Post-pill acne, ie. acne after quitting birth control pills… even just the thought of that sends shivers down the spine of many women. I know, because I’ve been there. Whether you have been taking the pill for contraception or acne control, the bounce-back hormonal imbalance when you cease the oral contraceptive pill (OCP) can cause substantial breakouts. The thought of this can cause great anxiety, particularly if you were started on the OCP to control acne to begin with.
Hormones, particularly androgens, can play a large role in the formation of acne. Some contraceptives can worsen acne, whilst others such as the combined OCP can be quite effective at preventing the monthly hormonal breakouts. The choice to stop taking the pill may be due to many reasons, including a desire to conceive, as well as avoiding the unwanted side effects or associated risks of OCP use such as thrombosis, and even breast cancer (for which conflicting data exists).
It isn’t all doom and gloom ahead!
The good news is that your hormones will eventually settle, and so will your skin, but it takes some. In the meantime, if you’re anything like me you will want to do anything and everything to reduce those inevitable breakouts.
Numero Uno – what you eat matters
This is not the time to be indulging in sweet comfort food and cheese platters, as both sugar and dairy can increase IGF-1, thus increasing the growth of acne. So, rule number one is to get your diet under control – eat clean with lots of vegetables to support the digestive system with fibre and prebiotics, switch out any sugary drinks for unsweetened drinks (or swap the sugar for stevia), maintain adequate protein each day to balance your blood sugar and even consider using dairy-alternatives for a little while (or at least reduce dairy until this is all under control). Lowering your sugar and dairy intake will be particularly important if you also suffer with PCOS, but for anyone struggling to control their acne, dietary management is paramount. If you are like me, living a busy lifestyle and struggle to eat enough in quantities and diversity of nutrient rich, pro gut health foods then our Clear Skin Superfood Booster is perfect for you.
Hormone balancing with the right supplemental support
Secondly, you need to re-balance those hormones and control your sebum production from within. This will be the key to your success. SkinB5’s range of beauty and acne supplements include the patented skinB5™ vitamins which contain specific high potency nutrients and herbs to balance the hormones, supporting you in addressing the root causes of hormonal acne. In particular, chaste berry (also known as vitex or chaste tree) is highly effective at regulating hormones. Additionally, the combination of nutrients such as vitamin B5 and zinc are significantly effective for sebum regulation and production of healthy hormones. For me, this is what made the biggest difference to controlling my hormonal acne! To complete the circle, the 63-ingredient superfood complex is the perfect companion because it supplies broad-spectrum high quality nutrients, gut health/digestion and other immunity boosting ingredients with 416% RDA natural Vitamin C in each teaspoon.
External support to calm the storm
For holistic skin wellness, external use of nutrients and herbs can also support breakouts and inflammatory lesions. SkinB5’s Acne Control moisturiser is a non-oil based moisturiser which also contains vitamin B5 to support sebum externally as well as green tea and other specific ingredients to regulate oil production and reduce inflammation. For a potent plant-based vitamin C boost to speed up skin healing, fight pigmentation and redness the Australian Botanicals Hydration Essence is the answer eg. the 8 selected native plant extracts are rich in phytonutrient catechins: 100 times more potent than Vitamin C and 25 times more potent than Vitamin E, hydrating and anti-inflammatory, skin protectant. A holistic approach is vitally important to support the body during this time while re-calibration is occurring, therefore both internal and external treatments will work synergistically to reduce breakouts.
It will be ok!
You don’t need to fear the hormonal hell of post-pill pimples, there is help at hand. I have been there too – with the right approach of both internal and external natural treatments, you too can master natural hormone balancing and get your acne under control so you can face this challenge head on with clear skin confidence.
P.S. If you are pregnant, always consult your doctor before taking dietary supplements.
