No More Acne Troubles! Best Home Remedies For Cystic Acne

Written by Pratishtha RanaJul 15, 2022

We’re all aware of how troublesome pimples and acne can be. Each of us has our own story about how these pesky zits appeared uninvited one fine day to ruin our skin (and mood). The most severe form of acne that can stress your skin is cystic acne. It presents as large, red bumps filled with pus that sit deep in your skin and could feel itchy or painful to the touch. To get more clarity on cystic acne, we got onboard Dr. Niketa Sonavane, Celebrity Dermatologist and Founder of Ambrosia Aesthetics, Mumbai, to decode some pressing questions on the causes and importantly, cystic acne remedies.

She explains, “Cystic acne is a severe form of acne in which the skin's pores become clogged, resulting in infection and inflammation. This causes large red breakouts deep in your skin and can affect the face, chest, back of the neck, back, upper arms or a combination of these areas.”

What Causes Cystic Acne?
Home Remedies for Cystic Acne
Skincare Tips For Cystic Acne
Dermat-Approved Treatments for Cystic Acne

What Causes Cystic Acne?

Dermat-Approved Treatments for Cystic Acne

Cystic acne generally forms when your skin pores clog up because of trapped oil, dead skin cells and bacteria, which leads to your skin swelling up and experiencing inflammation. When the cyst bursts, it forms a chain of similar pus-filled breakouts on a larger area of skin, making the infection more severe. Dr. Sonavane says, “If left untreated, cystic acne could be a major cause of acne scarring.”

She informs that cystic acne may also be part of a syndrome that includes acne on the face, in the underarms, groin or chest area and draining lesions and boils on the scalp, which is known as dissecting cellulitis of the scalp. For people in their adolescent years or early twenties, cystic acne is one of the most common forms of acne breakouts. But of course, it can also occur in children and adults, too. Dr. Sonavane adds, “If one of your parents had severe cystic acne, you are more likely to develop it. Even in the most severe cases, a family history of cystic acne is not universal. A rise in the hormone testosterone, whether intrinsic to the body or extrinsic, from anabolic steroid use, may precipitate or worsen cystic acne.”

Home Remedies for Cystic Acne

Waiting for the cyst to disappear on its own could likely backfire, as it is often observed that cystic acne can prolong on the skin for months or even years because of its infectious nature. To avoid reaching the stage of acne scarring, it is recommended to adopt some home remedies to try and heal cystic acne. However, it’s crucial to note that the listed home remedies haven’t been proved to be effective scientifically.

Vitamin A

Dr. Sonavane says, “Vitamin A supplements have been used to treat acne with varying degrees of success.” Although, excessive or irregular dosage of vitamin A can end up causing more harm than good to your body and skin. It’s important to first consult your doctor or dermatologist before deciding which vit-A supplement to take or if there are any health risks.

Antibiotics

Long courses of antibiotics taken orally to control bacteria and reduce inflammation are commonly used to treat cystic acne. Dr. Sonavane says, “The most common antibiotics for cystic acne are Doxycycline, Minocycline and Azithromycin. These are frequently prescribed in conjunction with probiotic supplements to help maintain your gut microbiome.” But beware, the side-effects of these antibiotics are sensitivity to sun exposure and loose stools.

Anti-Androgens and Birth Control Pills

Dr Sonavane adds, “Birth control pill may be used to treat acne on a long-term basis for women who have hormonal imbalances such as PCOS or hyperandrogenism.” This form of medication benefits by regulating hormonal balance and by suppressing sebum production.

Additionally, there is a drug called Spironolactone that is frequently used together with OCPs (oral contraceptive pills) to reduce excess androgens, which usually increase acne infections. These medications are typically prescribed for a timeline of six months or longer.

Oral Steroids

It’s important to note that oral steroids (a form of anti-inflammatory medication) are not used as a standalone treatment. They are used to treat cystic acne as an adjunct to other antibiotic or isotretinoin (a form of vitamin A) therapy. Dr. Sonavane recommends, “As always, make sure to talk to your dermatologist, who may prescribe low-dose systemic steroids to help in reducing scarring and inflammation in the skin, as quickly as possible. This may be especially important when starting isotretinoin therapy to prevent skin purging that retinoid can cause.”

