Accounting for Acne

Too often over the last 13 years, I've seen those suffering from any of the 4 grades of acne using the wrong products (stripping the barrier), resorting to a host of pharmaceutical medications (with an 82% failure rate), or covering the skin with thick layers of makeup that only exacerbate the issue.

If this sounds like you, or someone you know and love, please take a moment to read and feel free to share this collection of info.

much love -
Brooke

If you suffer from acne the best MEDICINE is to focus on food which is the first and best place to start. For many people acne is a sign of underlying inflammation or problems with the immune system as a whole. Everything from diet, stress, poor sleep, infections and allergies might be playing a role in acne due to inflammation.

Foods have a major impact on your hormone balance. Unfortunately, many hormone-unbalancing food trends have slipped into our diets over the years, that drive our hormones crazy.

• Too little fatty acids

• Too little fiber

• Too little fruits

• Too little vegetables

• Too much refined carbohydrates

• Too much soy

• Too much beer

• Too much unhealthy fats

• Too much processed foods

• Too much sugar

• Too much dairy

• Too much gluten

• Too much corn

Certain foods cause acne due to the effects on various hormones in the body that deal with inflammation. High sugar and high glycemic diets will cause spikes in insulin and with it our stress hormone cortisol will rise. Cortisol will directly stimulate the sebum glands and cause acne. Too much saturated fat in the diet will cause inflammation and high cortisol. Stress and lack of sleep will both cause high cortisol, and again, this can lead to more acne.

Conditions such as delayed food allergies or “leaky gut” can cause acne due to the resulting inflammation and increased cortisol hormone production. We see numerous cases where acne just disappears as clients eliminate certain foods they are allergic/sensitive to such as gluten, soy, dairy products. It takes weeks to months for inflammation from delayed food allergies to resolve, and it takes a targeted treatment plan to heal leaky gut, so patience and knowledgeable help are usually required.

Acne is not caused by bacteria.

The truth is, acne is not simply a bacterial infection – it is a COMPLEX condition that is really a symptom of something greater – INFLAMMATION.

If the root cause isn’t bacteria, this may be one reason that antibiotics have such a spectacularly high failure rate (82% to be exact) when it comes to acne treatment. Acne is not really a condition of the skin – it is a condition that affects the skin. In other words, it means that the cause of acne is more than skin deep.

Your microbiome is a unique collection of microbes that live on your skin and in your body that influence your digestive health, immune health, brain health, skin health and more. Your microbiome is unique to you - just like your genetics. This skin has its own microbiome, just like the digestive tract. These bacteria are part of our skin’s ecosystem. Disrupting the microbiome by using antibiotics can have long term consequences for your health. With chronic antibiotic use, it’s now thought that your microbiome may never fully recover to its natural state.

The Cutibacterium acnes bacterium that’s deemed to be responsible for causing acne is just part of the flora on the outside in our skin. Many other strains of bacteria live on the skin. Emerging research is showing that the disruption of the balance of flora is implicated in the progress of many skin diseases, including acne, atopic dermatitis, psoriasis etc., and that many are identified as helping to promote skin health. Wiping out bacteria is like clear cutting a forest.

Even a one-week course of clindamycin – a type of antibiotic – can create antibiotic resistance that lasts for up to two years. Now consider the fact that most antibiotic courses prescribed for acne patients are long-term. Many treatments last for six months or more. It changes the entire environment and can make it challenging to reintroduce the skin with the right balance of bacteria, which may negatively affect the health and integrity of your skin in the long term.

Antibiotics cause problems in other areas as they kill bacteria all over the body, including the digestive tract. This approach can lead to more significant problems later on by disrupting the gut microflora. Overprescribed antibiotics are the No. 1 reason for gut dysbiosis, or an imbalance of gut bacteria. 70 to 80% of our immune system is actually found in the gut. This means that the gut and the immune system are in constant communication.

Overuse of antibiotics is one of the largest causes of drug-resistant bacteria in the world. Chronic use of antibiotics can lead to a disrupted microbiome as all of the native, good bacteria are killed along with the bacterial infection. When one type of organism is killed, the entire microbiome goes into flux, which can lead to a candida overgrowth and illness.

Quitting sugar is one of the BEST things you can do to support hormone balance and manage ACNE symptoms.

HOW SUGAR AFFECTS HORMONES

As comforting (and tasty!) as it is, sugar is a disaster for ACNE & PCOS – even if you don’t have the insulin resistance type of PCOS.

Sugar has a massive effect on the insulin hormone, which regulates blood sugar levels in the body. This extreme overdose of insulin increases the production of oils in the skin, which lead to your follicles and pores clogging up with sebum and has a dehydrating effect on the skin. That makes it easier for bacteria to fester and grow in your pores. And it doesn’t help that sugar can have a suppressive effect on the immune system.

