Hormones & Acne - What No One Tells You
The Hidden Link Between Hormones & Acne
If you’ve ever felt like your skin is out of control no matter what you do, your hormones might be the missing piece of the puzzle.
Most people know that hormones can affect acne, but they don’t realise how or why. It’s not just about “hormonal breakouts” before your period - it’s a complex chain reaction happening inside your body that influence oil production, inflammation, and your skin barrier.
Here’s what most people don’t realise:
Hormones don’t just change with your cycle - they fluctuate daily based on stress, food, sleep, and gut health.
Even if your blood tests show “normal” hormone levels, imbalances can still exist at a cellular level and impact your skin.
Certain foods, skincare products, and even workouts can worsen hormonal acne.
Let’s break it all down and give you real solutions - not just the same old “drink more water and avoid dairy” advice.
What’s Really Happening Beneath Your Skin?
Your skin isn’t acting up randomly - there’s always an internal trigger. Here are the key hormones that can throw your skin off balance:
Testosterone & Androgens: The Oil Triggers
Androgens (like testosterone) tell your oil glands to go into overdrive, leading to clogged pores and deep, painful acne.
High stress, poor sleep, and certain foods can increase these hormones.
LITTLE- KNOWN FACT: Even women with normal testosterone levels can experience androgen-related acne if their body is more sensitive to androgens at a receptor level!
Estrogen: The Skin Protector
Estrogen helps keep skin clear, plump, and hydrated, but when it drops (before your period, after stopping birth control, during perimenopause), acne can flare up.
A low-fat diet can lower estrogen levels, making skin drier and more prone to breakouts.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: Birth control pills that contain estrogen can improve acne, but when you stop taking them, your skin can rebound with a surge of oil production.
Progesterone: The Pore Clogger
This hormone rises after ovulation and can make skin more inflamed, swollen, and prone to congestion before your period.
It also increases water retention, making breakouts look even worse.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: If you get breakouts right before your period, it’s often a mix of low estrogen and high progesterone, leading to dehydrated yet oily skin.
Cortisol: The Stress Hormone That Wrecks Your Skin.
High cortisol increases oil production, inflammation, and blood sugar spikes, all of which make acne worse.
Even skipping meals, over exercising, or drinking too much coffee can send cortisol soaring.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: Chronic stress reduces your skin’s ability to heal, meaning breakouts stick around longer than they should.
How to Balance Hormones for Clearer Skin
Fixing hormonal acne isn’t about perfection - it’s about making small, consistent changes that help regulate these internal imbalances
Support Your Liver & Gut (The Detox Pathway)
Your liver and gut help process excess hormones, and if they’re sluggish, those hormones re-circulate in your body, triggering acne.
Eat cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, kale) to help your liver detox and process estrogen.
Avoid constipation-if waste builds up, excess hormones get reabsorbed. Eat fiber-rich foods and drink plenty of water.
Support your gut with probiotics - and unhealthy gut can trigger inflammation and make acne worse.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: If you’ve been on antibiotics for acne, it can disrupt your gut microbiome and make hormonal imbalances worse in the long run!
Balance Blood Sugar to Keep Androgens in Check
Spikes in blood sugar trigger high androgens and more oil production leading to breakouts.
Pair protein and healthy fats and fiber with every meal to prevent blood sugar crashes.
Avoid sugary snacks and processed carbs - these trigger insulin spikes with worsen acne.
Try spearmint tea - it naturally lowers androgens and helps with hormonal acne.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: Dairy and sugar together (like a latte with syrup) cause a double hormone spike - one from insulin, one from diary’s natural hormones!
Manage Stress & Prioritise Sleep (For Real!)
We all know stress is bad, but here’s why it really matters:
Poor sleep raises cortisol, making your skin oilier and more inflamed.
Chronic stress disrupts estrogen and progesterone, leading to breakouts
Over-exercising (especially instense cardio) can raise cortisol and androgen, making acne worse.
LITTLE-KNOWN FACT: Blue light from screen raises cortisol and suppresses melatonin, which messes with your skin’s overnight repair cycle. Try switching to night mode or wearing blue light blocking glasses in the evening.
Ready To Get Your Skin Under Control?
Balancing hormones takes time, but knowing exactly what’s out of balance makes all the difference.
That’s where I can help!
With a quick blood prick test, we can identify underlying imbalances that could be triggering your acne.
Contact me by clicking the link below to get more information on the simple at-home hormone or gut health tests.
