Acne and periods: adult hormonal acne
If during adolescence, acne can be severe and flare up due to the flood of hormones from puberty, what about hormonal acne in adulthood?
What is the link between periods and acne? Between birth control and acne? What habits and routines should you adopt to avoid those small and not‑so‑small spots that can really ruin your day?
In this article:
What is acne?
Acne is a skin disease that affects a great many people, to varying degrees, on the face but also on the back, shoulders and chest.
This chronic condition, which is very difficult to control and clear up, is caused by a hormonal imbalance. The glands that secrete the famous sebum then malfunction. The excess sebum leads to the formation of open comedones and closed comedones (blackheads and whiteheads).
Red spots (papules, pustules or nodules) are an inflammatory reaction to the proliferation of bacteria.
Why do we get acne breakouts as adults?
Not everyone is the same. It’s a matter of genetics, skin, diet, environment, stress. In short, as you’ve probably guessed, we don’t all start on an equal footing when it comes to acne.
Other factors can increase the likelihood of more or less severe adult acne:
- Genetics. If one of your parents has oily skin, you’re more likely to have oily skin yourself, which is the perfect breeding ground for blackheads and other lovely red or white pimples.
Excess sebum production clogs the skin’s pores, the skin can no longer breathe, it’s blocked, and impurities start to build up. Inflammation can then begin.
- Your diet can partly influence the state of your skin (too oily, too sweet).
- Your makeup (if it’s poor quality or applied too heavily), improper makeup removal and even your makeup brushes harbor many bacteria.
- Your pillowcase should be changed regularly to limit contact with fabric saturated with impurities and dead skin from your face and hair.
- But **stress**, **pollution** and **smoking** also need to be taken into account.
And what about hormonal acne in all this?
Many external factors can worsen the **acne phenomenon**, but today we want to focus more specifically on **hormonal acne**.
Hormonal acne is, as the name suggests, directly linked to hormones. And if you’ve been following our recent articles, especially on the menstrual cycle, you know a woman’s body is shaken up every month by many different hormones. These directly influence the female cycle, periods and ovulation.
So, we know that at puberty, when first periods arrive, hormones go wild. It’s no surprise—though it’s annoying—to see acne appear in teen girls and young women.
But why do adult women also still experience hormonal acne? Quite simply because their skin is particularly sensitive to the hormonal fluctuations their body goes through each cycle.
The menstrual cycle is driven by the production, rise and fall of certain hormones. These variations, which follow the different phases of the cycle, have a direct impact on the skin.
To sum up:
- female hormones such as estrogens and progesterone,
- the male hormone, testosterone;
- Cycle changes include irregular periods, which may be lighter or heavier. These variations reflect hormonal adjustment.
Fluctuations in these hormones affect the sebaceous glands. These glands produce sebum. When sebum production is disrupted, pimples start to form.
How can you recognize hormonal acne?
Hormonal acne isn’t so different from the acne you may have had as a teenager. It includes:
- those infamous blackheads,
- the rarer white spots,
- the red bumps with a white tip on the surface of the skin,
- small red bumps under the skin.
Hormonal acne, meaning acne in adult women of childbearing age, tends to appear in the lower part of the face. It’s located on the chin, around the mouth, at the bottom of the cheeks and along the jawline.
Hormonal acne therefore comes back cyclically and is also influenced by several events in a woman’s life, such as childbirth, an abortion or menopause.
During the postpartum period, when hormones are completely out of balance, it’s not surprising to see more acne than usual.
Acne and periods: premenstrual acne
The numbers and studies are clear. Many women notice their acne gets worse before their period. Remember, the time leading up to your period is called the luteal phase.
It’s during this phase that a woman may experience PMS, or Premenstrual Syndrome. Highly varied and different from one woman to another and from one cycle to the next, symptoms can be both psychological (anxiety, irritability) and physical (headaches, fatigue).
During the luteal phase, female hormones are at their lowest, while testosterone, the male hormone, rises again. In short, more fluctuations that, about a week before your next period, trigger the appearance of new pimples.
Is the pill a solution for hormonal acne?
In our article Periods and Contraception: how they affect your menstrual flow, we looked at the different contraceptive options, including the pill. Just a reminder: there are two types of hormonal pills:
- the combined pill or low-dose pill based on two hormones, estrogen and progesterone,
- the progestin-only pill or mini pill based on a synthetic progestogen.
If you want to reduce your acne, the combined pill can be an option. However, be careful: the pill cannot be prescribed solely to reduce acne.
It needs to be a considered decision, discussed with your GP and gynecologist. Third- and fourth-generation pills carry a certain risk of thromboembolic disease. You really need to get proper information before choosing this option.
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