Food diet

When it comes to managing your daily diet, there are several food items that must be avoided and some items that should be included to stop the flare up of cystic acne or prevent it from happening altogether. Dr. Sonavane comments, “Diet may play a role in cystic acne, as it does in other types of acne. Rather than greasy food and chocolates that many people blame for their acne, it is actually milk that has been scientifically proven to worsen acne.”

Other byproducts of milk, including whey protein supplements may exacerbate acne, too. Dr. Sonavane suggests, “Many patients who think that sweating at the gym is aggravating their acne should try skipping protein shakes after exercise.” People with cystic acne should also try to avoid food with a high glycemic index, such as whole wheat bread, white rice, cereals, starchy potatoes and fries, watermelon, pineapple, raisins and others, as it could increase blood sugar levels.

Tea tree oil

To heal cystic acne, you could reach out for tea tree oil as it contains anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties that may provide relief to the acne flare-up and calm the inflamed areas of the skin. Tea tree oil might also help lessen the cluster of acne-causing bacteria that layer upon the surface of the skin.

Turmeric

Turmeric may also lend its benefits to treat cystic acne, thanks to its antiseptic and antimicrobial properties. This yellow-hued ingredient found in every household has curcumin, which is anti-inflammatory in nature and can reduce acne-induced inflammation and redness on the skin. It could be applied on the skin as a paste – turmeric mixed with some water. Don’t leave it on for more than 20-30 minutes and rinse it off with water later. But, exercise caution and do ensure to consult a dermatologist before trying out such home remedies for cystic acne.

Skincare Tips For Cystic Acne

#1 Cleanse your face: Wash your face in the morning, at night and post-workout after sweating. Use a gentle, alcohol and harsh chemical-free cleanser and massage your skin with your fingertips for a good 60 seconds. Then, rinse thoroughly with warm water.

#2 Don’t exfoliate: People with cystic acne should not scrub their skin or use exfoliants, as it could irritate the already inflamed skin.

#3 Don’t touch your acne: Don't pick at blemishes or touch your cysts, as this could push the infection deeper and cause it to spread. You should allow blemishes to heal naturally instead of popping or squeezing them to reduce the risk of scarring.

#4 Less makeup: Avoid layering up a lot of makeup products on your skin. Choose water-based, non-comedogenic formulations when applying makeup and absolutely avoid oily formulations. Before bedtime, make sure to remove your makeup by double cleansing your skin.

#5 Clean scalp and hair: Be sure to shampoo your hair on a regular basis, particularly if you have a greasy scalp or dandruff.

#6 De-stress: Try to unwind and relax your mind, as stress can cause your body to produce an increased amount of the hormone cortisol, which could aggravate cystic acne.

#7 Healthy lifestyle: Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is important, that includes getting enough sleep and physical movement like a workout or yoga. Some research suggests that a low-glycemic, sugar-restricted diet can help improve symptoms of cystic acne.

Dermat-Approved Treatments for Cystic Acne

Dr. Sonavane says, “Cystic acne cannot be treated with over-the-counter acne medications. Your dermatologist will most likely recommend one or more of these treatments after performing diagnostic blood tests.”

Topical Benzoyl Peroxide

As suggested by Dr. Sonavane, topical treatments include facial cleansers, creams and gels containing Benzoyl Peroxide, as they are known to kill bacteria, specifically Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes). Benzoyl Peroxide also treats comedones like whiteheads and blackheads. Skin irritation is the most common side effect, so you need to be careful while using this ingredient.

Topical Antibiotics and Retinoids

She further recommends, “Adapalene and Tretinoin (a type of vitamin A) are frequently prescribed in cream or gel form in conjunction with topical antibiotics such as Clindamycin. It can help to unclog your pores, while also preventing antibiotic resistance by acne-causing bacteria.”

