We’ve all been there, the day of a big presentation, a first date, maybe a job interview and BAM you wake up with a breakout. You cringe at the thought of your audience / date / interviewer being as distracted by that big zit on your nose as you are.
If you suffer from oily skin and acne, then chances are you’ve noticed how certain foods, products, and medications can increase or decrease your breakouts – have you ever tried addressing your acne problems by treating your stress more effectively?
Sure the occasional irritating cosmetic, menstruation cycle, burst of teenage hormones and genetics are all underlying causes of acne and triggers of the dreaded breakout, but stress is a beast unto its own and can make those underlying conditions crop up more easily. Ever notice when you’re tired, upset (or ahem, hungover…) that your skin feels oilier, and other symptoms such as dark circles around your eyes, or the sudden appearance of ‘stress spots’ crop up on your skin?
Regardless of your stress levels, pimples appear on your skin when your pores are clogged, and we know acne has a variety of causes. We also know that stress has a huge influence on turning on our body’s inflammatory pathways. Your body’s reactions to stress are important, because the body responds by producing certain hormones – sadly yes, the very hormones that provoke acne flare ups.
Even though stress may be related to the presence of acne, every individual is different. How prone your skin is to acne breakouts will be different from person to person too. When you feel stressed, your body produces more hormones to cope, particularly androgens. Androgens stimulate the sebaceous glands to produce more oil. CRH, or corticotrophin-releasing hormone, is another hormone that has been linked by dermatological studies to driving up oil production in the skin – which can lead to pimples. This excess oil can mean your pores are more easily clogged, leading to a state of ‘stress acne’ flare ups. Stress can also cause the body to heal more slowly, which makes those darn pimples last longer.
Recent studies have confirmed that work-related stress and personal stress do exacerbate acne. While stress is not the sole cause of acne pimples (age, hormones, acne-producing bacteria and other factors are at work here too), it’s evident that stress can trigger breakouts and make your existing acne issues worse.
So what can you do to prevent your skin from going into high drive on oil production when you get stressed out?
Adopt a more comprehensive approach to managing stress, such as trying out yoga and meditation practices, and see your dermatologist regularly so that you have an expert opinion and analysis of your skin type to determine what treatments are going to work best for you. Since there are a variety of culprits when it comes to breakouts and acne skin conditions, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all treatment or product to recommend.
Most of all, rest and relax! It’s important to make time for ourselves no matter what the stresses in our life may bring our way.
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