ACNE – why you’re breaking out and how to prevent flare ups

Acne is a common skin disorder which affects the pores and the underlying blood vessels. Although it is a common condition, it can greatly affect self-esteem levels, to the point where you don’t even want to leave the house – don’t worry, we’ve all been there! There are a number of reasons as to why you suffer from acne. These are characterised by modifiable and non-modifiable factors.

Non-modifiable factors

Non-modifiable factors really translate into; things you don’t have all that much control over. These factors are common during adolescence, when individuals are going through puberty.

Modifiable factors

There are additionally a number of modifiable factors, where we can assist in the prevention of acne. By modifying these factors, it will allow great change, leading to glowing, dewy and clear skin. These factors include diet, hormonal imbalances, makeup, face creams, clothing, medications, stress and gastrointestinal health.

The factors we will be touching on today include; hormonal imbalances, gut health and diet.

Hormonal imbalances

Hormones have a big role to play in acne. Often, individuals with high levels of androgens will experience acne. Androgens are the ‘male’ sex hormones, which both men and females have. When androgen levels are too high, this can cause an increase in testosterone, progesterone and potentially decrease oestrogen. This increase in androgen levels is what can cause acne. Other symptoms of high androgens include excess facial and body hair, deep or hoarse voice, irregular periods, enlargement of the clitoris, abdominal fat, high blood pressure and insulin resistance. High androgen levels are closely linked to polycystic ovarian syndrome, where a major symptomatology is acne.

Gut health

Your skin is really a mirror of what’s going on inside you! So, if your skin is breaking out in acne, eczema or a rash, your body is trying to tell you something. Your gut is closely linked to your nervous system, so if you’re feeling stressed, chances are your gut function will be inhibited. Stress can cause bowel motions to change, it may slow down or increase transit time. With a slow gut, you will be recycling all the waste material that’s inside you. This will lead to inflammation, congestion, uptake of by products and you gut microbiomes will be negatively affected.

All of these factors will affect your skin, potentially leading to acne. Similarly, if your transit time is too quick, this won’t give your body enough time to take in all of the vitamins and nutrients. This will mean nutrients that are vital for skin health won’t be absorbed including zinc, vitamin A and vitamin D. If you’re experiencing any gut and/or high levels of stress we can work on this together through diet, nutraceuticals and herbal medicine.

Diet

A good diet is integral to good skin, for a few reasons. Firstly, the intake of sugar increases levels of insulin, IGF-1 hormone and mTOR. This causes an increase in sebum production, inflammation and keratin, all of which are involved in acne. Therefore, the consumption of sugar is directly linked to acne. So say goodbye to all of your sweets, soft drinks, chocolates and baked goods!

Secondly, diet either destroys or nourishes the gut. When you’re eating a diet high in inflammatory and processed foods, you gut will be inflamed and not absorb any nutrients. As previously discussed, this can be a direct cause of acne. Thirdly, dairy can be highly inflammatory and additionally contains mTOR which can be the cause of acne.

What to do when you’re feeling a break out coming?

Number one, breath…
DO NOT touch your face, popping and squeezing will on aggravate the skin
Try to have a couple of makeup free days, or if you feel that’s too much, just take your makeup off as soon as you get home.
Drink lots of water!
Eat your greens
Maybe have a cup of a ‘skin tea’, think nettle, calendula and

Finally, here are my top 8 tips for improving acne:

Drink more water – water, water, water! Aim for 2L per day, this will assist in the flushing out of waste and toxins, reducing acne.
Consume more zinc – zinc is an excellent wound healer, assists in the reduction of inflammation and can support health hormones. Zinc rich foods include nuts, seeds, eggs, seafood and meat.
Removed processed and sugary foods from your diet – diet is always at the heart of a condition. Say goodbye to sugary, processed, inflammatory causing foods, and hello to wholesome, well balanced and anti-inflammatory diet.
Address any hormonal imbalances – as mentioned above, if you’re experiencing hormone dysregulations, speak to a Naturopath to work out how to balance them and reduce acne.
Heal your gut – everything starts from the gut. Heal your gut = heal your skin.
Increase exercise – exercise increases lymphatic drainage and detoxification. Anything from a brisk walk, yoga, run or a dance class. Just make sure you show straight after to reduce any potential bacteria on the skin.
Remove dairy – the intake of dairy increases sebum production. Put simply, dairy increases acne.
Invest in some natural, non-toxic makeup – think about it, most people wear chemical laden make-up for 8 hours a day! This is going to aggravate, block pores and block oxygen from entering pores. Say goodbye to toxic makeup and invest in some natural makeup – brands such as Inika and la mav have beautiful products!

So, how can I help? We can run through your health history, lifestyle factors, have a look at your hormones and diet. This will ascertain the cause of acne and we can work from there! Herbal medicine is extremely helpful in the reduction of acne as it can assist in excreting waste from your body, improve lymphatic movement, reduce stress and balance hormone levels.