Hormonal Imbalance
& Acne
Can Hormonal Imbalance Cause Acne?
Through out the years, it has been known that acne is mainly
due to hormones, hormonal imbalance and hormonal changes.
And, people with high level of androgens and testosterone
and oily skin are more prone to developing acne. Additionally,
androgens and estrogens are also important to keep a healthy
skin.
Acne usually starts to appear during the teenage years up
to the age of 24 for women. Most of the people get lesions
on the face, the chin, cheeks and the forehead. There is also
a number of individuals experience acne on the back or chest.
To further support the point, the hormone androgens are known
to trigger the start of this skin disorder. It helps to stimulate
the enlargement of sebaceous glands, and so giving way to
the production and secretion of the sebum, which is an oily
substance found only in the skin.
Once the sebum is produced by the sebaceous glands, it will
be accumulated in the hair follicles. It then goes up to the
hair shafts until it reaches the external layers of the skin.
During the process, dirt and bacteria will mix with sebum,
plugging the follicles which provide breeding grounds for
the bacteria, and finally causing the appearance of acne.
Basically, the hormones help to regulate several body processes.
When the hormones become slightly imbalance, it might result
to complications and may disrupt body processes, a good hormonal
condition will even decrease the possibility of developing
the skin disease.
During puberty, the adrenal gland will secrete hormones known
as dihydroepiandrosterone sulfate or DHEAS. Combined with
testosterone, these hormones will induce the sebaceous glands
to produce extra sebum. This is the explanation why the skin
disorder is more common among teens.
Since the males have greater presence of hormone testosterone,
this has caused more severe acne outbreak in boys. It is much
harder to treat teenagers since there is a constant flux in
their hormones. Initially, it may be possible to treat their
acne with a specific topical medication, but as their body
develops, they might experience hormonal shifts and cease
on reacting to recent medications. This is why doctors will
have to keep changing their prescriptions to accommodate the
changes.
Acne in women often appears a week the menstruation. This
condition will usually affect those who are in their mid-twenties
and thirties. Women are said never to outgrow this natural
process, but this is only true to some special cases. For
the women who experience this, it is best to seek help from
their dermatologists and doctors to find out the real cause
of such conditions. Most of the outbreaks of acne could be
due to hormonal imbalance.
It would be tougher to treat the acne patients at this stage.
However, if the doctor successfully identified the relation
of hormone to acne, he may normally prescribe certain medications
for treatment. Doctors might provide birth control pills for
the women as the medications will help to suppress the androgens
in the body. Corticosteroids may be prescribed for the more
severe cases of acne, however it may worsen the acne condition
in some patients.
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