Last post, I discussed some of the major imbalances that can contribute to your skin problems. I promised you that in this post, I would give you some clues that you can use to figure out which ones may be the major players in your acne.

So here we go!

General Poor Health; Nutrient Deficiencies; Poor Circulation

  • Do you eat a really poor diet (full of processed foods, refined foods, fried foods, sugar, hardly any vegetables) and you know it’s really bad?
  • Do you never exercise, or just aren’t very active?
  • Have you never given your diet or lifestyle a second thought before now?
  • Is your skin really pale and hair and nails quite dry and brittle?
  • Do your hands and feet get cold easily?
  • Do you lack much energy?
  • Do you find that you get colds and other illnesses often and easily?
  • Do your eyes look dull and the whites of your eyes not very bright, or sort of yellowish?

Hormomes

  • Are you a teenager?
  • If you’re a girl, did your acne begin after you stopped hormonal birth control?
  • If you’re a girl, do you experience intense PMS symptoms or irregular periods and experience most of your acne just prior to your period?
  • Are you an adult woman with persistant acne and get most of your acne on your chin and jaw line?
  • Do you eat lots of conventional dairy and meat?
  • Do you rarely get a good night’s sleep?
  • If you’re a girl, do you have excess body or facial hair? Do you have kind of a masculine personality?
  • Are you really into intense body building and perhaps use performance enhancing drugs?

Food Allergies

  • Do you eat lots and lots of wheat, dairy, or soy?
  • Do you feel tired or bloated after eating certain foods?
  • Are you an adult who has always had an acne problem? (ie, it didn’t just start suddenly)
  • Do you feel that you already eat and live quite healthfully and can’t figure out why you may still be getting acne?

Blood Sugar Problems

  • Do you crave sugary foods, caffeine, cigarettes, or drugs?
  • Do you find that your energy levels go up and down throughout the day? (ie. getting high after eating and then crashing hard)
  • Do you find that your moods go up and down throughout the day?
  • Do you find that you get cranky, jittery, dizzy, or weak if you are hungry?
  • Do you find that you’re always very thirsty?
  • Do you eat predominantly carbohydrates (particularly refined ones)?

Poor Digestion; Candida

  • Do you often have bowel movements that are either too loose, or too hard?
  • Do you only poo once every couple of days, and have to strain (ie. you’re constipated)?
  • Do you get stomach aches, a bloated stomach, or gas quite often?
  • If you’re a girl, do you get yeast infections frequently?
  • Have you taken long rounds or multiple short rounds of antibiotics in the past?
  • Do you get a lot of acne on your forehead?
  • Do you crave sugar, bread, or alcohol?

Stress; Poor Emotional Health; Poor Self Esteem

  • Did your acne start or get a lot worse fairly soon after a traumatic event in your life?
  • Do you notice that your acne gets worse when you are stressed out?
  • Do you feel like no one will love you unless you’re perfect?
  • Do you think lowly of yourself and don’t have much confidence, even before your acne problem started?
  • Do you live a really busy, go go go kind of lifestyle or have a stressful job?
  • Do you have friends or family members who don’t support you or make you feel ashamed or unworthy?
  • Are you doing the things in your life that you want to and being the person that you want to be? Or are you not being true to yourself and trying to be something that you’re not?

Physical Irritation; Skin picking; Really Harsh Skin Care Routine

  • Do you wash your face with skin care products with harsh chemicals or comedogenic ingredients?
  • Do you exfoliate your skin often with harsh particles or wash clothes?
  • Do you use conventional acne topicals that are very drying?
  • Do you wash your face more than twice a day?
  • Do you pop all your pimples?
  • Do you pick at your blemishes?
  • Do you change your skin care routine all the time?
  • Do you get acne in an area that you are always touching? (ie. acne on your cheeks which you are always resting on your hands or pressing your cell phone into)

Okay! Now that you may have an idea about the imbalances you’re dealing with, the big question is…. what can you do about it? Find out in the next post!

photo by Derek K Miller