Acne triggers

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tahinilove
tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was wondering if anyone noticed any specific hormonal acne triggers? I already avoid dairy and sugar. I've recently added in some chicken and red meat (for iron), and I think it has gotten worse since including these foods in my diet? Would love to hear some opinions...
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  • Archer9304
    Archer9304 Posts: 113 Member
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    Not sure it can be a number of things. I used to think chocolate triggered mine...but upon closer inspection it turned out I was deficient in Zinc. I also still get it on that time of the month.
  • Cerakoala
    Cerakoala Posts: 2,547 Member
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    Not sure about specific foods but when I was eating unhealthy foods my skin was awful always breaking out etc. In the last 3 years since I have changed my diet and rarely have deep fried or fast food etc my skin is very clear and almost never breaks out :) SO I guess mine is grease but I am sure that is the same for most people :)
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    Archer9304 - I'll check out my zinc intake. I take a multivitamin so I'm hoping it covers that.

    Cerakoala - my diet actually is very 'clean/healthy', I do eat ALOT of fat though?
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
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    The author of "Wheat Belly", William Davis, M.D. says that research shows that it is high blood sugar/insulin that promotes the androgenic hormones that causes acne. He advocates the elimination of grain (especially wheat--and oats too) because they are potent promoters of blood sugar (in addition to sugary foods, of course). I know several women who have eliminated their acne after eliminating added sugar and wheat from their diets.
  • Left4Good
    Left4Good Posts: 304
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    When i started taking Zinc it helps a lot, i only get break outs right before my totm. Plus i really take care of my skin =P cleanser, toner, moisturizer. And i use a face mask three times a week and a scrub once a week.
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
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    When i started taking Zinc it helps a lot, i only get break outs right before my totm. Plus i really take care of my skin =P cleanser, toner, moisturizer. And i use a face mask three times a week and a scrub once a week.

    I agree that keeping skin clean is important. I knew a girl in high school who, for some reason did not bathe. She ended up with horrible blackheads on her nose. But interestingly, she had no acne pustules and seemed to have very dry skin.

    The real culprit is likely high insulin caused by chronically poor dietary habits. Certain populations like Inuit and other somewhat isolated groups around the world have no acne until they adopt our high sugar/high grain, Western junk food diet. According to Davis, when they do, the sales of anti-acne medications soar in those areas. In their traditional diet, the Inuit eat a lot of fat (about 60% of their calories) so it can't be fat that causes them to acquire acne. It must be the sugar and grain in the diet.

    My grandmother must have been ahead of her time as she noted that, in her day, "young people didn't have acne". Her opinion was that it came from eating sugar. Sugar was pretty expensive in the days of her youth, and candy was a rare indulgence. She said that they got a chocolate bar in their Christmas stocking and that was it for candy until the next Christmas. It only became incredibly cheap after WWII. And now it is lurking in most processed foods from soup to pizza sauce.

    Also in her day, the kind of wheat they were eating was not a modern triticale (which has been specifically bred, since WWII to contain a high level of gluten). Gluten is not particularly digestible in the human gut and it also contains two substances that are problematic--gliadin, which boosts blood sugar and amylopectin A which not only boosts blood sugar but is also highly addictive. In addition, in the past, they would quite frequently use a sourdough process to make their bread. The sourdough process uses up a lot more of the gluten in the wheat than the modern "fast rise" method used in bakeries today. My grandmother grew up on a farm, and being the oldest girl meant that she was responsible for making the bread, which she made by using a sourdough process. They did go through a lot of bread but that was the only grain food they ate AND they did hard manual labor which brought their blood sugar levels down anyway. Today, we get a fraction of the amount of exercise that our ancestors did and we get a huge amount more of sugar and wheat. In 1900, when my grandmother was young, the average person ate about 5 pounds of sugar per year--if that. Today, the average person eats about 150 pounds of sugar per year, often unknowingly, because it is hidden in processed food. As well, wheat flour, because it is a cheap filler, is used in a wide variety of processed foods today. Our fat consumption is about the same (or perhaps even slightly less) as what our ancestors ate but the amount of carbohydrates (specifically in the form of sugar and wheat flour) has skyrocketed.
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    Santemulberry- interesting! The thing is, if I don't eat grains my carbs just end up being sweet potatoes, which are relatively high in sugar? I agree about traditional diets!

    Pikiru- I take really good care of my skin :)
  • Naley2322
    Naley2322 Posts: 181 Member
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    Dairy! I was getting cystic pimples on my chin! I cut out dairy and they stopped almost right away and only come back if I'm bad and start eating it again! I found limiting it like having cheese once or twice a week and using almond milk for baking / coffee / cereal instead works ! Also yogurt I find the plain 0% FAGE does not break me out where other types do!
  • daedalus01
    daedalus01 Posts: 44 Member
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    Sweet potatoes and butternut squash for me :( I love them and miss them both dearly :(
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    Naley2322 - I stay WELL away from any dairy; it does exactly the same thing to me! I try to air on the more vegan side anyway, it is only my anaemia that has seen me add more meat into my diet. Strange that 0% fage doesn't break you out? I have been drinking 1 coffee a day lately, so maybe I will cut back on that!

    daedalus01 - Urgh, really? I love sweet potatoes! I hope that isn't the case for me. Maybe it is the carbs/sugars in them?
  • mallorytravels
    mallorytravels Posts: 86 Member
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    Hormonal acne is triggered by hormone fluctuations, so I'm not sure I understand your question.

