Menopause-Related Acne

Menopause has many interesting, seemingly unrelated symptoms. Women can experience any combination of mood swings, insomnia, hot flashes, extreme night sweats, achy joints, headaches, irritability, anxiety, trouble concentrating, and even acne. Some women avoid menopause-induced acne, but for at least one in ten menopause sufferers, pimples and blemishes are a genuine problem. Some women have avoided pimples since they were teenagers, yet suddenly the have a face full of them. The truth is, though, teens and menopausal women have a number of things in common. Acne is typically a result of hormone swings, which occurs extensively throughout puberty and menopause. It can be very frustrating for women to endure the added embarassment of blemishes when they're struggling to deal with all of the other symptoms of menopause.

Menopausal acne occurs for much the same reason that acne occurs during any other life stage. The skin contains millions of sebaceous glands. These glands produce oil, scientifically termed sebum. Skin cells are constantly regenerated. Old ones die, are sloughed off and quickly replaced. When body hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and DHEA run rampant, the sebaceous glands become sensitive and start producing more sebum than necessary. More skin cells begin to die. As a result, not only do you have a surplus of facial oil, you also have a surplus of dead skin cells. Your body cannot rid itself of the unwanted oil and dead cells fast enough. Facial skin follicles get clogged with oil and dead cells.

White heads occur as a result of bacteria. Excess sebum builds up under the skin, naturally-occuring bacteria and the oil combine, creating an inflamed area filled with white puss. Blackheads also occur as a result of the combining of bacteria and oil with the addition of air that has leaked in. As a result, the material caught in the pore turns black. Menopausal acne identical to other acne, however. Both the follicles and sebaceous glands on the face contain an enzyme. This particular enzyme can turn estrogen into the hormone androgen testosterone. This has the ability to increase oil production even further. This leads to even more breakouts than a woman probably had as a teenager.

Menopausal acne can be extremely frustrating. There are, however, ways to alleviate it. Begin by examining your diet. It is important to eat foods that are high in fiber and calcium. It is also recommended to cut back on your fat and carbohydrate intake. Carbohydrates can turn insulin into androgen testosterone. This androgen too can increase the skin's sebum production. Additionally, you might want ensure that you are consuming eight to ten glasses of water each day.

In addition to dietary changes, you might want to consider the addition of dietary supplements. There are so many widely-available herbs vitamins, and minerals that can help alleviate the body's excess oil production. Studies suggest that it is beneficial to add Vitamin B and Vitamin C to your diet. In addition to diet and supplements, you should cleanse your skin a minimum of twice daily. Regular exfoliation rids the skin of those dead cells. Also, it is beneficial to use a toner to close open pores.

William Miller enjoys writing for several popular online magazines, on health and fitness and women's health topics.