Having cystic acne is certainly no walk in the park. Many people try anything and everything to get rid of it. Have you tried eliminating certain foods to avoid with cystic acne, though? If you haven’t, here’s a list of top 7 foods you can try to cut down on.
Cystic Acne – What’s the Cause?
Cystic acne is basically caused by too much inflammation and hormonal imbalances in the body.
It is formed when the skin reacts to a cascade of hormonal fluctuations by causing its oil glands to overproduce oils.
Because of this, the oil glands get swollen with excess oils, then become inflamed and eventually burst, leading to infection and pus-filled bumps beneath the skin’s surface.
By restricting specific foods/food groups from your diet, you can decrease inflammation, fix hormonal irregularities, enable your skin to function properly and achieve an acne-free face.
Below are the top 7 foods to avoid with cystic acne:
Top 7 Foods to Avoid with Cystic Acne
1. White Sugar
White sugar might be the bane of smooth skin.
This is because it causes a spike in blood sugar and insulin levels.
These spikes make inflammation in the body worse.
And the more inflammation you have, the more cystic acne you get and the longer it takes it heal.
Furthermore, high insulin levels spiked by consuming too much white sugar makes androgen hormones more active.
Androgen hormones are male hormones that can cause acne and other disorders in women.
Research shows that androgens increase insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) which encourages growth of cystic acne by making skin cells grow quicker than usual and also by boosting sebum production.
- What to eat instead: Instead of white sugar which is ultra-processed and refined, use natural sweeteners like stevia, maple syrup, raw honey, dates syrup, coconut sugar, palm sugar
2. Factory-Processed Dairy
The major problem with dairy for cystic acne is the artificial hormones pumped into it.
When cows in factories are pumped with estrogen, for various reasons including to make them grow faster, the estrogen seeps into the milk that we drink.
Now people who already have hormone imbalances like too much estrogen get more estrogen in their system which causes a host of issues including cystic acne.
That’s why factory-processed dairy is a no-go.
However, if you have access to organic and farm fresh milk that is not factory-processed, then you can consume it.
Otherwise:
- What to eat instead: Opt for plant milks like almond milk, oat milk and coconut milk, among others.
3. Trans Fat
Trans fat is a hidden ingredient in many processed foods like cookies.
What is it exactly? Trans fats are a form of unsaturated fat derived from vegetable oils.
It is associated with a number of negative health effects including raising bad cholesterol levels and inflammation in the body.
Too much inflammation prevents your cystic acne from healing and heaven knows, it already takes a long while to properly go away.
Yes, it leaves a scar too and that can be worsened when you eat a lot of trans fat in your diet!
Just check the ingredients list of processed foods. If you see trans-fat then you might want to put that back on the shelf.
- What to eat instead: Eat healthy fat instead. This is found in avocados, coconut oil, nuts and fresh water fish. Saturated fats can be consumed in moderation because it is unhealthy but it is better than trans-fat.
4. Refined White Flour
Eating too much refined white flour such as white bread and white pasta can increase blood sugar and insulin levels.
This contributes to the development of acne, including cystic acne. You can read more about it in this research.
- What to eat instead: Feel free to eat foods with whole wheat flour like brown bread, brown rice, whole wheat pasta. Just avoid the white refined stuff.
5. Alcohol
Don’t let alcohol aka beer and wine be your go-to beverage after dinner or when you are stressed.
The consumption of alcohol can affect your hormones, particularly the stress hormone. It’s not a surprise since alcohol is a depressant anyway.
Increasing your cortisol or stress hormone levels messes up many bodily functions – you will even feel its impact on your skin.
For acne sufferers, it’s going to lead to overproduction of sebum which means more acne.
Don’t forget, alcohol also contains simple carbs (think malt) and sugar which increase blood sugar and insulin spikes which cause inflammation and – more acne.
Here’s what to drink instead:
- What to drink instead: Water is best, of course. But there is tea like green tea, black tea, smoothies, fresh juices, etc.
6. Milk Chocolate
Curb your chocolate cravings, friends because this delicacy is among the list of foods to avoid with cystic acne.
You CAN eat chocolate but go small not big, meaning eat tiny quantities of it. Or even better, go darker not lighter – opt for dark chocolates.
- What to eat instead: Dark chocolate is the way to go. It has less sugar and is filled with antioxidants. Also, try dates, they are delicious and I call them Nature’s chocolate!
7. Hydrogenated Oils
Stay away from foods fried in hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils.
That’s because they are rich in trans-fat which is totally unhealthy and promotes inflammation.
Eating fried foods dripping in these oils is also bad because they contain more omega 6 fatty acids (bad fat) than omega 3 fatty acids (good fat).
Omega 6 Is known to contribute to inflammation within the body.
So instead of refined oils like canola oil and sunflower oil, not to mention – processed food that says hydrogenated oil in the ingredients list, use healthier oils instead.
- What to eat instead: Use grass-fed butter, olive oil, hemp seed oil, avocado oil, sesame oil and coconut oil instead to cook your food. For example, fry your eggs in the morning with coconut oil.
That’s my list of top foods to avoid with cystic acne. Do you have any other foods that you are avoiding/have avoided with cystic acne and seen great results? Please share so we can all benefit!
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