Stress and Acne

The skin is the largest organ of the human body. As with other organs and body systems, the lifestyle choices made by a person will have an effect on the health of the skin.  Stress in itself is not responsible for acne breakouts, however bad stress can give influence to the abundance of oil production and acne causing hormones. Here are some ways to handle bad stress:

External Stress factors for acne

Watching your environment for those things that are bad influences on your acne is important. These bad things can cause skin to clog, infections to form and may lead to increased blemishes. The following are some things to watch out for:

Oil, grease, and sun exposure – Overexposure is much similar to working in a kitchen daily with a lot of open style deep fryers.  It could also be working in a factory or mechanic shop with a lot of oil based products. Naturally, too much sun is a result of spending hours in the sun without adequate protection. All of these things can cause pores to clog, oil production to increase and in response there may be increased acne. It is important to minimize the amount of contact you have with these items. Wear long sleeves and other protective wear when forced into contact with grease, oil and particularly the sun. The sun is a little different, some sun exposure is healthy each day, but large periods of time spent in the sun are dangerous as the skin dries and oil production increases to compensate. When this happens, dry skin must slough faster, leaving more dead skin to clog pores and cause break-outs. Thus, sunscreen is perhaps the most important thing used in the prevention of acne. Oil-free products are always best! Consider using the highest SPF possible, a minimum of 15 is recommended.

Internal Stress factors for acne

Anxiety, fear, low self-esteem and depression often cause chemical reactions within the body that result in acne breakouts. These chemical reactions often cause the oil producing glands to produce more cortisol. Again, this excess oil can increase the possibility of clogged pores and the resulting acne breakouts that appear on the face. As mentioned several other times here, too much oil and too many dead skin cells result in acne flare-ups because of blocked pores. The type of acne that generally results from these stressors is nodule, or papule acne. Usually, these are hard and painful lumps that appear under the skin and do not contain pus.

In order to fight the effect of the stressors named above, it is important to sleep eight to ten hours per night and to maintain a regular schedule.  Reduce the amount of stress in your life, try not to worry about things, reduce your anxiety and find methods to fight tension.  It may be helpful to keep a daily journal where you can record the daily stressors of work and life.  If something appears on a recurring basis, it might be a good idea to contact a professional and to seek help in reducing its effect on your life.  It may be wise to contact a nutritionist in order to ensure a healthy diet. A physician may be able to recommend an exercise plan that will help you reduce stress and stay fit.  Doing these things will enable you to maintain health on the inside and out. You should spend time determining activities that help you to reduce stress and create calm. This list may include taking a walk, reading a book or listening to music.