Why Does Your Acne Keep Flaring Up?
Recurring acne is not uncommon, especially for adults. And for persons diagnosed with acne or considered to have acne-prone skin, it can take anywhere from a few weeks or months to find the right products or a working routine and even longer to see lasting results. So it’s expected that there may be occasional breakouts along the way as the skin slowly responds.
According to Dr. Krishna, a member of the American Board of Dermatology, breaking out when initially starting an acne treatment is normal as it is likely the result of ‘skin purging’. She says that, “products that actively speed up the process of the skin cell turnover cycle will help reveal healthier skin cells, but not without first purging all the gunk that was residing underneath your skin”.
Symptoms like blackheads or tiny skin-colored bumps are some of the forms of purging and these bear close resemblance to an actual acne breakout that can anywhere from 6-8 weeks.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there since acne can clear up and return just as severely as it did before or even worse. But like any other health issue, there are some root causes that you need to understand and try to get under control instead of just focusing on the symptoms every single time.
1. BAD EATING HABITS
When you are plagues with acne, your diet plays a critical role in managing and even reversing symptoms. Certain food or ingredients like simple carbohydrates or sugar, vegetable oil, and dairy result in insulin spikes and are inflammatory; a deadly combination for hormonal imbalance and acne.
Everyone, especially persons with acne need to stick to whole, clean ingredients that are higher in protein and fat and will help to manage insulin levels, as well as lower inflammation in the body. And sometimes doing that alone, with a practice called intermittent fasting, can reduce or eliminate acne symptoms for good. This guide on foods to stop eating regularly with PCOS is good place to start.
2. HIGH STRESS LEVELS
Managing stress goes hand in hand with managing acne, even though acne itself can be a big contributor to high stress levels in the first place. High stress levels contribute significantly to elevated cortisol- dubbed the stress hormone. This leads to chronic inflammation in the body and drives hormonal imbalance that is at the root of acne.
It’s best to explore techniques like guided meditation, or find endorphin-boosting activities like exercise that promote relaxation of the mind and body.
3. DESTRUCTIVE LIFESTYLE HABITS
Any behavior done for a prolonged period that deteriorates your health- inflammation, chronic fatigue, rapid weight gain or loss to name a few, are classified as destructive habits. These habits can look like excess drinking, smoking, unhealthy snacking, over-eating, and even over-exercising.
Remember in order to clear skin quickly, anything that helps to balance your hormones and reduce inflammation in the body are the main goals. So making positive lifestyle changes such as drinking more water, eating fewer meals throughout the day, eating more vegetables and fat, as well as consistent daily activities- exercising a few times per week, should work wonders.
4. INADEQUATE TREATMENT PLAN
An acne treatment plan is any strategy you develop for combatting acne, whether by using topical treatment products on the skin, through diet, supplementation or a combination of all three. You’ll know it’s inadequate if you’ve been following a course of action for several weeks and your acne is either not improving or is getting worse. And truth be told when you follow a plan that your skin isn’t responding to, it can be a recipe for disaster.
You need a plan that works and that you can execute quickly as needed. That said, following an anti-inflammatory diet in combination with supplementation, exercise, and products with active ingredients such as benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and retinoid is an excellent place to start. You may find this breakdown on how to treat acne at home, very useful in developing your own treatment plan.
5. LACK OF CONSISTENCY
As with any good thing in life, if you aren’t consistent then it won’t matter what you try to do to clear your acne. It is understandable that you want to permanently get rid of acne because of its physical and potentially long-term psychological impact. But if you keep making the same mistakes, it will take some time to see positive and lasting results because acne didn’t develop overnight.
And just maybe giving up too soon is one of the main reasons your acne keeps coming back. When trying new products or making the necessary lifestyle changes, give them at least a few weeks or months to get the desired results. Even then, try to keep up with your routine to maintain results and minimize the risk of acne coming back.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Managing acne is not as unattainable as we often tend to think. You’d be surprised just how quickly a few tweaks here and there can turn your skin around in the long-run.
Yes, acne is a lifelong condition that you should seek to manage rather than ‘cure’, and yes treatment is unique to every individual. But the factors discussed in this article are the most common culprits of recurring acne and having this basic understanding can jump-start your acne fighting journey once again, regardless of age or who you are.
