How To Get Rid Of Blemishes



How To Get Rid Of Blemishes


On your face this time, as requested. We´ve already got the butt covered.

My approach to pimples is different from that of your average cosmetician. I see them as a symptom, rather than a sickness. Basically, the skin is our largest detox organ, and breakouts are an attempt to re-balance as well as a distress call. Most of the time pimples are caused by some kind of digestive problem: either a generally unhealthy diet, a specific problem food, or difficulties in digesting diary or gluten.
   Touching the face, hair and dirty pillow covers are often touted as the cause for pimples, but I believe that they can only aggravate an existing problem. They don´t cause it. (Unless you absolutely never wash your face and hands, and your pillow has a grease stain on it).

Pimples may be caused by :


1. Skin Detox

   When you start using a better cosmetic product, quitting smoking, caffeine, or switching to healthier food, the body releases the toxins it´s been holding on to. The skin purges impurities through pimples. For example, most people get a breakout when they begin the oil cleansing method; this breakout soon clears up and the skin looks better than before. Read my post on skin detox here.
Solution: wait it out. If it´s detox, it will clear up within two weeks.

2. Cosmetic products:

   Certain ingredients can block pores and cause break-outs (which clear up as soon as you stop using the product). Remember that different things are comedogenic to different people. This means that the cream that made your bff hide her face in a paper bag could work fine for you. Keep track of the ingredients that cause to to break out, and you´ll soon have a small black list of what you should avoid.
   Another thing: products meant for oily skin sometimes cause breakouts. They are often harsh and drying, they strip the skin of it´s natural oils and irritate the oil glands. The skin responds by producing more oil. This is especially true for anything that contains alcohol or SLS. Sometimes switching to a product for normal skin helps.
Solution: switch products. Also, switch to a natural detergent and fabric softener for your pillowcase.

3. Hormones and health problems

   Puberty, pregnancy, nursing, periods and menopause are times when hormones do their thing and disrupt the balance of the skin. Bad cases of breakouts at any age might mean it´s time for a check-up with the endicronologist to see if it´s not a hormonal issue. And remember, that food plays a big factor here: puberty on junk food will most probably lead to messy skin, while eating lots of fresh raw food can sail you through puberty or menopause without symptoms.
Other causes of persistent breakouts include Polycystic ovary syndrome, Cushing´s syndrome, use of anabolic steroids, Keratinization disorders, and many kinds of medication.
Solution: get you hormones checked, clean up your eating habits, drink more water.

4. Bad eating habits and food allergies

   This is the most common cause of breakouts. The most common triggers are: fizzy drinks, junk food, anything heavily processed (anything deep frozen, in cans or powder form, pre-cooked or pre-fried), fried food, alcohol, coffee, too much salt or sugar... practically anything that is not healthy for you.
   If you think you´re eating pretty healthy, you might have trouble digesting lactose, nuts or gluten. Especially lactose has been linked with acne.
Solution: Add more fresh fruit and veggies into your diet. Try these guidelines. Drink more water. Try going lactose-free for a couple of weeks, and two weeks gluten-free and see how your skin responds. If you manage to find the trigger, you can decide what to do next.

5. Stress

   Pimples and dandruff are often stress-triggered. Actually the stress causes digestive problems which trigger breakouts. So it makes sense to eat things that won´t burden the digestive system. This is really important, because we tend to reach for all the wrong foods when we´re stressed, and these foods often make it worse. Also, find a way to relax: find a sport you love, start a journal, sleep more, pick up a hobby, go and hug an animal.
Solution: Don´t use stress as an excuse to eat crap. Move. Breathe. EFT. Basically, the "I´m so stressed that I´m too stressed to do anything about it" might not be the best approach here.

The bottom line:

   The cause of persisting pimples is most often in the stomach. Or rather what goes into the stomach. Though anti-acne products may solve the problem for a while, it´s rather like mopping up the floor instead of fixing the leak. If you´re breaking out all the time, your body is trying to get rid of something. Find out what it is. Reduce it, remove it, or balance it with something else.

I hope I´ve answered your questions ! Of course this is nowhere close to being an encyclopedia on breakouts, but I hope I managed to outline the basic approach towards the problem ! Have you got any more question ? Do you have tips of your own ?



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