Aside from the biggies like disease, pain, work and stress, all results of
the fall into sin, acne is just another consequence of a fallen world that can
really put a damper on your day. Which
is why I’m devoting three installments to dealing with lackluster skin, this
being the second in the series.
With Western medicine’s primary answer to acne in women being antibiotics,
retinoids and birth control pills, all remedies your body will not enjoy, it is Eastern medicine that attempts at getting to the root
of the problems that cause breakouts.
In Oriental medicine, the inflammation or redness caused by acne is referred
to as “heat,” and the stuff in the breakout, whatever you want to call it, is
referred to as “damp.” The “heat” and “damp” are really just an imbalance, mainly
hormonal, which needs to be corrected for the acne to go away.
The heat can be
caused by chemicals, bacteria, stress and wrong diet. The damp
essentially refers to an over-abundance of water in the tissues, which
provides a good environment for bacteria and which shows itself in the
form of oozing fluid. It is caused by poor metabolism and wrong diet.
Last week I discussed remedies that
can be utilized in the war against acne, but this week I want to look at how
your diet can work for or against your skin.
In looking at acne as “heat” and “damp,” it’s important to stay away from
foods that cause the heat and damp.
For years dermatologists have been taught that diet has nothing to with a
patient’s acne, but more and more, the correlations between diet and acne are
being researched and proven.
One of the big food groups to avoid when fighting acne is dairy, which is a
complete shock to many people. And the reason behind this conclusion is a
complicated one. A Dec. 16, 2007 article in the Boston Globe written by Cynthia
Graber explains it like this:
The connection between food and acne is a complicated one. Acne is largely
caused by increases in male-type hormones, particularly testosterone. And foods
can cause the production of different hormones or growth factors in our body or
can inhibit proteins in our body that bind with some hormones. For instance,
while the exact reason dairy may lead to acne has not been scientifically tested,
Danby says that milk from pregnant cows contains hormones that our body can
then turn into the most potent form of testosterone.
Another food which causes the heat and damp in the body is sugar, namely the
sugar and white flour combination, which causes a spike in insulin in the body.
How dairy and white flour can affect one person’s complexion and not another person's
is a mystery that will be revealed in heaven some day. Because of the great
uniqueness of the human body, it is important to find out which foods
specifically are causing the imbalance. For some, dairy may not be the cause, white flour may be the culprit, or vice versa. So try eliminating one food
at a time. Try squeezing milk out of your diet in favor of soy or rice milk,
then work your way to cheese, yogurt and ice cream.
If those are your target foods, you’ll know. If not, move on to eliminating
white flour and refined sugars. Keep in mind though, it may take months for you
to see results in your face once you begin changing your diet, so give it time.
But it is super important to remember that you can implement the acne
fighting regime discussed last week, but if you do not stay away from
imbalance-causing foods, the acne will continue to re-occur.
For me personally, I love, love, love sugar, cookies, brownies, bread, cheese and yogurt - can't seem to live without them - but each of these foods does something horrible to my hormonal balance, so I try to eat them sparingly. Having some cheese and crackers occasionally may lead to a small breakout, but because I'm not continually pouring toxic foods into my body and because of the natural remedies I've found, the breakouts are now few and very short lived. And that, I can live with.
Aside from the biggies like disease, pain, work and stress, all results of the fall into sin, acne is just another consequence of a fallen world that can really put a damper on your day. Which is why I’m devoting three installments to dealing with lackluster skin, this being the second in the series.
In Oriental medicine, the inflammation or redness caused by acne is referred to as “heat,” and the stuff in the breakout, whatever you want to call it, is referred to as “damp.” The “heat” and “damp” are really just an imbalance, mainly hormonal, which needs to be corrected for the acne to go away.
The heat can be caused by chemicals, bacteria, stress and wrong diet. The damp essentially refers to an over-abundance of water in the tissues, which provides a good environment for bacteria and which shows itself in the form of oozing fluid. It is caused by poor metabolism and wrong diet.
Last week I discussed remedies that can be utilized in the war against acne, but this week I want to look at how your diet can work for or against your skin.
In looking at acne as “heat” and “damp,” it’s important to stay away from foods that cause the heat and damp.
One of the big food groups to avoid when fighting acne is dairy, which is a complete shock to many people. And the reason behind this conclusion is a complicated one. A Dec. 16, 2007 article in the Boston Globe written by Cynthia Graber explains it like this:
The connection between food and acne is a complicated one. Acne is largely caused by increases in male-type hormones, particularly testosterone. And foods can cause the production of different hormones or growth factors in our body or can inhibit proteins in our body that bind with some hormones. For instance, while the exact reason dairy may lead to acne has not been scientifically tested, Danby says that milk from pregnant cows contains hormones that our body can then turn into the most potent form of testosterone.
Another food which causes the heat and damp in the body is sugar, namely the sugar and white flour combination, which causes a spike in insulin in the body.
How dairy and white flour can affect one person’s complexion and not another person's is a mystery that will be revealed in heaven some day. Because of the great uniqueness of the human body, it is important to find out which foods specifically are causing the imbalance. For some, dairy may not be the cause, white flour may be the culprit, or vice versa. So try eliminating one food at a time. Try squeezing milk out of your diet in favor of soy or rice milk, then work your way to cheese, yogurt and ice cream.
If those are your target foods, you’ll know. If not, move on to eliminating white flour and refined sugars. Keep in mind though, it may take months for you to see results in your face once you begin changing your diet, so give it time.
But it is super important to remember that you can implement the acne fighting regime discussed last week, but if you do not stay away from imbalance-causing foods, the acne will continue to re-occur.
For me personally, I love, love, love sugar, cookies, brownies, bread, cheese and yogurt - can't seem to live without them - but each of these foods does something horrible to my hormonal balance, so I try to eat them sparingly. Having some cheese and crackers occasionally may lead to a small breakout, but because I'm not continually pouring toxic foods into my body and because of the natural remedies I've found, the breakouts are now few and very short lived. And that, I can live with.