The problem is, insulin affects many other hormones, including estrogen and cortisol. When you have high blood sugar levels, your body interprets it as a stressor. As a response, it sends out cortisol, your stress hormone, and makes your body think it’s in a fight-or-flight situation.

Over time, the constant release of cortisol increases inflammation and can worsen ACNE & PCOS symptoms. Both ACNE & PCOS are caused by hormone imbalances (especially insulin), which, in turn, leads to abnormally high levels of the “male hormone,” testosterone. A spike in blood sugar levels disrupts ovulation and therefore prevents progesterone from being released afterward. The result? Estrogen and progesterone are imbalanced, causing estrogen dominance, a key contributor to PCOS.

On top of that, we know that sugar increases the number of fat cells in the body. Fat cells secrete estrogen, which adds to estrogen dominance and hormone imbalances. By eliminating simple sugars from your diet, you can stabilize your insulin levels and get the rest of your hormones to follow.

Sugar also breaks down collagen and elastin, two of the essential building blocks of your skin. These proteins keep your skin taut, elastic, and youthful. But chronic inflammation caused by excess sugar consumption damages both collagen and elastin. The result is deeper wrinkles, more fine lines, and the early onset of the common signs of aging.

Is acne caused by sweat?

While exercise itself doesn’t cause acne, the skin care habits you maintain around your workouts can significantly impact your skin. Germs thrive at the gym, so it’s important to maintain good hygiene while working out to prevent clogged pores and the spread of bacteria.

To help prevent acne caused by working out:

1. Dress in clean, loose-fitting, moisture-wicking clothes that won’t rub your skin. Clothing and accessories that are too tight, such as headbands, bra straps or spandex garments, can cause a type of acne that occurs at the spot of repeated friction.

2. Remove any makeup before working out, as makeup can clog your pores.

3. During your workout, keep your skin dry. Use a clean towel to gently pat sweat off of your body, since rubbing your skin can cause acne to flare.

4. Wipe off shared equipment. Shared workout equipment can be full of acne-causing bacteria and dirt. Most gyms supply a cleaning spray or towelettes to wipe off the equipment. Clean off the equipment before and after your workout as a courtesy to others.

5. After your workout, shower immediately. Use warm (not hot) water to remove sweat, dirt and oil from your skin with the appropriate body wash and face cleanser (those are separate, of course). Change into clean clothes and wash the dirty clothes, which are full of sweat and pore-clogging culprits. Always wash your gym clothes between workouts.

70-80% of your Immune System lives in your gut!

Probiotic supplements work from the inside out, so you can enjoy improved digestive health, mental clarity, and the benefits of healthier skin. Some food items have probiotics, like yogurt, fermented milk drinks, kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha, and miso soup. Commercially available probiotic foods generally include information about the particular strains they have.

However, the minimum number of recommended probiotic live cultures you should consume is over one billion CFUs (colony-forming units). It is unlikely that you will meet this requirement with food items, as the strains need to make it past the stomach acid barrier to your lower GI tract, which is where your microbiome lives.

If you want to make sure that your body gets the right amount of the right type of probiotic strains, your best bet is a good quality probiotic for acne. Look for probiotics that deliver 20 to 50 billion live organisms per dose and contain a combination of different strains of lactobacillus and bifidobacteria.

When it comes to Birth Control & Acne there are many options, but it should be the LAST resort. Some BC methods contain estrogen and progestin. This blend of hormones may lower testosterone levels and therefore help battle acne. But plain ol’ progestin on its own might prompt androgenic activity. This can cause your face to freak out.

The progestin in hormonal IUDs may raise your body’s level of androgen hormones. These are male sex hormones (e.g., testosterone). This spike can overwork your sebaceous glands and cause excess oil production. This can clog up your pores and break you out.

If you’re already prone to hormonal breakouts you might be more affected. IUDs should be avoided including the Copper IUD. Even thou its "non-hormonal" your body is fighting a foreign invader, hence the side effect of heavy bleeding – your body is literally trying to expel the IUD. Copper IUDs are problematic, considering the direct and constant exposure of the copper in them to your body causing Copper Toxicity.

Excess copper in your body builds up in the liver and disrupts the liver's ability to detoxify excess oestrogen (which causes acne). In addition, excess copper prevents your body absorbing zinc - which is an essential mineral for our skin; it plays a role in the function of sebum (oil) secretion in skin cells, as well as being essential for healthy skin repair and healing.

