Acne Care

BY SAARA LABIB

As someone who had acne, I would have tried anything to get rid of it. In my career as a makeup artist, I faced so much low self-esteem and resentment because my skin wasn’t flawless, and my kit was filled with of a range of full-coverage products. And although I knew how to brighten a teenager’s day by covering her acne on prom day, it was short-lived when she washed off her cover-up that evening.

Iwanted to do more, and began to look deeper into the root causes of acne—into skin, the body, and the holistic connection between them. I also switched from mainstream products to clean cosmetic and skin care lines and am now a passionate, holistic beautician who wants to share what

I’ve learned.

A Deeper Skin Dive

In our hair follicles are tiny sebaceous glands that secrete sebum, an oily substance that lubricates our skin and hair. When the follicles get plugged with oil and dead skin cells, they cause inflammation and bacteria growth, causing whiteheads, blackheads, or pimples to form. Acne is persistent and can cause scarring and emotional stress.

Causes

Acne inflammation is an immune system response that can be triggered by a variety of things such as stress, poor sleep quality, infections, poor digestion, and overgrowth of gut bacteria. But, I’ll talk about the three most common causes, along with their remedies.

CAUSE #1: Hormone Imbalance

Androgens (male sex hormones): Testosterone (the most well-known) and its by-product DHT (dihydrotesterone) play a big role in regulating oil levels in the skin of both men and women. When the balance is off, more sebum is produced in the sebaceous glands, which clogs the hair follicles and causes breakouts.

Increases in the size of the sebaceous glands and oil production can also come from PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome, a hormonal disorder common among reproductive women), which I believe is related to excess insulin. Insulin resistance is the real cause.

Counteract Androgens Imbalance

• Vitamin A (virgin cod liver oil) • Vitamin B5 • Zinc

SAARA LABIB is a freelance Holistic Makeup Artist and Beautician based in Kelowna, BC. She is a passionate and active advocate for clean beauty and does regular educational workshops where she helps her clients make a safe transition to clean and toxin-free beauty and cosmetic products. Saara believes everyone can and should give themselves self-love every day by simply using their clean and toxin-free products as a small part of that love and care giving.

Estrogen: Connected to the menstrual cycle, excess estrogen which cannot be cleared by the liver can cause a build-up of hormonal acne.

Counteract Estrogen Imbalance

• Herbs to support the liver such as milk thistle and dandelion • Hormone balancing supplements that help eliminate the build-up of estrogen and xenoestrogens (mimicking hormones from environmental factors)

CAUSE #2: Food Allergies & Sensitivities

Some foods can significantly affect the development of acne: • Refined grains and sugars • Fast food diet rich in calories, fat, refined carbohydrates, and omega-6 fatty acids

Dairy sensitivity can be caused by: • Growth factors and hormones (androgens and estrogens) found in non-

Canadian dairy • Protein allergy • Lactose intolerance • A1 (casein) • A2 (casein, may be less inflammatory)

If you have a hard time eliminating dairy from your diet, you may want to try goat milk and 100% grass-fed organic cheese.

CAUSE #3: Fluoride

Research shows that ingestion and topical exposure to fluoride (from toothpaste and dental treatments) causes acne-like skin conditions: • Fluoroderma: almost identical to acne from androgens • Halogen acne: from exposure to halogens (non-metallic elements) like fluoride • Perioral dermatitis: acne around the mouth

Sources www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/acne/symptomscauses/syc-20368047 www.forhers.com/blog/the-androgen-hormones-thatcause-acne www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods-that-cause-acne

Reduce Exposure to Fluoride

• Use fluoride-free toothpaste. • Get a water filter (water pitcher filter, whole-house filter, or shower filter). • Avoid teeth whitening. • Avoid beverages with fluoride.

Treatment

Traditionally, acne is treated internally by antibiotics and topically by cream products. But antibiotics are a temporary cure and can cause more damage when they kill beneficial gut bacteria along with the harmful ones.

Healthy skin starts within, so work on building a healthier diet by increasing hydration, healthy fats, and antioxidants.

Topical spot treatments are the best way to treat acne without stressing the rest of your skin.

Be Gentle

Most people with acne damage their skin by scrubbing too hard. The skin layer is filled with millions of friendly microbes that protect your skin. Constant cleaning with harsh and toxic products will only promote more harmful bacteria. Wash your face once a day, at night, with a cleanser containing healing ingredients like tea tree oil, aloe vera, manuka or regular honey, or sea buckhorn. Then use a gentle toner made of pure apple cider vinegar diluted with water.

Go Pure

For skin cream, lotion, or oil, use a product with pure ingredients. I like healing oils such as: • Ozonated olive oil (my number one remedy) which works wonders for acne by speeding recovery and helping with acne scars; • Anti-inflammatory sea buckthorn oil which promotes skin hydration, elasticity, cell regeneration, and helps treat and prevent acne; • Moisturizing marula oil, which is great for oily skin because it’s non-greasy and full of antimicrobial properties; or • Pure silver gel and manuka honey which also treat infections by killing only the bad bacteria.

DID YOU KNOW? Young adults who regularly consume dairy products such as milk or ice cream are four times more likely to suffer from acne. DID YOU KNOW? Acne affects nearly 10% of the world’s population.

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