For many women, hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle or menopausal shift cause unwelcome breakouts.
Almost half of all women ages 21 to 30, a quarter of women ages 31 to 40, and 12 percent of women ages 41 to 50 experience acne, according to a study published in the Journal of Women’s Health. No matter your age, acne forms when pores become blocked. For women, an increase in hormones can stimulate oil production, called sebum, from the skin’s sebaceous glands in your skin, usually along the cheekbones, chin, and jaw line.
Follow these simple tips to help prevent reoccurring breakouts…
Go Natural
Many acne washes have benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid, which can cause dryness, itching, redness, and even peeling of the skin. Replace those washes with gentle products that contain emollients that will protect the skin’s barrier. A skin concentrate containing Lactic acid, removes dead skin, which helps to even out skin tone, leaving your skin refreshed. At the same time, aromatic essential oils like lavender, geranium, rosemary, cypress and thyme, inhibit the bacteria that cause the breakout and regulates some of the over-excretion of sebum.
YON-KA Juvenile is a therapeutic skin concentrate rich in lactic acid and aromatic essential oils.
Ask Your Doctor About Oral Contraceptives
Oral contraceptives help regulate hormonal surges, which helps prevent the skin from producing too much oil during your cycle. If you’re interested in this method of treatment, consult your doctor who will prescribe you one of the brands that are FDA approved for acne treatment. As always, discuss the potential risk associated with birth control pills with your doctor.
Make an Appointment with an Esthetician
Estheticians, skin-care experts, can perform extractions to create smooth, clear skin. Most esthetician’s use a manual technique while some may use a metal tool to remove the sebum that’s causing the acne. Extracting will flatten the bump, reduce irritation, and make the pores appear smaller. The process usually involves steam, exfoliation, and extraction followed by a disinfectant and pore-minimizing wash, such as a toner.
Drink Green Tea
Adding a cup of green tea to your diet may help keep your skin free of breakouts. Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate (EGCG), one of the major antioxidants in green tea, influences the production of hormones linked to acne. Its detoxifying and anti-inflammatory properties also aid to keep breakouts at bay.
Cut the Refined Carbohydrates
It’s no secret that women tend to crave different junk foods during their cycle. However, when you eat processed foods like bread and sweets, they get broken down into sugar, causing your insulin levels to spike, followed by increased production of sebum. Stick to whole proteins, fruits, and veggies, especially during your time of breakout to see improvements.