Hormonal birth control does not regulate your menstrual cycle or your hormones, instead of “regulating” your hormones it replaces them with synthetic hormones. The pill works by messing with our endocrine system, which controls everything hormonal in our bodies. Regular cycles, with ovulation and periods (which you don’t have on the pill) have been shown to play an important role in heart, bone and breast health. Which isn’t surprising since the pill alters 150 different bodily functions. The pill packs a punch of around four times the corresponding synthetic estrogen and progesterone that naturally occurs in our body. Even the “lower dose” hormonal birth control options are still much more than our bodies create normally.

(side effects of Acutane in photo above)

Vitamin B5 for Acne

Also known as pantothenic acid, this vitamin is crucial for the optimal function of our bodies. It has a major role in the production of blood cells and the conversion of the ingested food into energy.

Vitamin B5 is as effective as the drug Accutane in treating acne because it also works at the FIRST stage of acne formation. But whereas Accutane shrinks sebaceous glands, Vitamin B5 reduces oil production of the sebaceous glands by increasing coenzyme A, which increases the metabolic breakdown of oils—including sebum—by optimizing the normal activity of cell physiology.

The main role of pantothenic acid (B5) in the body is to convert lipids, protein, and carbohydrates into energy, which helps maintain healthy hair, healthy skin, and healthy eyes. Through coenzyme A (CoA) metabolism, pantothenic acid reduces the synthesis and secretion of oil and promotes sebum breakdown in the skin's oil glands. Vitamin (B5) was also shown to improve epidermal barrier function, which in turn helps to reduce acne breakouts.

B5 is sometimes referred to as the “anti-stress” vitamin because it can reverse some biological damage caused by stress. Physical, emotional, and psychological stresses trigger the adrenal glands to secrete cortisol (a long-term stress hormone) and adrenaline (a short-term stress hormone). Chronic stress drives the production of too much of any of these hormones, which causes acne and damage in the body long after the stress signal has ended.

Other great things about B5:

~ Accelerates wound healing

~ Moisturizes and improves skin barrier function

~ Strong anti-irritant, and reduces inflammation

~ Antimicrobial

Foods High in Pantothenic Acid: Shiitake Mushrooms, Salmon, Avocados, Lean Chicken Breast, Beef (Skirt Steak), Sunflower Seeds, Sweet Potatoes and Lentils.

The Benefits of Drinking Water & Acne

If you’ve ever looked to improve your diet and your overall health, then the first thing you should do is make sure you’re drinking enough water. We need at least 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water a day to perform at our best (so a person weighing 150 lbs should drink at least 75 ounces daily), and although you absorb a small percentage of the recommended daily intake through the moisture in food, that simply isn’t enough. If you’re looking to optimize your health, drinking water is the first step.

Being consistently dehydrated affects the health of your heart, liver, pancreas and kidney. Your skin is an organ with cells made up primarily of water—when it’s deprived of water, it suffers, as does the rest of your bodily functions. But there’s more to it than that.

Your skin has a natural barrier that retains moisture, and if this barrier’s functions are disrupted, your skin may become dry and sensitive. When you neglect hydration, your skin can’t perform at its best, leading to premature aging and dry, sensitive skin. Most of your skin’s moisture comes from the body, so if you’re drinking enough water, then that healthy skin happily absorbs water from moisturizers and creams. If you aren’t adequately hydrated, the benefit of skincare products is impacted too.

Another big benefit to drinking water is its ability to flush your system of toxins. This cleanse keeps your skin clean, pushing out bacteria and reducing the risk of acne and other skin problems. If your skin is oily, then your pores will clog up, eventually leading to acne breakouts. Drinking water balances the natural oils sitting on your face with moisture. When your skin is dehydrated it produces more oil. Drinking the right amount of water every day might be the easiest way to cure your acne.

Water takes several stops before it reaches your cells. It goes through your intestines, is filtered by your kidneys, and is absorbed by your blood cells. Don’t expect a single glass of water to improve the look of your skin and hair. Consistent hydration is vital. This means it needs to become a habit!!

Creatine is a protein-like compound found mostly in the cells of the skeletal muscles. It increases energy production in cells by increasing the production of adenosine triphosphate or ATP which is the chief energy molecule in the body.

Testosterone and DHT are the two strongest androgens in the human body. They are behind many of the classic effects that kick in during puberty; growing muscle mass, rabid sex drive, new body hair, a deeper voice, and all the rest.

DHT and testosterone kick off the whole acne saga in the first place, by making your skin oily. Androgens bind to the receptors in your sebaceous glands, which has a huge stimulating effect; the glands dramatically rev up their output of sebum.

Research indicates that those who take creatine supplements see an increase as high as 50 percent in their DHT levels. That's a major shift in your natural hormone levels. As a result, individuals who are naturally prone to hormone-driven acne may see breakouts more often when taking creatine.