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Diet And Acne
There are many arguments between the relationship of acne and diet but the simple fact is, we don't know for sure how the two are interrelated. More research is necessary before an accurate conclusion can be given. For some people, it would seem like common sense to associate diet and acne with each other. However, a lot of dermatologist also caution against this belief because there is currently no proof that shows its correlation.
No one can deny that diet has a significant effect on body's overall health though. Diet has a significant effect on the body's insulin level. You should take note that insulin is a very important hormone that affects all other hormones in the body including the androgens. Scientists suspect that hormonal fluctuations of the androgen results to acne flare-ups. Insulin is also related to acne formation at the cellular level. So it is hypothesized that diet which affects insulin also affects the development of acne.
On the other hand, the correlation between diet and acne also has positives. This is because if improper diet results to acne, the right diet can also help prevent acne. Eating low glycemic foods rich in fruits, veggies, and seafood can stabilize the insulin level. Also, Omega-3 fatty acid is a good anti-inflammatory agent for the body. But if theoretically, acne can be directly related to diet, why do a lot of doctors say it isn't? Well, calling the acne and diet connection just a myth actually started in 1969 and 1971.
The 1969 research study aimed to look into the relationship between chocolates and acne. Two different groups were given the chocolate; one group had chocolate with no cocoa content and the other group had chocolates with high cocoa content. The two groups have the same results as far as acne is concerned.
Meanwhile, in the 1971 study, a group of students were asked, "What do you think is the cause of your acne?" and the students were given high amounts of that good. However, the problem with the research is that the there was no control group, their baseline diet is now known, the information was not analyzed, and the lesion count was not given. No other studies between the two have been conducted until recently.
And it is interesting to note that emerging studies are showing that there is actually a relationship between the two. For example, in an epidemiological study in 2002 that was published in the Archives of Dermatology, two doctors, Dr. Lindeberg and Dr. Cordain studied 1,200 Kitavan islanders as well as a group of Ache people. They had zero incidence of acne and many believe it is due to their diets.
