How To Get Rid Of Stress Induced Acne

Hairstyling Products That Touch Your Skin Can Contribute To Acne

Santi Nunez/Stocksy

Breakouts caused by hair-care products are so common that theres a name for them: pomade acne.

Styling products seep oil onto the forehead, which can trap acne-causing bacteria in your pores, says Richard Fried, MD, PhD, the director of Yardley Dermatology Associates in Yardley, Pennsylvania, and the author of the book Healing Adult Acne.

Clogged pores become inflamed, resulting in redness, pus, and ultimately blackheads and whiteheads along the hairline and forehead.

Your hairstyle matters too: Bangs make acne worse by bringing skin-clogging hair products right against your forehead. .pdf” rel=”nofollow”> 9)

Many times, what youre using on your hair winds up on your face, especially if you use products with spray applicators, Dr. Fried says.

Zit zapper Apply products with your hands and keep them away from your hairline. After applying, wipe your skin with facial cleanser to remove any stray styling product.

How To Treat It

Does nodular acne go away? It likely wont clear up on its own unless you address the underlying causes, and unfortunately over-the-counter products alone dont always resolve this tissue.

However, in some cases, someone may outgrow the problem if its related to something like puberty, a temporary hormonal imbalance or stress.

According to experts, heres how to get rid of nodular acne:

1. Clean Your Skin Gently

First and foremost, focus on taking steps to get rid of pimples in general. That means practicing good hygiene and cleaning your skin regularly.

This helps keep oil levels on your skin in balance, which can reduce clogged pores and buildup of bacteria.

Be careful not to overly apply acne products to your skin , which can irritating and drying when used too frequently, particularly if you spend time in the sun after. Rubbing alcohol can also have this effect.

These are unlikely to resolve nodular acne since they only work to clean the skins surface.

Here are some tips for keeping your skin clean:

• Wash with a gentle cleanser, such as one with probiotics, twice daily.
• Apply a lightweight moisturizer to your skin thats free of fragrances and chemicals.
• Get some sunlight exposure, but avoid getting burned.
• Remove all makeup before going to sleep.
• Consider using toners and clay masks weekly, such as witch hazel or bentonite clay.
• Wash your pillowcases often.
• Make sure you wear clean makeup, and keep it minimal to avoid clogging pores.

2. Work on Balancing Your Homes

Stress Eating And Your Skin

When were stressed, we often reach for comfort foods. Unfortunately, this can be one of the many causes of acne.

Youve probably heard that chocolate and fast food can cause a breakout, but thats not the whole truth. While a daily diet of hamburgers and French fries wont necessarily form pimples, a poor diet can definitely aggravate the blemishes you already have.

Its important to make smart decisions when it comes to diet in order to both improve your overall health and combat acne blemishes. Incorporate the following eating habits to help clear up your skin:

• Eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables daily.
• After preparing or touching greasy foods, be sure to avoid touching your face.
• Avoid foods saturated with iodine, including seafood and seaweed, as this has been purported to cause acne flare-ups.
• Examine your skins reaction to dairy products studies have shown that milk and dairy intake are related to the frequency and severity of breakouts.
• Stay hydrated, and avoid drinks with excessive amounts of sugar.

Don’t Miss: What Is The Best Supplement For Stress Relief

What Are The Best Ways To Get Rid Of Chest Acne

According to Dr. Rana, Identifying and understanding the underlying causes of your chest acne is the first step toward creating an effective acne treatment plan. Once you understand the specific skin care products, stresses, and other issues that lead to flare-ups in your condition, you can take steps to avoid them. From there, you can partner with your dermatologist to create a skin care routine to clear up your current breakout and prevent them in the future.

Individuals with chest acne should work with their dermatologist to create a personalized skin care plan that works for them, but some steps anyone can take to treat chest acne breakouts include:

• Use antibacterial soap to clean the area around the breakout after sweating or getting dirty
• Swap out your thick, cream-based moisturizers for lotions that are non-comedogenic to help keep your skin moisturized without contributing to breakouts
• Apply topical acne treatments to blemishes

During chest acne breakouts, most people can clear up their pimples using over-the-counter products. Acne body washes, wipes, and spot treatments are available in your local pharmacy to help clear up pimples. Patients who have larger pimples or cysts and nodules that develop deeper beneath the skin should contact their dermatologist for treatment as soon as possible. These more severe forms of acne can be very painful, have a greater risk of infection, and may lead to scarring if not properly treated.

Are There Any Special Concerns For Women Of Childbearing Age With Acne

Many topical and oral acne treatments are contraindicated during pregnancy. If youre a woman in your childbearing years, its important to discuss acne treatments with your healthcare provider and alert them if you become pregnant. Isotretinoin is known to cause severe birth defects and therefore, two methods of birth control are required while on this medication.

Hormone therapy is helpful for some women with acne, especially for those that flare-up with menstruation or those with signs and symptoms of excess androgen . Hormone therapy consists of low-dose estrogen and progesterone or a medication called spironolactone that blocks the effect of male hormones at the level of the hair follicles and oil glands.