Cyst Drainage and Intralesional Injections

Dr. Sonavane informs that in cases of cystic acne, the dermatologist may suggest injecting triamcinolone – a corticosteroid medication – directly into a cyst to reduce inflammation and scarring. Dermatologists may also carry out cyst incision and drainage on bigger cysts filled with pus.

Chemical Peels

Gentle chemical peels containing salicylic acid, resorcinol and azelaic acid quickly control inflammation caused by cystic acne and reduce scarring as well. This treatment is carried out in addition to one or more medical processes in order to shorten the overall treatment duration and achieve a faster response to the skin condition. Sessions are performed once in 7 to 14 days until complete acne clearance.

Written by Pratishtha Rana on Jul 15, 2022

Pratishtha is a writer driven by curiosity. With over two years of experience in journalism, her toes are dipped in the exciting world of beauty, fashion, food, travel and luxury. Trust her words to help you navigate the do’s and don’ts of all that’s trending online (and offline). A lover of minimal aesthetics, she’s also big on experimenting with colours and prints, and often finds herself power-dressing even for a quick grocery run. When not at work, she’s reading a book, learning Korean, binging on K-Dramas and kimchi ramyeon or just karaoke-ing her hours away.

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Personal data we collect from other sources.

Personal data means any information that can be used to identify directly or indirectly a specific individual. This definition includes personal data collected offline through our Consumer Engagement Centres, direct marketing campaigns, sweepstakes and competitions and online through our websites, applications and branded pages on third-party platforms and applications accessed or used through third-party platforms.

You may be asked to provide your personal data when you are in contact with us. Hindustan Unilever Limited companies may share your personal data with each other and other Unilever Group companies and use it in a manner consistent with this Privacy Notice. We may also combine it with other information to improve our products, services, content, and advertising.

Ways in which we collect your personal data

We may collect personal data from a variety of sources. This includes:

Personal data you give us directly. We collect data about how you use our services and products, such as the types of content you view or engage with, or the frequency and duration of your activities. We also collect personal data you provide us when you sign up for a marketing newsletter, complete a survey or register for an account to buy our products. In so doing, we may ask for personal data, such as your name, gender, date of birth, address, email address, telephone number or credit card details. Some Unilever brands may collect “special categories of personal data” about you with your explicit consent. For more information on the special categories of data we collect and how we use it, please refer to the relevant section below.
Personal data we collect automatically. We also receive and store certain types of personal data whenever you interact with us online. For example, we use cookies and tracking technologies (to find out more, see our privacy key terms) to obtain personal data when your web browser accesses our websites or advertisements and other content served by or on behalf of Unilever on other websites. Your personal data is also collected when you search, buy, post, participate in a contest or questionnaire or communicate with our customer service teams. Examples of the types of personal data we collect include; IP address (to find out more see our privacy key terms), device ID, location data, computer and connection information such as browser type and version, time zone setting, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system, and purchase history – which Unilever sometimes aggregates with similar information from other consumers. During some of your internet browsing on Unilever’s websites we may also use software tools to measure and collect session information, including page response times, download errors, length of visits to certain pages, page interaction information, and methods used to browse away from the page. We may also collect technical information to help us identify your device for fraud prevention and diagnostic purposes.
Personal data we collect from other sources. We collect personal data from other sources including our trusted partnerships with third-parties and where we operate Unilever accounts on third-party platforms: For example, when you use the “like” functionality on Facebook or the +1 functionality on Google+. Additionally, we receive information about you and other visitors’ interactions with our advertising to measure whether our advertising is relevant and successful. We also collect information about you and your activities from a third-party when we jointly offer services or products, or from third-party data enrichment providers (to find out more see our privacy key terms) who may deliver insights to Unilever about the personal data we hold.

When and why we collect “special categories of personal data”

Certain categories of personal data, such as health data, financial data, biometrics, race, ethnicity, religion, health, sexuality or biometric data are classified as “special categories of data” or “Sensitive Personal Information” and benefit from additional protection.

