Treating skin conditions is probably one of the most challenging and intriguing things for me. I’ve had acne for as long as I could remember and it was an uphill battle to say the least, but i’m here to tell you that it is possible to manage it and get it under control. The rst step is to gure out why you’re breaking out or having psoriasis or eczema are-ups, and yes this is the hardest step. Here are some things to consider and be mindful of when trying to gure out the root cause:
1. What you eat matters
Foods that are healthy for some may not be “healthy” for you. Eating foods that your body cannot tolerate can cause chronic low grade stress and stimulate an immune response. Overtime this can lead to gut dysbiosis (an imbalance of your gut bacteria), impair your ability to absorb nutrients and your ability to eliminate toxins.
Common sensitivities seen in skin conditions
Dairy
Rened and added sugar
Found in a lot of package foods and desserts
Can worsen gut dysbiosis because those bugs love sugar!
Can increase inammation
Dysregulate insulin and cause increased sebum production and disrupt our sex hormones Try to get your sugar from whole food sources like fresh fruit, dried fruit (limit to a small palm full), honey or maple syrup to replace white sugar, however, these are still forms of palm full), honey or maple syrup to replace white sugar, however, these are still forms of “added sugar”
Chocolate
Can be very hot and cause phlegm production in a TCM perspective
Can contain high amounts of sugar
There seems to be a correlation between chocolate consumption and acne breakouts
2. Your digestion matters
Are you bloated after meals? Tired? These signs can all point to sluggish digestion, which means your body is not able to break down the foods you eat and absorb it for proper utilization. When your food is not digested properly it sits in your gut a lot longer, which can affect your gut microbiome and cause things like constipation. When there is a back up, your body is unable to remove waste and toxins through your stools, so your body does so by eliminating in our ways like your skin! It also takes a toll on your liver, which is the major detoxifying organ in your body
Signs of sluggish digestion
Noticing undigested foods in your stool Acid reux
Bloating after meals
Constipation
Skin breakouts and are-ups
How to optimize your digestion
1. Eat whole foods with lots of colour and variety and are high in bre and are right for you!
2. Optimize your water intake, which also depends on your activity level. If you are increasing your
bre intake be sure to also increase your water intake
3. Eat in a calm and relaxed state to promote the parasympathetic nervous system aka “Rest and Digest” state
- Support your liver by decreasing its burden. Limit alcohol intake when you can and eat bitter greens to help support its function
- If you notice undigested food in your stool you can try using apple cider vinegar before heavy meals to help stimulate digestion
- Make sure you are having regular bowel movements at least once a day, if not you need to start here!
3. Stress management matters
Ahhhh…stress. We all have it and it’s unavoidable but what we can control is how we manage it. Stress does a lot of funny things to our body and you guessed it, it affects your skin too.
Cortisol
This is our stress hormone. Cortisol is produced from the adrenal glands and is our body’s response to stress, a very important survival mechanism. It tells our brain, heart and muscles and immune system to prepare for a stressful situation. However, when we are mentally, emotionally and physically stressed all the time cortisol is constantly being produced and this is when we start to see symptoms like fatigue, impaired immune system or development of autoimmune disorders, skin conditions, hormone imbalances etc.
Cortisol and our skin
Cortisol stimulates the production of insulin, which tells our body hey we need to release sugar to get our muscles and brain ready for a stressful situation. Like mentioned earlier, insulin can cause an increase amount of sebum production and dysregulate our sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA).
Women’s monthly health report
Your menstrual cycle can tell us a lot about your hormone health and skin, especially if you notice patterns with your breakouts and your cycle. If you haven’t already, it’s always great to track your cycles to learn more about your body. If you a male patient, you can’t necessarily track your cycles but you can still track to see if you notice any patterns in your breakouts and stressful situations.
There are so many other factors
I can go on and on about skin health and all the potential contributing factors but this would become a really long post. Other things to keep in mind are external factors like skincare products, the water you drink, exposure to plastics, mold etc.
If you are unsure of what may be causing your skin break outs, it may be a good idea to talk to your local naturopath to help you address YOUR root cause. They can also help you navigate through different herbs, supplements and diet and lifestyle changes that may benefit you!