You May Like: What Is The Best Essential Oil For Stress And Anxiety

How To Get Rid Of Acne: The 4 Acne Factors

• Excessive skin cell development
• Over production of sebum
• Overgrowth of a very specific bacteria called Propionibacterium acnes or Cutibacterium acnes as it called now.
• And lastly inflammation

I already made a separate video on these 4 factors before and you can watch it right here if you want to know more about each one of them.

So the last 2 factors overgrowth of the bacteria P. acnes and inflammation, will only happen if the first 2 factors take place. That means if there is no excessive skin development and no overproduction sebum, there will be no overgrowth of bacteria and no inflammation.

The reason for this is because the bacteria P. acnes can only thrive in a lipid rich and oxygen free environment. And that environment can only be created if your hair follicle gets clogged due to excessive skin development and over production of sebum.

When your hair follicle does get clogged, the lipids in the sebum and the lack of oxygen causes the bacteria to grow. What subsequently happens is that the bacteria release lipases that hydrolyze sebum triglycerides into free fatty acid lipoperoxidases.

Now you dont really need to know what these are but what happens is that this in turn leads to the expression of things such as protease activated receptors and toll-like receptors which causes the Keratinocytes to produce inflammatory mediators causing inflammation. In very simple terms, the bacteria P acnes can cause inflammation.

Stress Acne Treatment Options

Regarding stress acne, Dr. Rhonda Q. Klein recommends, For stress pimples, I think in-office treatments, such as, facials, peels, and light laser treatments, can be helpful as they force the patient to relax for a short period of time.

Often, once a patient is in the middle of an acne breakout, its time to turn to one of the many tried and true medications for acne treatment, such as:

• Topical benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid, which can be used as spot treatments for pimples
• Retinoids, either topical or oral
• Antibiotics, either topical or oral
• Hormonal medications, such as birth control or spironolactone
• Herbal products, such as topical tea tree oil, which is also a good spot treatment

Dr. Stair offers these final words of advice: When a breakout happens, I would first recommend keeping a journal so you can determine your triggers, she says. Document what you ate, things that stressed you out, sleep patterns, and any creams or lotions you used You may be able to modify certain lifestyle factors to reduce breakouts, but sometimes youll need to visit a licensed skin specialist if your condition is more severe and out of your control.

» For more information, refer to Zwivels Complete Guide to Acne Causes and Treatments.

Read Also: Do You Get Paid For Stress Leave

Exploring The Link Between Exam Stress And Spots

When exam season is looming, it brings with it stress and breakouts. Unfortunately, at the times youre most stressed, you are also more likely to break out in stress induced spots. This in turn can often make you feel even more stressed, with another thing on your plate to worry about. With such a snowball effect, we want to take the stress of having bad skin off your chest.

So How Do You Know If It’s Stress Acne Or Something Else

So yes, stress acne is something that you’re normally not having and then, all of a sudden, you are. But just because you were stressed, and now have new red bumps on your face, chest, or back, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have stress acne.

According to Dr. Truong, a sudden breakout could also be due to an infection or rash. For instance, it could be folliculitis , or allergic contact dermatitis . “If something is new for you, it’s not common, and it’s worsening, I think that’s an important time to visit your doctor just to make sure it is what you think it is because if you’re treating it with the wrong thing, you could potentially make it worse,” Dr. Truong says.

RELATED:The ‘Triangle of Death’ Is the One Place on Your Face Where You Should Never, Ever Pop Pimples

Recommended Reading: How To Reduce Stress Incontinence

A Diet High In Processed Food And Refined Carbs May Lead To Acne

Bisual Studio/Stocksy

As teens, we believed that greasy grub and chocolate cake caused our pimples. And that might hold true for you now that youre an adult.

The latest scientific evidence suggests that high-carbohydrate diets may predispose you to acne, Fusco says. Specifically, diets high in refined carbohydrates that are high on the glycemic index may increase the development and severity of breakouts, yet more research is needed. The glycemic index is a scale that gauges how much a certain food can affect blood sugar levels.

There may also be a link between acne and dairy, according to Harth.

Dairy products have been shown in multiple studies to increase levels of insulin-like growth factor 1 , that can trigger or worsen acne breakouts, says Harth. One of the most triggering forms of dairy is cow’s milk, especially low-fat milk, which contains a large amount of progesterone-like hormones and has a higher sugar content than full-fat milk.

Zit zapper Cut back on snacks, like chips and ice cream, and switch to whole grains, veggies, fruits, and high-protein foods.

Better skin may lie at the end of your fork, research reveals.

Why Do We Get Stress Related Acne

Many of us have experienced a breakout when weâre stressed out. But why do pimples develop when weâre under pressure? Why does stress cause acne? The answer is simple. Stress hormones increase oil production and overall inflammation, which causes acne flare-ups. With that in mind, itâs vital to improve your overall mental well-being so you can prevent stress acne.

