phone off your face?

The simplest fix is less contact. Cleaning helps with grime, but only distance helps with heat and pressure.

• Use earbuds, headphones or speakerphone for long calls. If you use earbuds, wipe them too; Cleveland Clinic suggests a lightly misted cloth for earbuds, chargers and stands.
• Switch ears on calls you have to take against your face, so one cheek doesn't take all the pressure.
• Hold the phone slightly away from your cheek when you can, touching only your ear.
• Wash your hands before handling your phone after applying makeup or skin care, so you're not loading the screen with product.

Why do I have acne on only one side of my face?

One-sided acne usually comes from something that touches or rubs one side more than the other. Your phone is one candidate; these are the others to rule out.

Sleeping on one side

Pressing one cheek into a pillow for hours adds the same heat and friction as a phone, plus whatever oil and product has built up on the fabric. Our guide on how often to change your pillowcase for acne gives a concrete schedule.

Touching your face

Many people rest their chin or cheek in the same hand while reading or working. The AAD says touching your face throughout the day can cause acne to flare, and Cleveland Clinic cites a study in which people touched their faces anywhere between 9 and 162 times per hour. Its tips include building awareness of when you do it, keeping your hands busy with something like a stress ball or pen, and keeping your elbows off the table and some distance between your hands and your face.

Hair and hair products

If you part your hair on one side or tuck it behind one ear, that side of your face gets more contact with hair oil and styling products. The AAD says a styling product that contains a lot of oil, such as a pomade, is a likely culprit for breakouts along the hairline, and advises people with oily hair to keep their hair away from their face.

Something other than acne

Not every bump on one cheek is acne. DermNet lists several acne look-alikes, including rosacea, which tends to show facial flushing, eye irritation and visible blood vessels, and perioral dermatitis, small spots limited to around the mouth that may burn or itch. Folliculitis in the beard area can also mimic acne. If your one-sided spots don't behave like ordinary pimples, a dermatologist can sort out what's going on. You can also read our explainer on face mapping myths, since the location of a breakout tells you less about your organs than social media suggests.

How long until you know if it was your phone?

Give a change at least four weeks before you judge it. The AAD's guidance for acne treatments is to give an acne treatment at least 4 weeks to work, with improvement typically in 4 to 6 weeks, and it's reasonable to judge a new habit like a clean screen or earbuds on the same timescale. Change one thing at a time. If you switch to earbuds, change your pillowcase schedule and start a new cleanser in the same week, you won't know which one helped.

How can a selfie scan help compare your cheeks?

One-sided acne is a good case for photos, because you're comparing two halves of the same face under the same conditions. An app like Pori maps your face with a 468-point mesh and reads it region by region, returning an overall skin score with a Pores & Texture breakdown. Its before/after comparison and progress charts let you look at the left and right cheeks side by side over weeks, so you can compare the weeks before and after you switched to earbuds or changed your pillowcase routine. For tips on consistent photos, see our guide to tracking acne progress.

An app is not a diagnosis, and it can't tell acne from rosacea or folliculitis with certainty. See a dermatologist if breakouts are deep, painful or scarring, or if the AAD's markers apply: acne that hasn't cleared with treatment you can buy without a prescription.