How do Hormones Affect Skin Conditions?
Our skin is the largest organ of our body. We depend on our skin very much. Sagging skin makes us look old while glowing skin will make us look fabulous. Sometimes, there are annoying moments where out of nowhere, acne appears. Or that sudden itching feeling which turned out to be eczema. Do you ever question yourself, What have I done that made me get all this? Yes, I totally agree with you, You don’t deserve this. But hey, don’t worry. because you’re not the only one who feels that way. I’ve been there too.
My first terrible skin problem occurs when I was in 7th grade. When puberty hits, all of a sudden out of nowhere, eczema happened in my arms or my back and sometimes from a tiny spot, it became slightly wider. My parents got so worried about my skin problem and decided to take me to a dermatologist. I remember how the clinic always smells like a mixture of lemon and disinfectant. The doctor is a tall old man with glowing skin. My parents told him whatever they know while pointing at both my facial pimples and arm eczema. The doctor only said one thing: “Hormones”. I was still young and I remembered it till today. Not trying to brag about myself, I still do have pimples but I don’t have them very often. Some of the most common skin problems do occur but it goes away fast.
How?
The answer is simple: Proper DIET, Proper NUTRIENTS
I don’t mean to advertise an actual skin product brand because every brand depends on each individual. What might be suitable for me might not be suitable for some other user. But, do you happen to be someone who purchased skin products but never felt any slight changes to your skin? Or, are you that someone who often develops a red, swollen, itchy rash every time you use cleaning products while doing chores? Or maybe are you that someone who often develops an itchy rash every time you eat something like seafood, soy, or gluten?
Well, you’re in the right place. We are going to discuss how our hormones play a great role in our skin. How an imbalance of hormones could cause many unwanted skin problems. Plus all the secrets to glowing skin.
Skin VS Hormone
The Key Hormones
Based on Axia women’s health clinic website, there are 3 keys to hormones where each hormone plays a different role which can cause changes to the look and feel of our skin (AxiaWH, n.d.)
- Estrogen — Where helps to stimulate collagen, hyaluronic acid, and elastin in order to help our skin to be elastic, firm, and stay hydrated.
- Testosterone — Men produces the testosterone 10x more than female. While most often, females produce testosterone during menstruation. Its purpose works similarly to both males and females, by activating sebaceous glans in order to produce oil.
- Progesterone — This hormone, stimulates the oil gland’s production in the skin which cause the skin to compress the look of pores. But sometimes, when our body produces too much progesterone can build too much oil on our skin.
Treating both men’s and women’s skin, we have to understand better our physiology. But because every individual is different, every person’s needs can vary depending on their needs and specific personal way.
Male VS Female
The difference between Male and Female skin is in each gender’s sex hormones, better known as the androgens. Both genders produce all 3 hormones, MALE primarily produces TESTOSTERONE (secreted by the testes). While FEMALE, primarily produces ESTROGEN (secreted by the ovaries). To make it easy, the following table might help to understand how these 3 hormones (Estrogen, Testosterone, and Progesterone) produce and work in both gender (man and woman);
What is the connection between ALLERGIES and HORMONES?
Do you know, what we eat also affects our hormones level? This is due to a strong connection between our adrenal glands and thyroid. Experts believe, the link between food sensitivities and hormones is clear but it is not often discussed. Most of our body’s hormones are produced by those 2 organs. Thus, there is a strong connection between our hormones produced and allergies.
What we eat, controls the production of hormones in our body.
A person who maintains a healthy diet and lifestyle has lesser allergy problems. This means if the person accidentally over eating something that may give allergy to the body, the body’s cells will be able to fight off the allergy symptoms. This is because, over a period of time, this person has been building healthy cells or often well known as “Antibodies”, an important part of the body’s defense system that helps to fight off bad cells, infections, bacteria, viruses, and foreign substances in the blood. In other words, a person who doesn’t maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle will have an increase in food sensitivity (more prone to food allergy) due to an imbalance in hormone production.
