Why does skin break out? More contributing factors

In What is causing your breakouts? (link below), I go over a checklist of possible reasons you are having issues with your skin. If you haven’t taken a look at that, do because it might open your eyes to things you weren’t looking at before. Below I’ll go over more factors that can and do contribute to breakouts. Hopefully with all of this information, you will be well on your way to clear and healthy skin.

Anything in excess can have a physical effect like breakout. This can mean too much of something in your diet, but it can also mean too much exercise, too much stress, and of course too much soda, caffeine, alcohol, or cigarettes. Just look at your day-to-day routines and see where you hit the excess meter. This way you may discover something that is contributing to your breakout in your everyday life.

As you have know or have learned (I hope), sugar and sugary foods are huge contributors to problem skin. So if you are eating excessive amounts of sugar (I consider excessive to be eating some form of sugar every day), you probably have breakout. And if you don’t, you may have regular headaches. And if you don’t have either, believe me, something is going on in your body to counteract all the toxic, sugary foods, and it’s not a positive effect. I have written several articles about sugar and skin issues, I highly recommend reading some (or all!) to help you understand the relationship between sugar sensitivity and skin issues.

Exercise as we all know is an important part of daily (or at least three times weekly) life. But like any other good thing, too much of it can turn against you. Wanting to be in shape and keeping your body fit and healthy is obviously a good thing. But I’m sure you know someone (is it you?) who just cannot get off the exercise treadmill. I mean that metaphorically, but I suppose it could be taken literally too. For some, exercise has turned into an unhealthy addiction, and unfortunately your skin may be paying the price for those extreme efforts.

You may be wondering how this affects your skin. First, if you exercise, you have to get more water than the daily recommended eight glasses a day we all grew up hearing about. Your body is throwing off sweat in order to keep your core body temperature down, since you are heating it up by increasing circulation and raising your body’s heat index. Without drinking water all throughout the day and even while exercising, your smart and creative body will simply take the water it needs from wherever it can get it—namely your organs. Your skin is an organ—the largest one—so why not take water from it?

Not drinking enough water and dehydration go hand in hand. Dehydration can take the form of dehydrated skin on the outside as well as dehydration inside your body. And you don’t want your insides to become dehydrated. That is why the eight 8-oz. glasses theory is drilled into us from such an early age. It is absolutely necessary. If you exercise regularly, think about adjusting your water intake accordingly.

By the way, I don't see dehydrated skin from a lack of ingesting water as much as many imagine. Dehydration on the outside that manifests as dry-feeling skin, is more a matter of an accumulation of dead skin buildup than a matter of not drinking enough water.

Too much coffee, sodas, iced tea, candy, sugar in your coffee, and artificial sweeteners. All of these and more can contribute to your skin problems. Do I need to go over why drinking too many sodas may be contributing to your skin care woes? (If so, then read Sodas, sugar, your skin & breakouts, link below.) If you drink regular, sugary, caffeinated sodas you are shoveling 10-15 teaspoons of sugar into your body with each and every soda pop, to say nothing of the caffeine your poor adrenal glands have to contend with. Sugar is lethal for many reasons and is a common denominator I have found to cause breakouts in a high percentage of my clients.

Even drinking fruit juice can cause some people to break out. Store-bought juice is a concentrate of sugar with some vitamins added. And although the sugar is fructose (fruit sugar), this kind of juice will have added sugar if it’s from concentrate. People down glass upon glass of juice thinking it is a healthy drink. I have many clients who come in for facials with breakout and after finding out about their diets, I discover they are drinking juice every day or on some kind of regular basis—even just a small amount. Remember, when you drink juice, you are getting a lot of carbohydrates from sugar and also a lot of calories. I heard someone say they don’t like to drink their meals—meaning they want to eat foods with high nutrient contents rather than a glass of sugary juice.

Stress plays a huge role in skin care problems. Stress breaks down your immune system, leaving your body ill-equipped to function optimally. This includes its ability to excrete toxic waste and eliminate properly. Many times when the body is under a lot of stress, one of the unfortunate symptoms is breakout. Try HEADSPACE: Get your meditation on (link below) and other articles under the stress/anti-stress category and see if they help you understand this crucial balance of stress along with anti-stress activities. 

If you have a genetic predisposition for oily, problem, or acne skin, there is little you can do to stop this driving force fueled by your ancestry. However, keeping all other areas in check (diet, stress, lifestyle habits, skin care routine) can and will contribute to keeping your skin clear and breakout-free. 

Sleeping with your makeup on is another no-no in the skin care realm. I have said this many times: If you brush your teeth at night, you certainly can wash your face. Just put cleanser on prior to brushing your teeth, brush, and simply rinse the cleanser off. This only takes a few seconds and goes a long way to help keep your skin clean. If you don’t want to “wash” your face, try a waterless cleanser. Something is better than nothing!

Birth control pills can, in many cases, cause breakouts. Some women find help with their problem skin while on the Pill; others find their skin becomes worse or starts breaking out when they didn’t have any problems prior to taking these hormones. Going off the Pill can cause problems too. While on the pill you were supplying hormones; going off, your body needs time to adjust. Hormones are what cause breakouts. Since the Pill contains hormones, it makes sense that this seemingly “harmless” form of birth control can and in many cases does cause problems with some people’s their skin.

There are many articles on this blog about how to figure out why you are breaking out along with ways to help treat the breakout. I hope you will continue to use this information to help keep your breakouts to a minimum and possibly stop any breakout from appearing in the first place.

For more information, see:

• What is causing your breakouts?
• Sodas, sugar, your skin & breakouts
• HEADSPACE: Get your meditation on