Adult acne!

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Kupla71
Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
in Motivation and Support
I’m a 50 year old female and for the past 6 months I have been breaking out on my neck with acne! It started at about the same time I started reducing my calories and increasing my exercise. I’ve lost about 15 pounds so far. I don’t know if these breakouts have something to do with my change in diet and exercise routine or maybe it’s just hormonal. Has anyone else experienced this?

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  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
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    are you wearing your mask pulled down on your neck? sweat from the mask will do it. the skin there is thinner than on your face and the rest of your body. the acne is different there too.
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Hi. I do that sometimes. That could be partly to blame. I’m also getting some breakouts on my face and lower neck and upper chest area. It seems to be getting worse. 😬
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Thanks. I bought an acne face wash that I’ve been using on my body too. Probably should be using a separate cleanser for my body. I know but wanted to see if it worked first. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to be helping. I’ve been using it for over a week. I’ve hardly ever had a problem with acne in the past so don’t know how long it takes for these cleansers to work.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
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    I found out the hard way that some acne treatments bleach your clothing and your hand towels. Definitely true if they contain benzoyl peroxide. Nit sure about other ingredients. It took me years to figure it out!
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    You should definitely give acne products more than a week to see if they'll work for you. When I switch up my face products I tend to wait six weeks or so before deciding whether I want to keep it or not.[/quote]

    Thanks. I will give it more time. Just discouraged seeing new pimples appearing. 😩

  • xelsoo
    xelsoo Posts: 194 Member
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    If its hormonal, check if you are experiencing any other physical changes, and you might need to check with your physician. I had a severe breakout last year and it kept getting worse until my dermatologist prescribed Roaccutane (which is very strong; this is just my particular case). However if you think it started at the same time as your change of diet and exercise, it seems those will probably be the main causes.
    Regarding your diet, try and identify any new foods you have introduced in the past months, or any food groups you might have substantially increased your intake of (such as lactose, or soy...). Maybe try removing one food at a time for 2 weeks and see how your skin fares.
    For exercise: another tip if you sweat a lot is to wear shirts that don't fully cover your chest (or at least change clothes immediately after exercise) -for me, removing my tight leggings straight after my workout and exfoliating regularly made a small 'buttne' breakout go away.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
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    Do you use gym equipment near your neck? Like barbell, lay on bench, etc? Does your hair touch your neck? These are some things that could contribute to breakouts. I use disinfectant wipes on shared equipment, keep hair up, and use a sulfur soap on skin with active breakouts.
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Thanks for your comments. I think it must be mostly hormonal since now that I think more about it it started quite a while back. Maybe over a year ago. I don’t have anything touching my neck during workouts. My hair is up and I shower right afterwards. The only real change I’ve made to my diet is going lower calorie. I see my doctor in a few weeks so I’ll definitely mention it to her. I’ve never heard of sulfur soap. Is that available at most drugstores?
  • Beverly2Hansen
    Beverly2Hansen Posts: 378 Member
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    If you're making a point to eat more dairy in your diet it's one of the leading causes of acne. For me curing what was extreme acne was as simple as going dairy free or at least reducing my dairy intake.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,613 Member
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    I think mine is this or something similar. This one is available at my grocery store.
    i9znjh6hdz6l.png
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Come to think of it I do eat more dairy than I used to. Hmm. Something to think about. Thanks.

    Thanks Dancingmoosie. I’ll look for it. Right now I’m using Neutrogena’s oil free acne wash. I’ll give it more time till I decide if it’s working.
  • mrmota70
    mrmota70 Posts: 523 Member
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    Kupla71 wrote: »
    I’m a 50 year old female and for the past 6 months I have been breaking out on my neck with acne! It started at about the same time I started reducing my calories and increasing my exercise. I’ve lost about 15 pounds so far. I don’t know if these breakouts have something to do with my change in diet and exercise routine or maybe it’s just hormonal. Has anyone else experienced this?

    As a kid never had this issue then late 40s my face broke out like a 12 yr old. Went to a dermatologist and yeah I now am in the rosacea club. I take a prescribed antibiotic with a cream(which I don’t use). It has helped. I’d recommend getting your GP to do a referral and get an expert to take a look you over.
  • RunsWithBees
    RunsWithBees Posts: 1,508 Member
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    Never had acne as a teen but when I hit my mid 30’s I got really bad cystic acne on my lower face. Tried everything, even various prescriptions, nothing really eliminated it until I hit my 40’s it mellowed out to just regular acne instead of cystic. I’m on my way to 50 now and I don’t get as much but I find that if I eat peanuts, even the smallest amount, I get horrible breakouts that last for weeks. Even if I eat a normal portion of any other nuts like walnuts, pecans, etc, I will break out but it’s not as aggressive as with peanuts though. Also coffee seems to break me out as well, but I only have the rare occasional cup of coffee because it also gives me the jitters. Somewhere I read that peanuts can can be confused by the body for androgens(?) in some people and this triggers acne, but I can’t say for sure. Supposedly a fungus can grow on coffee beans when they are stored improperly and someone who is sensitive to this fungus can get acne because of it, but again I can’t say for sure that this is true, just something I read. Dairy oddly doesn’t seem to affect it either way. I suspect my adult acne is mostly due to hormones but diet definitely has a direct impact on it.
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Sounds like adult acne is quite common.
    Some of my acne is going away but I am left with dark marks now. I didn’t scratch at them. I hope they fade away.
  • Kupla71
    Kupla71 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    Thanks ButterMeMuffinz. I’ll look into that.
  • ronycrash45
    ronycrash45 Posts: 1 Member
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    Acne usually works differently because it is most likely caused by hormones (not that the spots are not, but sometimes there are other causes of different spots from acne).
    After many things, hormonal imbalances can occur, from diet changes to high-stress levels, taking pills and even eating certain foods. According to the article, the main reasons for adult acne are:
      [*] You have recently started using comedogenic makeup or cosmetic additives - go for oil-free products instead
      [*] You are constantly under a lot of stress emanating from either your job, daily routine, or relationships
      [*] You have adopted a new diet that is making your skin prone to breakouts
      [*] You have recently adopted birth control or a new form of hormonal contraceptives


      If you can, I would advise talking to your doctor about finding out the cause rather than just trying to keep your symptoms under control.

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