Food is just one of the matters that connect hormonal imbalance and skin allergies. But, hormonal imbalance can also relate to age, circumstances (i.e. menstrual and pregnancy), and genes (blood type, Health history, diabetes). But food plays a great role in our body. Are you someone who is currently pregnant? Do you ever feel there is a certain food you can consume without a problem and sometimes there is a certain food that causes your skin to develop that irritating rash? Or maybe you have young kids that have eczema that comes and goes? Could it be, that eczema appeared after eating a certain food?
Symptoms of Hormone Imbalance
Common Foods That Cause Hormone Imbalance and Allergies
- Red and Processed meat
In the very sophisticated world, we live in today. The increase in population directly has increased food demands. In order for suppliers to be able on supplying foods to society, processed foods with uncertain chemicals (artificial, preservatives, etc) took place. Based on Intergrative Medicine doctor Sara Gottfried. M.D, “As a doctor, I’ve observed an unusual phenomenon. When women eat grain-fed, hormone-injected, super-bug-infected meat, it can negatively impact digestion and may cause bloating or constipation. And this effect on the gut leads to hormonal imbalance.” (Gottfried, n.d.)
- Fish and seafood high in mercury
Experts said that larger and longer-lived fishes tend to contain most mercury. Some of the most common ones are king mackerel, marlin, swordfish, tilefish, fresh tuna, shellfish, and so on. “Mercury is an endocrine disrupter to both thyroid and hormone homeostasis.” (Gottfried, n.d.). Thus, occasionally consuming seafood high in mercury will reduce the thyroid antibody of the body. When your body has lower antibodies, your body wont is able to fight the bad substances, causing your body to develop allergies (itch and rash).
- Soy
Phytoestrogen is a bioactive substance consisting of soy products. It acts similarly to an estrogen hormone in the body. The protein consists in soy binds to your antibody of the immune system. This often triggers your immune defenses, leading to reaction symptoms that can be mild or severe. Thus, consuming too much soy can affect both male and female reproductive system health.
- Gluten
Based on the gluten-free society, “Gluten itself can act as an endocrine disruptor. An endocrine disruptor is a substance that can mimic your hormones and lead to imbalances, dysfunction, and disease. More specifically, gluten proteins may cross-react with antigens on your cells and trigger an inflammatory immune response.” (Gluten-free society, n.d.)
The Bottom Line
One of the reasons sometimes people experience fatigue, weight gain, a decrease in sex drive, lack of strength, and mood swings, is due to a weakened immune system due to Hormonal Imbalance. In order to avoid such symptoms, it is always best to limit the consumption of foods with higher fat content. Instead focus more on vegetables, and quality, lean protein, and fruits.
Based on Dr.Gotfried’s article, “Healthy individuals need at least 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per the National Academy of Medicine’s (NAM) Dietary Reference Intake. This NAM level is considered to be a minimum level for preventing muscle loss. For long-term muscle, metabolic, and overall health, 1 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight is a smarter daily goal to aim for.” (Gottfried, n.d.).
Thus, it is best to occasionally track your weight and body composition. Calculate how much protein is needed for you. Keep a healthy lifestyle by consuming more vegetables and fruits.
Originally published here: https://goodhealthandwell.com/?p=1519
References
Axia. (n.d.) From Acne to Dryness: ow your hormones affect your skin. Retrieved from: https://axiawh.com/resources/how-your-hormones-affect-your-skin/
Dermatoendocrinol. (2009, Sept-Oct). The skin is an endocrine organ. PMC PubMed Central. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2836429/
Dr, Claudia. (2011, January). Understanding Male Skin. Doctor Claudia. Retrieved from: https://doctorclaudia.com/understanding-male-skin
Baumann, L. (2002). Chapter 9: Acne. In L. Baumann & E. Weisberg (Eds.), Cosmetic Dermatology: Principles and Practice (Pg. 55–61). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Oettel, M & Mukhopadyay, A, K. (2004). Review — Progesterone: The forgotten hormone in men? (Pg. 236–257). Parthenon Publishing. DOI: 10.1080/13685530400004199
Gottfried, S. (n.d.). The 10 best types of protein for Hormone Balance. Mind-Body Green Health. Retrieved from: https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/how-protein-affects-your-hormones/
Gluten-Free Society. (n.d.). Can gluten affect your hormones?. Retrieved from: https://www.glutenfreesociety.org/can-gluten-affect-your-hormones/
