What causes Acne? Is Stress responsible for Acne?
Acne is a result of infected sebum/sebaceous glands. Sebum is the oily substance produced by hair follicles. When a hair follicle is plugged, trapping dead cells and excess oil, it results in Acne. Acne can affect any person of any age or gender.
Acne patients are often plagued by guilt, as they erroneously believe that Acne is caused by their dietary habits and poor hygiene.
Acne is caused due to various factors. It would surprise you to know that it is not poor diet but stress which could be causing Acne.
“I have my exams next week and I am very tense. To top it all my face and back are covered by red angry zits.”
“I have an appraisal coming up at work. My face is covered by Acne.”
A lot of people have identified stress as a cause for Acne. Research has proved that this could be a possibility. However, scientists are divided on this issue.
Stress causes acne in more than one way. It may stimulate the adrenal glands to produce more hormones and also may retard the healing process.
Norepinephrine and epinephrine are secreted by Adrenal glands, located above the kidneys; Stress can increase the secretion of the male hormones, which may result in the production of sebum, which in turn causes Acne.
Stress induces the adrenal glands to produce more cortisol, a steroid, and this induces the sebaceous glands to produce more oil. This results in painful pus filled papules rather than Comedones.
German researchers have found out that a stress hormone called corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) is released in the sebaceous gland — producing oily skin, and this results in Acne.
There are some scientists who dismiss this as absurd. They claim that Acne urticata is a form of eczema, and not acne. This is more prevalent in women. suffering from depression and stress; however, it is not yet definitely proved if stress is a factor for acne or vice versa. In spite of denials by certain experts about stress being a factor for acne, stress is something that needs to be reduced.
If indeed, stress were the culprit for causing Acne, the best thing to do would be to control stress. Eating nutritious food, getting your sleep regularly and sticking to your schedule is the best way to avoid negative stress. Exercise, relaxation, yoga and generally being happy is vital to a healthy you, and hence to your healthy skin.
It is also difficult to determine if acne flare-ups during exams are a result of changes in diet or lack of sleep, rather than stress. Or probably ignoring facial hygiene during exam could have triggered acne. But relaxation and stress reduction may be potent means to treat acne, even if it is practiced for about 15 minutes a day.