We limit the circumstances where we collect and process these special categories of data.

Unilever sometimes collects data related to your health such as allergies, pregnancy or skin type to send you tailored ads and relevant promotions. Unilever only collects and uses this personal data where you have provided us with your consent for us to do so. In some instances, you may have requested services or products that do not directly involve the collection of any special categories of data, but may imply or suggest your religion, health or other special categories of data.

To illustrate circumstances where Unilever collects and processes special categories of data we have provided the following examples:

Unilever collects expectant mothers’ due dates in its Zwitsal or Baby Dove newsletter sign-up page. It may also place cookies on the sign-up page which capture this information too. This data is then used to create an audience of expectant mothers to receive online advertising from relevant Unilever brands. For more information on Unilever’s profiling activities, please refer to the relevant section;

Similarly, Unilever collects personal data related to consumers’ allergies to provide consumers with ads and promotions for products which are relevant to their needs.

How do we protect children’s privacy?

We understand the importance of taking extra precautions to protect the privacy and safety of children using Unilever products and services.

Most of Unilever’s websites are designed and intended for use by adults. Where one of our websites is intended for use by a younger audience, we will obtain consent from the person with parental responsibility before we collect personal data where it is required by applicable laws and regulations (the age at which consent is necessary varies from Country to Country).

If you are a child under the age where parental consent is required in your Country, you should review the terms of this Privacy Notice with your parent or guardian to make sure you understand and accept them. If we discover that we have collected personal data from a child without consent from a parent or guardian where such consent should have been obtained, we will delete that personal data as soon as practical. Access to certain parts of the Unilever’s websites and/or eligibility to receive prizes, samples or other rewards are generally limited to users over a certain age.

We sometimes use your personal data to carry out age verification checks and enforce any such age restrictions.

We collect, process and disclose your personal data only for specific and limited purposes. For example, to process your payments, to assess and handle any complaints, to develop and improve our products, services, communication methods and the functionality of our websites, to provide personalised products, communications and targeted advertising as well as product recommendations to you.

We also create profiles by analysing the information about your online surfing, searching and buying behaviour and your interactions with our brand communications by building segments (creating groups that have certain common characteristics) and by placing your personal data in one or more segments.

Additionally, Unilever processes your personal data also using automated means. An automated decision is a decision which is made solely by automatic means, where no humans are involved in the decision-making process related to your personal data.

We collect, process and disclose your personal data for the following purposes:

To process your payments, if you purchase our products, to provide you with your order status, deal with your enquiries and requests, and assess and handle any complaints;
To process and answer your inquiries or to contact you to answer your questions and/or requests;
To develop and improve our products, services, communication methods and the functionality of our websites;
For the purposes of competitions or promotions that you have entered;
To communicate information to you and to manage your registration and/or subscription to our newsletter or other communications;
To manage our everyday business needs regarding your participation in our contests, sweepstakes or promotional activities or request;
To authenticate the identity of individuals contacting us by telephone, electronic means or otherwise;
For internal training and quality assurance purposes;
To understand and assess the interests, wants, and changing needs of consumers, to improve our website, our current products and services, and/or developing new products and services; and

To provide personalised products, communications and targeted advertising as well as product recommendations to you.

When we collect and use your personal data for purposes mentioned above or for other purposes, we will inform you before or at the time of collection.

Where appropriate, we will ask for your consent to process the personal data. Where you have given consent for processing activities, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.

In some cases, we rely on legitimate interest for processing your personal data. A legitimate interest could exist for example, when you sign up for a loyalty scheme with one of our brands and we use the personal data collected to conduct data analytics to improve our products or services. This ground will only be used where it is necessary to achieve a legitimate interest, for example to assist in the performance of a contract, or to optimise a service, and does not outweigh your rights as an individual. This legal basis will only be relied upon where there is no less intrusive way to process your personal data. We can assure you that if legitimate interest is used as a ground for processing your personal data, we will keep a record of this and you have the right to ask for this information.

