When I was in my early 30s, I had terrible hormonal acne. I used
every scrub and face mask I could to get rid of it, with no success.
So, I booked a consultation with a dermatologist. I will never forget what he said...
"You're over 30 and you haven't had children. What do you expect? Women were designed to have babies by this
age." Then he charged me a few hundred dollars and I went home and cried. All I wanted was to have a
family, but wanting and getting are two different things. I have now learnt that our diet can have a
massive impact on hormonal acne. So, stay tuned and I'll share my diet plan for hormonal acne.
Hello! If this is our first time connecting, welcome! My name is Melanie McGrice and I'm a
women's health and fertility dietitian. Make sure you connect with me on my
socials... you'll find all the details in the description box below this video.
In recent years, research has found that our diet can play an important role in treating hormonal
acne. An increase in androgen hormones results in an increased production of oil by skin cells
and also an increase in inflammation. This environment is ideal for the growth of bacteria, leading to acne.
So, if you suffer from hormonal acne, there are two primary goals for your diet plan. Number one,
is to reduce androgen hormones, and number two is to reduce inflammation.
Consequently, make sure that you include these considerations
in your diet plan for hormonal acne:
1. Choose foods which have a low GI - The GI, or glycemic index,
is a ranking of foods from 1 to 100, based on how quickly they break down. Foods with a low GI
break down more slowly, which helps to optimise hormone levels. Some simple
tweaks such as replacing processed white bread with a dense sourdough or multigrain
can make a big difference to reduce the GI of your diet, and improve your hormone levels.
2. Consider soy in your diet - Soy products such as soy milk and tofu,
are rich in a compound called genistein. Genistein is a type of phytoestrogen, or plant estrogen.
It mimics the impact of our estrogen hormones. Depending on what your estrogen levels are like,
increasing genistein can improve hormonal acne for some women, or worsen it for others.
3. Resveratrol is a potent antioxidant found in red grapes, berries and tomatoes.
Research suggests that resveratrol may be helpful as part of a diet plan for hormonal
acne because it has powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties, helping it to inhibit
the growth of acne-causing bacteria. 4. Replace milk and yoghurt with hard
cheeses - There are two types of protein found in dairy products, curds and whey. Whey proteins
have been found to increase insulin levels, which may then lead to an increase in the production of
oil by the skin cells. Hard cheeses are made by pressing milk to remove most of the liquid whey,
consequently leaving them low in whey protein, and less likely to cause acne. It's also important
to check foods such as protein shakes and protein balls for whey protein as it could
lead to an increase in hormonal acne for you too. 5. Consume plenty of good fats - good fats from
foods such as salmon and nuts have been found to reduce inflammation associated with hormonal acne.
6. Include prebiotic foods to boost your gut microbiota - emerging research suggests that
a healthy gut microbiota may help to improve hormonal acne. It's been suggested that good
bacteria may help to improve hormonal levels as well as reducing inflammation.
So, what might a healthy diet plan for hormonal acne look like?
Well, you might have some oats with soy milk and raspberries for breakfast,
followed by a Mediterranean salad made from chick peas, greens, nuts, parmesan and extra
virgin olive oil for lunch; and a salmon pasta for dinner. Good snacks would include hard cheese
on grainy crackers, nuts and seeds, berries, stone fruit (especially plums), and avo toast.
Feel free to ask any questions in the comments box below, and make sure you subscribe.
I'll look forward to seeing you in my next video!