Adult Acne: What’s the cause?

Suddenly you’re getting sore, painful adult acne and you don’t know why?

An acne breakout occurs when a pore becomes blocked with oil and dead skin cells. This traps bacteria and causes the body to respond with inflammation and as a result, a pimple appears.

There are many reasons as to why your body is responding to inflammation and causing blocked pores. Below are some of the reasons why and simple tips to prevent those painful zits from returning.

Dairy

Did you know that people who have dairy everyday have a higher rate of acne? This is because milk products and dairy make your skin produce more sebum.

Insulin growth factor is the guy responsible for this. He sends signals to your sebaceous glands, making them produce more sebum than normal which can leads to more red lumps and bumps.

Having too much dairy can also disrupt our hormones and lead to acne. Insulin growth factors make our bodies produce the hormones dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS) which make us break out more.

Limiting the amount of dairy you are having everyday helps to clear up your skin to limit those breakouts.

Zinc deficiency

Are you eating super healthy with lots of fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds… but you’re still getting acne? Maybe it’s due to a zinc deficiency!

Zinc is an essential trace mineral. It is involved in over 300 functions in your body including keeping your androgen hormones balanced. Keeping them balanced helps keep our sebum production balanced. When zinc levels get too low in your body, it causes a surge in androgens, sebum production and skin inflammation.

Zinc also helps produce Vitamin A which supports the skin’s immune system, keeping out any nasty bugs or bacteria. It also helps speed up healing time and keeps the skin moisturised.

Zinc supplementation is always recommended to my client’s for acne. That is because many plant-based foods, legumes, nuts and seeds block the absorption of zinc in our gut and cause us to become deficient easier.

High glycemic diets

High GI foods such as sugar, soft drinks, white breads, potatoes and short-grain white rice make our body produce insulin. Too much insulin can cause a hormonal imbalance of the androgens and lead to excess sebum production.

Swapping high GI carbs above with low GI carbs such as wholegrain bread, green vegetables, wholegrain oats, berries, legumes, brown and basmati rice may help to keep your skin clear!

Stress

Chronic stress can come in two forms: emotional and physical stress. Both of these play a major role in why we get acne.

Stress effects your digestion of foods which can lead to nutritional deficiencies of zinc, omega-3 and B Vitamins which are all required for healthy skin.

Stress can also cause hormonal imbalances which may lead to more sebum production and inflammation on your skin.

There are many things we can start with to help reduce stress levels for skin health. Some examples include:
— Mindfulness
— Meditation
— Walking in nature
— Avoiding caffeine or other stimulants

This will help to keep your skin clear and healthy!

Book an appointment to get a personalised treatment plan for your skin health!
We can spend hours talking about your skin health but what is really driving your acne? The best way to find this out is investing in a naturopathic consult, where we can find the root cause of your acne together 1:1 - Get in touch now!