We process your personal data to perform a contract to which you are or will be a party. For example, we need to process your personal data to deliver a product or a service you bought, to allow you to take part in one of our competitions, or to send you samples that you have requested.

We also process your personal data when we have a legal obligation (e.g., tax or social security obligations) to perform such processing. For example, a court order or a subpoena may require us to process personal data for a particular purpose, or we may be compelled to process personal data to report suspicious transactions under the local anti-money laundering rules.

Profiling

Unilever uses your personal data to build profiles. We create profiles by analysing the information about your online surfing, searching and buying behaviour and your interactions with our brand communications by building segments (creating groups that have certain common characteristics) and by placing your personal data in one or more segments. These segments are used by Unilever to personalise the website and our communications to you (such as showing relevant content to you when you visit our site or in a newsletter to you), and to display relevant offers and advertisements from the Unilever brands on the Unilever sites, and via third-party websites. The segments can also be used for third-party campaigns on the Unilever sites. Unilever profiles your data where you have provided consent for us to do so; for example, accepting the setting of cookies on your browser online or signing up for email newsletters from one of our brands.

You can withdraw your consent to prevent your personal data being used this way at any time using the manage cookies section of our Cookie Notice or unsubscribing to the use of your email address if you have logged into one of our websites or signed up to any marketing newsletters.

By way of example –

Unilever collects data, with your consent, from:
- Our websites about what you view and the way you interact with our content;
- Our digital display advertising that we serve to you on social platforms and other publisher’s websites; and
- Forms you fill in online and send to us about what your interests are.
We also track the products you buy when you click on one of our display adverts and go on to purchase something from a selection of our retail partners.
If you have asked to receive emails or SMS communications from us, we track whether you open, read or click on the content to see what you are interested in so that we can give you more content that we think you are more likely to enjoy.
We use this data to profile your likes and dislikes. For instance, if we see that you are regularly viewing Vegan recipes on our “Recipedia” website, and you have opted in to receiving emails from us, we might give you an update on the new Vegan recipes that have just hit the site for your interest, or we may tailor our web content when you visit towards things we think you’ll be most interested in.
Based on this profile information, we may also give you advertising that we think you will like and want to see as you view content from us or from our network of publishers that we advertise with. Sometimes, with your consent, we may use your current location to serve advertising to you that is to do with promotions or events that are happening nearby that we think you might be interested in.
We may also use information you have provided to selected third-parties and consented to be shared, like your age, gender, life stage, lifestyle and wider interests to identify people who we think will have similar interests to you and who we believe will be interested in similar advertising.

Automated decision-making

In some instances, Unilever processes your personal data using automated means. An automated decision is a decision which is made solely by automatic means, where no humans are involved in the decision-making process related to your personal data. For example:

Unilever uses game simulations of science-based behavioural assessments and data science techniques to assess prospective employees. Candidates are required to play a set of games and the behavioural patterns exhibited during gameplay are assessed by a Unilever customised algorithm to predict the candidate’s potential for a specific role. This algorithm is regularly tested to ensure it remains fair, effective and unbiased.

We will not make decisions based solely on automated decision making that have significant impact on you. If we do so we notify you and provide you with clear information about our decision to rely on automated processing to make our decision and our lawful basis for doing so. For example, Unilever processes your personal data using automated means only if it is necessary for the entering into or the performance of a contract with you, or when you have given your explicit consent.

You have the right not to be subject to a decision which is based solely on automated processing and which produces legal or other significant effects on you. In particular, you have the right:

to obtain human intervention;
to express your point of view;
to obtain an explanation of the decision reached after an assessment; and
to challenge such a decision.

