Those who are acne-prone often have\u00a0oilier skin, which leads some to believe\u00a0that greasy foods such as pizza\u00a0or burgers cause breakouts. \u201cPeople think that eating greasy food increases\u00a0oil on the skin, which leads to acne,\u201d says Dr Rosalind Simpson, a\u00a0medical dermatologist at the University of Nottingham. \u201cBut that\u2019s a misconception. The oil on your skin\u00a0\u2013 sebum from pores \u2013 is mostly influenced by hormones and genetics.\u201d<\/p>\n
The primary cause of acne is an increase in androgens, or male sex hormones, which happens in men and women at puberty. This triggers an increase in production of sebum, and mixed with dead skin cells, this can block the pores. The oily environment allows bacteria (Propionibacterium acnes), which are naturally present on\u00a0the skin, to thrive, leading to inflammation. Other hormone shifts, such as those caused by polycystic ovary syndrome or progesterone-only contraception, can also be to blame.<\/p>\n
People try to change their diet to treat acne, but restrictive diets can be harmful, especially for teens<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Environmental factors do play a role, says Simpson. And though this doesn\u2019t include greasy food consumption, it could include our stress levels and our diet in a wider sense.<\/p>\n
Acne has become more widespread over the past century. Some believe the rise could be linked to an increase in high glycaemic index foods, such as simple carbohydrates and sugary treats, though Simpson stresses that nothing is certain. \u201cThere\u2019s emerging evidence that refined sugars may contribute,\u201d she says, explaining that researchers are exploring how gut health is linked to skin health.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re dealing with acne, and\u00a0self\u2011management with gentle, soap-free cleansers and moisturisers hasn\u2019t helped, it\u2019s best to consult a\u00a0doctor early. \u201cPeople try to change their diet to treat acne, but restrictive diets can be harmful, especially for teens, unless done under medical supervision,\u201d says Simpson.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Those who are acne-prone often have\u00a0oilier skin, which leads some to believe\u00a0that greasy foods such as pizza\u00a0or burgers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":371873,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[105,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-371872","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-uk","10":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115088460555147741","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371872"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371872\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}