One of the most common issues among teens. Acne! Here, we are going to take a look at the bottom line causes of acne without using those strong chemicals on your face.
Types of acne
Whiteheads, blackheads, papules, pustules, nodules, and cysts are different types of acne.
Anatomy of acne
Acne can be caused by several different problems. It could be from hormone (Androgen), infection, autoimmunity, diet, and so many other issues. First, we need to look at sebaceous glands.
Sebaceous glands produce sebum (oil) that moisturize skin and hair. For whatever the reason, if the sebaceous glands are blocked or hindered from secreting the oil, then the piled up oil eventually gets infected by bacteria resulting in acne.
Another common cause is surprisingly from antibiotics. Antibiotic is one of the very common medicines that many physicians prescribe to patients. It’s generally used to kill bad bacteria, however, it also kills good bacteria. An antibiotic chemical has no mechanism to distinguish between good and bad bacteria. Thus, getting too many antibiotic shots or taking too many antibiotic pills could kill the good bacteria that suppose to protect us from infections.
Natural methods to prevent acne
#1 is diet.
Vitamin A – It is one of the fat-soluble organic compounds which plays an important role in the growth and development, especially maintenance of the immune system. It also controls the secretion of sebum from sebaceous glands. Some of you might have used Accutane. Accutane is nothing more than tons of vitamin A that prevents activity of sebaceous glands from secreting oil. Remember that secreted oil makes your skin smooth? Well, after the application of Accutane, many people complaint about dry skin and itchiness, because there is no oil to moisturize the Accutane applied skin.
So, how should you get vitamin A? Many people know that carrots have a lot of vitamin A. It is true to some extent. The color of carrots is based on beta-carotene, which is the precursor of vitamin A. It has to be converted to Vitamin A in the body. Other vegetables are broccoli, spinach, kale, and tomato. However, a better way of bringing in Vitamin A to the body is by eating vitamin A from animal sources such as cod liver oil, and egg yolks.
Vitamin D – It is another fat-soluble organic compound. Vitamin D helps skin cell growth, repair, and metabolism. Along with vitamin A, D also takes part in the optimization of immunity.
Sources of vitamin D are fish oil ( such as tuna, salmon), soy milk, cheese, and egg yolks. There is also the free source of vitamin D: sunlight. There are vitamin D precursors in the skin. Once the precursor of vitamin D gets exposed to the sunlight, it gets converted to active vitamin D by liver and kidney.
Do you have liver and/or gallbladder issue?
Because vitamin A and D are fat-soluble compounds, if you have liver and/or gallbladder issues, you will have a problem with absorption of any fat-soluble vitamins. The liver produces bile, and bile is required to digest the fatty content of foods. After production of bile from the liver, bile is stored in the gallbladder. Therefore, if you have issues with liver and/or gallbladder, preventing acne can be more difficult due to the inability to digest fats.
Vitamin B5 – This is a water-soluble organic compound. It is very abundant diet resource in the most of the food that you eat daily. Vitamin B5 is a component of coenzyme-A (if you remember your biology class!) which plays a key role in cellular metabolism. Now, if the body lacks vitamin B5, the body cannot produce coenzyme-A, in turn, the problem of fat metabolism will arise. Excess fats are excreted through sebaceous glands causing acne.
Insulin – Insulin is a hormone that is secreted for the sugar compounds to enter cells for the cellular respiration (creating energy). Insulin not only makes the sugar compounds to enter cells but it also causes the inflammation-producing enzyme to attach to collagen and break the collagen. The process is called glycation. (Collagen is a protein that makes your skin tight.) Glycation will cause aging appearance but also lead to having acne by affecting the function of sebaceous glands. Thus, eating less sugar content will prevent acne.
Androgen – Androgen is a hormone that is secreted by the adrenal cortex, ovary, and testicles. For women, when you are in the menstrual cycle, you tend to breakout acne. This is due to the unbalanced secretion of androgen compared to estrogen. So then, what could cause the increased secretion of androgen? Of course during your puberty but that’s something you cannot prevent. So is the menopause. What I would like to pay attention to are the stress and sugar. Many people tend to look for sugary items when they are stressed. For the sugar part, it’s already covered in the insulin section. High stress leads to high secretion of androgen causing the breakout of acne. Stress also decreases the amount of vitamin B5.
Diet issues
Many people have a general idea that eating too much oily food can cause acne. Yes, that’s correct but not all oils are equal. What do you need to avoid? You won’t like my list. Fast foods including premanufactured microwave dishes, sugar contained snacks and beverages. Especially for many younger generations, the list of eateries above is the main diet source. What goes in is what comes out.
Stay away from gluten such as flour, barley (to be more exact beer), canola oil, and corn oil. These vegetable oils are generally not good since most of the vegetable oils have the tendency to convert themselves into transfat.
Other good methods
Coconut oil is good. It actually kills bad bacteria.
Use a cleanser that contains pH of 5.5. Do not use soap to clean.
Take home message
Remember this. You will not be able to make 100% clear out of acne by using medicines. It’s only a temporary relief. You must treat internally. Eat healthily and be active!