    With regards to acne triggers that are not hormone related, I have learned that too much oil, butter, and sugar makes me break out. I almost completely cut out gluten from my diet, and that may have contributed to my acne problem getting better. Lack of water, lack of sleep, and stress all make my complexion awful.

    I also adopted a skin care routine that works. I figured out that my skin is very sensitive, so I adopted the motto that less is more. Perhaps your skin is sensitive as well. I cleanse with DHC Cleansing Oil (I use a foaming cleanser prior to remove makeup, if I was wearing it). I follow up with Caudalie Beauty Elixir as a toner. I then use Neutrogena Oil-Free Moisturizer for combination skin. I use DHC eye cream once a day. Once or twice a week, I exfoliate by mixing a teaspoon of sugar with the cleansing oil and rubbing in small circles over my face and decollete. I follow up with Origins Clear Improvement charcoal mask. It helps keep my pores clear for days afterward.

    I still haven't found the right diet and product combination that will completely rid me of blackheads. Hopefully someday...
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    mallorytravel - I see what you are saying, but some foods can cause changes in one's hormonal balance I believe? I eat so much oil and fat so I'm really suspicious of that now? I'll look into your skincare routine! Mine is very sensitive too. I feel you on the blackheads - I figure spots first, blackheads later?!
  • Naley2322
    Naley2322 Posts: 181 Member
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    If I eat too much sweet potato I break out as well! But I found limiting them to about 1 or 2 a week I'm fine!
  • ItsJordanNicole
    ItsJordanNicole Posts: 110 Member
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    I recently found out that my acne was triggered by a Biotin supplement that I had been taking. I stopped taking it about 2 months ago and my skin has cleared considerably. I don't know if you're taking any supplements or anything like that but it could be worth looking into.
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    Naley2322 - this really doesn't bode well for sweet taters - I love them!

    ItsJordanNico- I'm not taking any specific biotin supplements but I am taking a vegan multi vitamin, so maybe it is that?!
  • Naley2322
    Naley2322 Posts: 181 Member
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    OMG Biotin broke me out too! It gave me cysts on my chin and as soon as I stopped they went away!

    Additionally if you take a probiotic... some contain dairy in them which again can trigger acne! I started breaking out when i switched probiotics and couldnt figure out why and then realized they had dairy in them!

    With the sweet potatoes try limiting them like one a week and the day that you eat it try not to have any other acne triggering foods and balance it with greens!
  • tahinilove
    tahinilove Posts: 72 Member
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    Naley2322 - Gosh, I never even thought about that regarding my probiotics. I use these ones: http://www.newhealthcare.co.uk/bio-kult-pack-of-120-capsules.html?gclid=CjwKEAjwl7ieBRCK2rCtqcCS7jESJACZKQFKPp7NWyjJN72yb0ASFTAcPJlPEhcFzbebAJUbfMj94RoCXMHw_wcB

    I'll try that out with the sweet potatoes - thank you :)
  • veggieluvr45
    veggieluvr45 Posts: 27 Member
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    Dairy! I was getting cystic pimples on my chin! I cut out dairy and they stopped almost right away and only come back if I'm bad and start eating it again! I found limiting it like having cheese once or twice a week and using almond milk for baking / coffee / cereal instead works ! Also yogurt I find the plain 0% FAGE does not break me out where other types do!

    That is exactly what happens to me, except I can't eat any kind of yogurt at all. ! I am in my 50's, so my Dr. is always pushing the whole calcium thing even though my bone density is excellent. I started eating yogurt every day (can't stand milk and I can't drink it). Almost immediately I started getting the big hard cystic acne. I never had acne in my life before, not even as a teen. Stopped the yogurt and it went away.
  • CrusaderSam
    CrusaderSam Posts: 180 Member
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    The author of "Wheat Belly", William Davis, M.D. says that research shows that it is high blood sugar/insulin that promotes the androgenic hormones that causes acne. He advocates the elimination of grain (especially wheat--and oats too) because they are potent promoters of blood sugar (in addition to sugary foods, of course). I know several women who have eliminated their acne after eliminating added sugar and wheat from their diets.

    Many athletes would kill to up their androgenic hormones without the use of steroids. It would give them a clear cut edge over others. That would mean grains would give an advantage but anyone that have eaten grains would know that this isnt the case so I am going to have to call bs on this.
  • SanteMulberry
    SanteMulberry Posts: 3,202 Member
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    The author of "Wheat Belly", William Davis, M.D. says that research shows that it is high blood sugar/insulin that promotes the androgenic hormones that causes acne. He advocates the elimination of grain (especially wheat--and oats too) because they are potent promoters of blood sugar (in addition to sugary foods, of course). I know several women who have eliminated their acne after eliminating added sugar and wheat from their diets.

    Many athletes would kill to up their androgenic hormones without the use of steroids. It would give them a clear cut edge over others. That would mean grains would give an advantage but anyone that have eaten grains would know that this isnt the case so I am going to have to call bs on this.

    But many athletes tend to have consistently low blood sugar because of their activity. When/if they supplement their androgenic hormones with steroids, they will also tend to acne. It isn't the grains and sugar that are the problem, it is high blood sugar which prompts high insulin. High insulin, in turn triggers an increase in a specific androgenic hormone (IGF-I) within the skin, which stimulates tissue growth in hair follicles and in the dermis. High insulin and IGF-I also stimulate the production of sebum, the oily protective film produced by the sebaceous glands. Increased sebum production along with tissue growth in the dermis and hair follicles produces acne. It used to be thought that it was caused by genetic predisposition (and the tendency to high insulin levels is influenced by genetics) BUT it is also heavily influenced by a diet high in refined carbohydrates (produces high blood sugar and insulin).

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