Hormones and acne

Hormones and acne

Adult acne and hormones:

Acne by its very nature can be considered a hormonal disease. Hormones are responsible for the maturation of the oil glands in our skin. This is why children do not experience acne.1 While it is not known exactly how hormones affect acne, we do know that the skin is a target for hormones and can even produce hormones itself.2

testosterone Testosterone

There are several times in our lives when our hormones can become unbalanced and wreak havoc, including puberty, pregnancy, menopause, and, well, any other time they feel like it. More specifically, acne may be precipitated by androgens, male hormones present in both men and women.1,3-4 The oil surplus created by these hormones may be instrumental in clogging hair follicles where bacteria grows and causes acne pimples and blemishes.

estriol Estrogen

Hormonal acne is seen mostly in women due to the natural cycles a woman goes through, such as menstruation, pregnancy and menopause. Because of this, doctors sometimes prescribe low-dose birth control pills and/or androgen receptor blockers to reduce blemishes by keeping androgens steady.1,5

I have received many e-mails from women in their late 20s and older who are experiencing an acne flare-up or even acne for the first time in their lives. These women have also reported that The Regimen helps clear up their adult onset hormone induced acne.

References

1. Berger TG, James WD and Odom RB. Andrew's Diseases of the Skin. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Company, 2000.

2. Chen WC and Zouboulis CC. "Hormones and the pilosebaceous unit." Dermato-Endocrinology. 2009; 1(2); 81-86.

3. Alaghband-Zadeh J, et al. "Do Some Men with Acne Vulgaris Have Raised Levels of LH?" Clinical Endocrinology. 1999; 50(3): 393-397.

4. Gilliland K, et al. "Androgen Metabolism in Sebaceous Glands from Subjects With and Without Acne." Archives of Dermatology. 1999; 135: 1041-1045.

5. Arora MK, Seth S and Dayal S. "The relationship of lipid profile and menstrual cycle with acne vulgaris." Clinical Biochemistry. 2010; 43(18): 1415-1420.

Further Reading

Chen WC, Thiboutot D and Zouboulis CC. "Cutaneous androgen metabolism: Basic research and clinical perspectives." The Journal of Investigative Dermatology. 2002; 119(5): 992-1007.