If you are someone suffering from skin problems and are tired of throwing medicine after medicine at it then keep reading. Certain skin conditions can be affected by diet, either positively or negatively. These five skin disorders discussed below are ones I see and treat regularly as a dermatology physician assistant. Yes, medicine is sometimes required to treat moderate to severe conditions. If yours is mild, a simple change in diet and lifestyle may be all you need to notice an improvement. We will discuss the five following skin conditions and how lifestyle and diet can affect them: acne, eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, and seborrheic dermatitis (dandruff). Okay ready to learn how changing your eating habits can improve your skin issues? Let’s dive in!
1. Acne
Acne can be complex when it comes to understanding what type of acne you have, why you’re experiencing it in the first place, and the correct products to use. For this article, we are going to ignore the different medications you can apply or take to improve your acne and focus simply on lifestyle and diet. I have touched on these topics before and will include a link to those articles in a moment.
Foods that have been proven to worsen acne include high intakes of dairy and/or carbohydrates. This was mostly found to be true in teenage males but can also affect other demographics. In addition to food choices, if you are experiencing acne and want to treat it holistically then you want to be sure you are drinking at least 8 glasses of water a day, and getting at least 8 hours of sleep at night. You should also wash your face twice a day and never go to sleep with makeup on.
Makeup should always be non-comedogenic. If you are using makeup or any product that is pore-clogging then simply changing your makeup and washing your brushes regularly could be all you need to see an improvement. In addition to makeup and product choices, you want to make sure that you manage your stress appropriately. Stress is known to worsen not only acne but a lot of skin and other health conditions. We discussed staying well hydrated and getting enough sleep every night, but if your stress levels are still high then exercising or meditating may be beneficial.
2. Eczema
Eczema sometimes known as atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory condition that causes dry itchy skin. High-inflammatory diets of processed foods, red meats, alcohol, and smoking can increase your inflammatory levels and may worsen your eczema. We do know for a fact that stress and weather changes can cause eczema flares. Other things that have been proven to worsen eczema are scratching, hot showers, and applying irritants or scented products to the skin.
Eczema is sometimes called the itch that rashes. Meaning, that eczema patients can take normal healthy skin, scratch it, and cause a rash to appear. It is typically easier said than done, but preventing yourself from scratching by finding something else to do with your hands or keeping your nails cut short can help prevent eczema flares. Furthermore, staying well hydrated internally and externally is only going to be beneficial for your skin condition. Drinking plenty of water and applying/reapplying hypoallergenic moisturizers throughout the day is imperative for your skin’s health.
Hot showers feel good when you’re in but do a fantastic job of drying your skin out further (which you don’t want) so try to take short lukewarm showers and be sure to moisturize afterward while your skin is still damp. It would help if you aimed to moisturize at least 3 times a day. Lastly, an important lifestyle change to incorporate if you haven’t already is staying away from scented products. This includes perfume, laundry detergent, and for some highly sensitive people this can also mean candles, air fresheners, etc.
3. Psoriasis
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune condition that causes rashes on any part of the body and can also affect the joints. Stress reduction will be a theme throughout this article. Stress can increase inflammation levels in the body and high inflammatory levels can cause psoriasis flares. While most people with psoriasis will be unable to solely treat their condition holistically, there are still some key things to know when it comes to how diet and lifestyle affect this skin condition.
It has been clinically proven that diets high in processed foods, red meats, alcohol, and smoking can worsen psoriasis. Cutting back on all 4 of those will likely not only improve your condition but improve your health in general. Regular exercise and stress management are also crucial for psoriasis patients.
Another interesting phenomenon with psoriasis is something called the Koebner phenomenon which refers to when previously healthy skin can erupt in new psoriatic patches following an injury or trauma to the skin. For that reason, psoriasis patients should be careful when it comes to scratching their skin or participating in contact sports or other activities that can cause trauma, because in doing so they may be incidentally worsening their psoriasis.
4. Rosacea
Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory condition that can cause easy facial flushing, acne-like pimples, changes in skin texture, irritation of the eyes, and a burning or sometimes itchy sensation on the face. This skin condition is notorious for worsening with certain foods and other triggers. The most common triggers of rosacea are stress, sun exposure, wind, alcohol, spicy foods, and high intakes of caffeine or sugar. If you believe you have rosacea but aren’t sure what your triggers are then I advise starting a journal and jotting down everything you have consumed or any activities you did for the past 48 hours leading up to a flare.
Rosacea, similarly to acne can also worsen with certain products and makeups. Non-comedogenic makeup and reapplying a mineral-based sunscreen every 2 hours if you are going to be outside is essential! Limiting your intake of the aforementioned triggers and decreasing your stress levels will likely improve your rosacea.
5. Seborrheic dermatitis (dandruff)
Seborrheic dermatitis is medical-grade dandruff that can cause a chronic dry, itchy, flakey scalp. It can also be present on your face, around and in your ears, and sometimes the chest. Changes in the weather, stress, and high-inflammatory diets can worsen this skin condition. Another little-known trigger of seborrheic dermatitis is applying the wrong types of products to your skin. You do not want to apply anything that has an edible component to your scalp or face. So this means no avocado oil, coconut oil, or olive oil. The yeast on your skin that causes seborrheic dermatitis can feed on these edible products and in doing so can worsen the condition.
Washing your scalp two to three times a week instead of once a week can also help with keeping seborrheic dermatitis under better control.
Read more on seborrheic dermatitis here.
This list of skin conditions affected by diet is not exhaustive. Other less common skin conditions can also worsen with certain diets and lifestyles. Do you have a different skin condition than one of the ones listed that you found worsens with certain foods or lifestyles? If so comment below and we can update the list to include that one too!
*Disclaimer: Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer. Information on this website is for education and entertainment purposes only. Content is my opinion. It is not substituted for your own doctor’s medical care or advice. One should not make any health or medical-related decisions based in whole or in part on any content on this site. Content is not intended to replace the services of a licensed, trained health professional. Content may not apply to you as an individual. Although I will update my website with current information, this website is not a definitive guide to dermatology.
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