Hormonal Acne & Mature Skin Breakouts? Here’s Why.

Both men and women are consistently asking: “Where am I going wrong?” so I decided to shed some light on the acne-creating cycle we can all get caught up in.

Once you understand what’s causing your breakouts, you can start changing your habits, and clear up your skin.

If you’re looking for a Hormonal Acne solution – we’ve created the Atopis Radiant Skin Bundle – our 4 products work in perfect synergy to give you a clear and hormonally balanced complexion.

First, What Causes Acne?

Short on time? Here’s a 30-second intro video on What Causes Acne.

 

We’ve done a whole blog post on What Causes Acne – but for now, it’s important to remember there are 3 main causes of Acne:

1. Hormones

One of the biggest culprits of acne is fluctuations in your hormones (which is what we’ll be talking about today).

Across a variety of ages, hormones and hormonal imbalances can lead to detrimental effects on our skin. Read more about how your acne can vary as you age here.

For women, acne usually appears in the later stages of the menstrual cycle, so a week before or even during your period.

It can also appear after starting a new form of birth control, hormone replacement therapy through menopause, or as a result of fluctuating hormones and conditions such as Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS).

Androgens (male sex hormones) can fluctuate in level when compounded with stress, fatigue and lack of skin care.

Androgens are the worst perpetrators for causing bad skin because they stimulate the growth of the sebaceous glands and increase sebum levels, making skin oily and causing severe congestion (known as hyperkeratinization).

This condition means dead skin cells don’t slough off naturally and instead clog the skin’s pores.

Cue the entry of bacteria and acne appears as the star of the show.

2. Lifestyle

Though less of a factor than genetics and hormones, your lifestyle can certainly be reflected in your skin.

Poor cleansing (or over cleansing), dehydration, stress, smoking, poor diet and abrasive product use can all be detrimental to your skin.

3. Genetic Makeup

Studies suggest that you’re more likely to struggle with breakouts if your direct relatives have suffered from acne.

Skin types are passed down through your genes and play a key part in how your skin responds to your hormones and how well it deals with sebum (oil), bacteria, anti-inflammatory properties and the regeneration of skin cells.

4 Stages of Hormonal Acne Development:

1. Hormonal Changes

When increases in testosterone or estrogen occur, this increases the production of sebum (oily or waxy matter that lubricates and waterproofs the skin and hair) at the base of the hair follicle.

Over-cleaning the skin, over-exfoliation, or use of astringent cleansers can also lead to the sebum gland overproducing sebum as these actions send the wrong message to the skin that its over dry.

Unlike teenage skin, where cells are being actively renewed causing the greasy appearance due to the increased sebum, with dry, mature skin, the sebum gland produces too much sebum to compensate for the skin’s dryness.

2. Blockage

Too much sebum results in the hair follicle becoming blocked (clogged pores).

Excessive cleaning of the blocked pores then causes the sebum gland to produce more sebum and the pores block again.

This means gentle cleaning is critical.

3. Over-cleaning

Over-cleaned skin and pores blocked with sebum unbalance your skin’s microflora (your unique mix of good and bad bacteria) as the bad bacteria is fed by the sebum.

This results in what is effectively skin infection.

4. Immune system reaction

The immune system then reacts to the bacteria imbalance and tries to counter the bad bacteria by turning on defense pathways, which can result in an allergenic response on the skin’s surface and pimples appear.

If infection worsens, then a full-blown immune system response occurs and the skin becomes inflamed, hair follicles are blocked, the site contains pus and the sebum gland produces even more sebum creating a severe outbreak.

 

Why Antibiotics Don’t Work for Hormonal Acne Long Term:

Some of you might have been prescribed antibiotics to kill the acne-creating bacteria, but this also kills the good bacteria, leaving the acne sufferer with no defense against the next bacterial attack.

On top of this, the use of alcohol-based astringents open the pores, clear the blockage but leave the skin dry and inflame pores.

This can take you frustratingly back to step one of the acne cycle.

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Break Out of the Hormonal Acne Cycle with Atopis Radiant Balance Cream:

Atopis Radiant Skin Bundle gives you 4 products, including the Acne Prone Skin Cream and The Radiant Balance Cream, that all work in synergy to balance the skin’s response to hormonal fluctuations.

These 4 products create a skincare routine that cleanses, clears, moisturizes, and tones the skin, so you can say goodbye to hormonal acne, and hello to healthy and glowing skin!

When choosing your skin care products, we highly recommend sticking to natural and non-abrasive products – rather than harsh antibiotics.

Based on award-winning international research and successful clinical trials, Dr. Iona Weir has formulated safe, natural products to help unlock the skin’s own immunity and assist self-repair.

Meanwhile, the probiotic peptides in Atopis, work to restore your skin’s friendly bacteria microbiome, just like probiotics in the gut.

Learn more about the Atopis Radiant Skin Bundle

Learn More About The Radiant Skin Bundle