As part of the Unilever Group, a global business, Hindustan Unilever Limited shares your personal data within the Unilever Group and with selected third-parties in the following circumstances:

Third-party service providers. In order to carry out your requests, respond to your inquiries, fulfil your orders, honour coupons, provide you with samples, enable you to participate in sweepstakes or make various other features, services and materials available to you through our websites we share your personal data with third-party service providers that perform functions on our behalf, such as companies that: host or operate Unilever’s websites, process payments, analyse data, provide customer service, postal or delivery services, and sponsors or other third-parties that participate in or administer our promotions. They have access to personal data needed to perform their functions but may not use it for other purposes. Further, they must process this personal data in accordance with this Privacy Notice and as permitted by applicable data protection laws and regulations.
Other third-parties. Your personal data will also be used by us or shared with our sponsors, advertisers, advertising networks, advertising servers, social media networks, and analytics companies or other third-parties in connection with marketing, promotional, data enrichment (to find out more about our privacy key terms follow the link) and other offers, as well as product information.
Business transfers. Your personal data will be used by us or shared with the Unilever Group, primarily for business and operational purposes. As Unilever Group continues to develop the business, it may sell or purchase assets, subsidiaries or business units. In such transactions, your personal data generally is one of the transferred business assets but remains subject to the promises made in any pre-existing Privacy Notice (unless, of course, you consent otherwise). If another entity acquires us, our businesses or substantially all or part of our assets, or assets related to Unilever’s websites, your personal data will be disclosed to such entity as part of the due diligence process and will be transferred to such entity as one of the transferred assets. Also, if any bankruptcy or reorganization proceeding is brought by or against us, all such personal data will be considered an asset of ours and as such it is possible they will be sold or transferred to third-parties.
Legal disclosure. We may transfer and disclose your personal data to third-parties:
- To comply with a legal obligation;
- When we believe in good faith that an applicable law requires it;
- At the request of governmental authorities conducting an investigation;
- To verify or enforce our “Terms of Use” or other applicable policies;
- To detect and protect against fraud, or any technical or security vulnerabilities;
- To respond to an emergency; or otherwise
- To protect the rights, property, safety, or security of third-parties, visitors to Unilever’s websites, Unilever or the public.

International data transfers

Unilever shares personal data within the Unilever Group or with third-parties for purposes described in this Privacy Notice.

Unilever will only send personal data collected within a restricted legal framework, such as e.g. the European Economic Area (EEA) or Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), to countries which do not have data protection laws that are considered to provide appropriate levels of protection in the restricted legal framework in circumstances such as:

· To follow your instructions;

· To comply with a legal duty; or

· To work with our agents and advisers who we use to help run our business and services.

If we do transfer personal data to outside of the restricted legal framework, Unilever will make sure that it is protected in the same way as if it was being used in that restricted legal framework. We’ll use one of the following safeguards:

· Transfer to another Country whose privacy legislation ensures an adequate level of protection of personal data similar or equivalent to the country it was collected in;

Put in place a contract with the third-party that means they must protect personal data to the same standards as in the country the data was collected in.

Unilever takes the security of your personal data very seriously. We take every effort to protect your personal data from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

Our measures include implementing appropriate access controls, investing in the latest Information Security Capabilities to protect the IT environments we leverage, and ensuring we encrypt, pseudonymise and anonymise personal data wherever possible.

Access to your personal data is only permitted among our employees and agents on a need-to-know basis and subject to strict contractual confidentiality obligations when processed by third-parties.

We will keep your personal data for as long as we need it for the purpose it is being processed for. For example, where you make a purchase online with us we will keep the data related to your purchase, so we can perform the specific contract you have entered and after that, we will keep the personal data for a period which enables us to handle or respond to any complaints, queries or concerns relating to the purchase.

Your data may also be retained so that we can continue to improve your experience with us and to ensure that you receive any loyalty rewards which are due to you.

We retain the identifiable data we collect directly for targeting purposes for as little time as possible, after which we employ measures to permanently delete it.

We will actively review the personal data we hold and delete it securely, or in some cases anonymise it, when there is no longer a legal, business or consumer need for it to be retained.

Your rights in relation to your personal data how it is processed. You can exercise these rights at any point. We have provided an overview of these rights below together with what this entails for you. You can exercise your rights by sending an email or submitting a request through the “Contact Us” form on our websites.