Also Check: What Health Issues Can Stress Cause

Try To Be More Relaxed About Work

Use An Acne Spot Treatment

Acne spot treatments are very effective at getting rid of stubborn but minor pimples. These treatments usually include ingredients like Benzoyl peroxide which helps to kill acne-causing bacteria and salicylic acid which helps to exfoliate and unclog your pores.

Retinoids are also used to help control cell turnover, which allows clogged cells to shed and prevents clogging. There are many different types of spot treatments for you to experiment with to find what works best for you.

Don’t Miss: How To Quit Stress Eating

Does Stress Really Cause Acne

Yes, stress has been identified as a factor in the incidence and severity of acne. At the first sign of stress, a rush of hormones, including cortisol and adrenal androgens like testosterone are released by the skin in an effort to protect you.

While this reaction is a simple defense mechanism, it also stimulates and inflames the skins sebaceous glands, which can cause or exacerbate acne flare-ups. Sebum is the oily substance that mixes with dead skin cells and bacteria. It is often responsible for oil production which can in turn clog the hair follicles, leading to a pimple or an acne cyst.

One study found the frequency and severity of acne to vastly increase during stressful events like school exams, while another, older study found that relaxation and stress reduction techniques, when practiced regularly, can reduce and improve acne. The same study found acne likely to recur when stress reduction practices are discontinued.

Similarly, a study published in a Swedish medical journal found that acne became more severe during student exams, in comparison to periods of relative low stress like summer break. Researchers attributed this type of increase in acne to higher levels of sebum produced during stressful periods.

What Are The Best Treatment Options For Stress Acne

) and improve skin texture.

Vitamin B5 supplements

Pantothenic acid is also called the “anti-stress vitamin”). It was shown that Vitamin B5 supplements could balance the secretion of stress hormones in the adrenal glands. Women with adult acne can benefit from DIM supplements. DIM supplements contain a natural extract of cruciferous vegetables specially formulated to help balance hormones and reduce signs of acne in women. Hormonal acne is typically located on the lower parts of the face and is influenced by the monthly cycle.

Practicing relaxation techniques

If you’re facing a lot of stress, utilizing various relaxation techniques such as deep breathing may help regulate internal hormones and speed up your acne’s healing.

Adequate hydration, zinc and flaxseed oil-based product

To combat stress acne, you’ll want to keep your skin hydrated inside and out. Water consumption can help with internal hydration, and zinc and flaxseed oil-based products have been proven to keep skin moisturized and help with wound healing. To keep the water in the skin, you will need to use a good moisturizer

Catch enough Zzz’s

Lack of sleep can create many reactions within the body, including increased inflammation and production of stress hormones, both of which can destabilize your immune health and contribute to skin issues. Without regular restorative sleep, your body might not feel adequately rested and could jumpstart a cortisol surge, putting you at risk for breakouts.

Fix your gut health

Also Check: Are Nuclear Stress Tests Safe

Keeping A Routine Doesn’t Have To Be Difficult

In fact, The Art of Simple suggests that we follow routines more than we follow the exact time of day. Our bodies become used to a routine and offers important signals that our bodies pick up on subconsciously.

The routine doesn’t even have to be perfect – trying our best and reaching a level of “good enough” can help relieve potential stress that comes with a routine.

You don’t want your stress-relieving routine to cause you any more stress, right?

How Can I Stop Stress

American Academy of Dermatology recommends addressing the problem head-on by identifying sources of stress and taking some steps to minimize their effects. These can help eliminate stress-induced acne breakouts.

• For some people, building some âquiet timeâ into their daily schedules can help rein in stress.
• Examples may include taking a walk around the block, meditating, listening to soothing music or engaging in other similar activities that allow you to take a break from stressful triggers and focus on yourself, even if only for a few minutes each day.

Along with stress management, you may also try the following methods:

• Cleanse and exfoliate your skin. This can sweep away any dirt, oil, makeup and other debris that may be trapped inside your pores and contribute to your breakouts.
• The most common active ingredients used to treat acne are salicylic acid and benzoyl peroxide, but you may want to discuss your options with your dermatologist before adding an acne treatment to your daily routine.
• In some cases, professional laser treatment may be the most effective solution to acne and acne scars. Laser treatments can also be highly effective at minimizing or eliminating the appearance of acne scars, sunspots and other blemishes.

Don’t Miss: How Does Stress Affect Diabetes

Powerful Home Remedies For Acne

Acne is one of the most common skin conditions in the world, affecting an estimated 85% of young adults .

Conventional acne treatments like salicylic acid, niacinamide, or benzoyl peroxide are proven to be the most effective acne solutions, but they can be expensive and have undesirable side effects, such as dryness, redness, and irritation.

This has prompted many people to look into remedies to cure acne naturally at home. In fact, one study found that 77% of acne patients had tried alternative acne treatments .

Many home remedies lack scientific backing, and further research on their effectiveness is needed. If youre looking for alternative treatments, though, there are still options you can try.

This article explores 13 popular home remedies for acne.