10 Natural Remedies for Hormonal Acne
There are many different causes behind why one might struggle with facial acne, which is what makes skincare so confusing for some. One of the causes of acne is hormone imbalances. When you have an overproduction of oil on your skin this can trap bacteria and dead skin cells in a gland on the surface of the skin which causes inflammation and acne. This overproduction of oil can be regulated through your hormones specifically, androgens. Androgens like testosterone and DHEA convert to form DHT which is an enzyme that can increase oil production in the sebaceous glands, the glands that produce oil.
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Blood sugar imbalances are often a root cause behind elevated testosterone levels, and stress is often the root cause behind elevated DHEA levels. Additionally, around the middle of your cycle near ovulation, testosterone levels will peak so it is common to note if you have acne specifically around this time. If you struggle with hormonal acne, here are 10 natural remedies for hormonal acne.
Source: NIH, European Journal of Gynecology
10 Natural remedies for hormonal acne:
1. Zinc
One of the best natural remedies for hormonal acne is foods that contain zinc or zinc supplements. Zinc is a great mineral that can be used for a lot of health benefits, but it specifically can be beneficial for enhancing skin appearance and decreasing acne. A mechanism for this can be that zinc has anti-inflammatory properties and it also can effectively reduce cutibacterium acnes which is a bacteria linked to acne production in the skin. Furthermore, zinc can inhibit sebum secretion and production by its antiandrogenic property. Zinc food remedies for hormonal acne include meat, oysters, mussels, shellfish, beans, seeds, and nuts.
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2. Omega-3
Another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne is omega 3s. Polyunsaturated fats are fatty acids that contain at least 2 double bonds in the structure. Two types of polyunsaturated fats are omega 3 and omega 6. Most western diets consume a ratio of 1:20 of omega 3 to omega 6 when it should be 1:3. This evidence is correlated with acne incidence, showing that omega 6’s are pro-inflammatory and cause acne while omega 3’s have protective effects to decrease acne. Omega 3 sources include oily fish such as salmon, herring, mackerel, and sardines; fish oil and flaxseed oil; flaxseeds, walnuts, and chia seeds.
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3. Vitamin D
Vitamin D is one of the essential fat-soluble vitamins necessary for bone density, but it can also help to lower testosterone naturally to aid with acne. Vitamin D can best be synthesized from the sun, but in the winter months in a cloudy climate, it is essential to supplement because vitamin D is not abundant in many food sources. Vitamin D paired with evening primrose rose oil may help to regulate your menstrual cycle and help promote ovulation. A study found that patients with acne were also more likely to have a vitamin D deficiency. This correlation shows that vitamin D is one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne.
4. Turmeric
Another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne is turmeric. The active component of turmeric is called curcumin, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Inflammation can be a complication in women with acne because of elevated testosterone levels. The red pimples that you see in acne are actually from inflammation. Additionally, turmeric is beneficial because it helps to improve insulin sensitivity, and blood sugar balance highly affects testosterone levels. Another study also supported the effects that turmeric can lower testosterone naturally in women with acne and PCOS.
5. Cinnamon
Cinnamon is another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne. Cinnamon extract and plain cinnamon are both shown to improve insulin sensitivity by lowering fasting blood glucose, allowing testosterone levels to drop.
Additionally, it was found that cinnamon has properties to help women manage PCOS, a condition where androgen levels are typically high, by regulating menstrual cycles and ovulation. As a result, this can help to lower testosterone naturally which positively impacts acne.
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6. NAC
NAC stands for N-Acetyl Cysteine, which is the supplemental form of cysteine, an amino acid in our body that aids to produce a powerful antioxidant, glutathione. As a supplement, it helps to improve the body’s insulin response, lower testosterone naturally, and helps to protect egg quality. It has also been shown to improve ovulation and pregnancy rates for those with PCOS. Since NAC is so great at balancing hormones, improving fertility, and managing the body’s insulin response, this makes NAC one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne.
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7. Blood Sugar Balance
Blood sugar imbalances can lead to insulin resistance which can increase acne incidence. Insulin is a hormone released from the pancreas when you eat food, and its job is to take sugar into cells for energy. Think of it like the cell accepting the sugar is a lock and insulin is the key. When you are insulin resistant the cells deny the insulin with the sugar, so your blood sugar rises along with insulin levels. This would mean that the cell or “lock” changes so that the insulin or “key” no longer fits.
Reducing insulin resistance will promote the healing of acne. Insulin resistance causes high levels of testosterone because when insulin levels are high in the blood, it will stimulate an enzyme called 17-hydroxylase which will stimulate the ovaries to make more testosterone. Additionally, this process will inhibit the synthesis of a binding protein to testosterone which increases the abundance of free testosterone in the blood. As a result, more testosterone leads to more DHT, more sebum, and more acne.
Ways to regulate blood sugar balance include eating more frequently throughout the day in smaller portions, at each meal consume a fiber, protein, and fat source, and lastly avoid skipping breakfast because that is when our blood sugar is usually the lowest and you want to slowly increase it.
8. Spearmint Tea
Spearmint Tea another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne, particularly for those dealing with elevated testosterone levels. Studies show that spearmint tea helps to decrease free testosterone levels and increase luteinizing hormone (LH), follicular stimulating hormone, and estradiol in those with acne and PCOS. Due to spearmint tea’s ability to inhibit testosterone, it can help to restore follicular development in the ovarian tissue and promote ovulation. If you struggle with elevated testosterone or hirsutism, spearmint can be a great natural remedy for hormonal acne.
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9. Green Tea
Another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne is green tea. Studies found that green tea has properties that modulate the production and action of many androgens in the body to assist those with acne and PCOS. This mechanism is due to the catechins in green tea which are antioxidants. Antioxidants can fight inflammation caused by these unwanted high androgen levels.
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10. Nettle
Nettle, or also known as stinging nettle or Urtica dioica, is another one of the natural remedies for hormonal acne. Nettle has anti-inflammatory and blood sugar-lowering effects to assist with decreasing testosterone and hormonal acne. A study on 40 women with elevated androgen levels found a significant decrease in total testosterone and free testosterone levels after issuing nettle to the experimental group. Due to its testosterone lowering effect nettle can help to reduce excessive sebum production by downregulating DHT production.