Where we process your personal data, you have a number of rights over how the data is processed and can exercise these rights at any point. We have provided an overview of these rights below together with what this entails for you. You can exercise your rights by sending an email or submitting a request through the “Contact Us” form on our websites.

The right to be informed. You have the right to be provided with clear, transparent and easily understandable information about how we use your personal data and your rights. Therefore, we’re providing you with the information in this Notice.
The right to access and rectification. You have the right to access, correct or update your personal data at any time. We understand the importance of this and should you want to exercise your rights, please contact us.
The right to data portability. The personal data you have provided us with may be portable. This means it can be moved, copied or transmitted electronically under certain circumstances.
The right to be forgotten. Under certain circumstances, you have right to request that we delete your data. If you wish to delete the personal data we hold about you, please let us know and we will take reasonable steps to respond to your request in accordance with legal requirements. If the personal data we collect is no longer needed for any purposes and we are not required by law to retain it, we will do what we can to delete, destroy or permanently de-identify it.

The right to restrict processing. Under certain circumstances, you have the right to restrict the processing of your personal data.
The right to object. Under certain circumstances, you have the right to object to certain types of processing, including processing for direct marketing (i.e., receiving emails from us notifying you or being contacted with varying potential opportunities).
The right to lodge a complaint with a Supervisory Authority. You have the right to lodge a complaint directly with any local Supervisory Authority about how we process your personal data.
The right to withdraw consent. If you have given your consent to anything we do with your personal data (i.e., we rely on consent as a legal basis for processing your personal data), you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time (although if you do so, it does not mean that anything we have done with your personal data with your consent up to that point is unlawful). You can withdraw your consent to the processing of your personal data at any time by contacting us with the details provided below.
Rights related to automated decision-making. You have the right not to be subject to a decision which is based solely on automated processing and which produces legal or other significant effects on you. In particular, you have the right:
- to obtain human intervention;

- to express your point of view;
- to obtain an explanation of the decision reached after an assessment; and

- to challenge such a decision.

Further information and advice about your rights can be obtained from the data protection Regulator in your Country.

We are committed to protect your personal information collected and processed by us and look forward to your continued support for the same. If you have any query, grievance with respect to the processing of information by us, you can reach out to us by calling our Toll Free No. 1800-10-22-221 or by email to lever.care@unilever.com or submitting a request through the “Contact Us (Privacy Request/Concern)” form available on the HUL website.

You can also reach out to our Privacy Office in the event of any escalation or absence of resolution of grievance, requests, rights pertaining to personal data processed by us. You may contact our DPO/Privacy Grievance Officer at (1) The Data Protection Officer/Privacy Grievance Officer, Hindustan Unilever Limited, Unilever House, B. D. Sawant Marg, Chakala, Andheri (E), Mumbai - 400 099 or at: Grievance.Officer-Privacy@unilever.com. You can also call on the aforementioned contact number and request it to be referred to the DPO/Data Protection Office.

When a privacy question or access request is received, we have a dedicated team which triages the contacts and seeks to address the specific concern or query which you are seeking to raise. Where your issue may be more substantive in nature, more information may be sought from you. If you are unsatisfied with the reply received, you may refer your complaint to the relevant Supervisory Authority. If you ask us, we will endeavour to provide you with information about relevant complaint avenues which may be applicable to your circumstances.

We will update this Privacy Notice when necessary to reflect customer feedback and changes in our products and services. When we post changes to this statement, we will revise the “last updated” date at the top of this Notice. If the changes are significant, we will provide a more prominent notice (including, for certain services, email notification of Privacy Notice changes). We will also keep prior versions of this Privacy Notice in an archive for your review.

We will not reduce your rights under this Privacy Notice without your consent.

Additional Privacy Terms or Notices

In addition to this Privacy Notice, there may be specific campaigns or promotions which will be governed by additional privacy terms or notices. We encourage you to read these additional terms or notices before participating in any such campaigns or promotions as you will be required to comply with them if you participate. Any additional privacy terms or notices will be made prominently available to you.

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Privacy Notice

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