Friday, August 29, 2008

Does Diet Cause Pimples ?

whether or not a person's diet affects the presence or absence of acne has been one of the debates for over centuries.

Some Claim there is a direct relationship between diet and acne while some claim there isnt .But which line of thought is correct ?

Will you really break out if you eat too much chocolate or too many greasy, high-fat foods?

Doctors and dermatologists say diet doesn't cause acne because they can't sell you a healthy diet. This may sound cynical, but they are under huge pressure from pharmaceutical companies to prescribe antibiotics, topical creams, Dianette, Roaccutane and other treatments. Also, think about this: why is there little research into diet and acne? Again, because there's no money in it. Drug companies fund most research and if the aim is to find a link between acne and diet, there's no drug candidate at the end of it. This is also why, through no fault of their own, doctors and dermatologists always say there is no link between diet and acne — when they were training in their profession there was little documented research to say diet can aggravate acne. Their argument for this is based around the fact that diet doesn't cause acne — you may have acne and eat relatively healthily, while your friend eats fried food, chocolate, pizza etc and stays blemish-free. This is because there are several factors in why certain individuals get acne and others don't. If you are predisposed to get acne, diet can aggravate it.

Diets rich in fat or diets lacking any fat at all are both bad for acne conditions, as both conditions alter sebum production processes greatly. Some fat in your diet is necessary for the vitamins' absorption. But high fat content increases oil levels in and on the skin (sebum), which increases bacterial growth. Also, the rich Western diet increases sex hormones, which explain precocious puberty in boys and girls. Excess male hormones are well-known to cause and worsen acne by increasing sebum production.

Acne is also promoted by the lack of antioxidants and plant-derived nutrients. These are essential in keeping the skin healthy. High fat diets cause poor blood circulation, making skin susceptible to acne.

People suffering from acne should avoid sugar and sugary foods such as soft drinks, jams, many cereals, biscuits and cakes. They should refrain from eating food containing white flour such as bread, pasta, biscuits and pastries. Chemical additives in canned food are also harmful for acne conditions. Fried, fatty and processed food should be avoided to save the skin and digestive system from toxins getting produced during metabolism. Acne patients should not smoke at all.

In the next article I will be looking at the relationship of beer and acne.

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