New Research Links Stress and Acne

The skin ravishing condition acne has opened itself to myth. Acne is tricky to treat and often time one medicine, like the antibiotic tetracycline, may prove successful in treating one person's acne but completely leave another person endlessly visiting his dermatologist for a stronger acne drug.

This typical series of medicinal testing that accompanies acne has led to an onslaught of home remedies, pharmaceutical treatments and a list of wise tales for tackling acne. Because of this flood of acne treatment options, medical organizations such as the American Academy of Dermatology has stepped several times to separate bogus acne treatments and causes from the legitimate ones.

Most health care professionals agree that acne results from malfunctions in the hair follicles where excess oil production blocks the pores and provokes blackheads and whiteheads. In other instances, clogged pores lead to inflamed, pus filled pimples. What professionals have trouble concurring on is the best way to treat acne and what actually causes acne.

For years, stress has had to hang out in the category of unfounded acne causes, but not any more. According to researchers with Wake Forest University School of Medicine teens are 23 percent more likely to have increased acne severity during times of increased stress.

The investigators observed if the sebum levels of 94 teens from Singapore increased during times of increased stress and if the increased stress impacted the patient's acne condition.

For this investigation, the students' self-reported stress levels and acne severity were measured at two different times – just before mid-year exams and during summer break. Exams induce psychological stress since the results of the examinations directly influence the students' long-term career prospects.

The researchers speculated that stress increased facial oil secretion, and that the excess oil then exacerbated the severity of the acne. Yet, the investigators discovered that oil production didn't differ significantly between the high-stress and low-stress situations.

Gil Yosipovitch, MD, the study's lead author and a professor of dermatology, commented, "Our study suggests a significant association between stress and severity of acne."

"Our research suggests that acne severity associated with stress may result from factors others than sebum quantity," said Yosipovitch. "It's possible that inflammation may be involved."

The results of the study appear in the Swedish medical journal Acta Derm Venereol.

Source: Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center

Copyright (c) 2007 Naweko Nicole Dial

For years, stress has had to hang out in the category of unfounded acne causes, but not any more. According to researchers with Wake Forest University School of Medicine teens are 23 percent more likely to have increased acne severity during times of increased stress.

Naweko Nicole Dial founded Noixia, a self-service image makeover firm that develops custom acne scar removal products for the face and body. Naweko has authored several books and articles that focus on do-it-yourself beauty makeovers including Acne Messages: Crack the code of your zits and say goodbye to acne and Skinny Fat Chicks: Why we’re still not getting this dieting thing. She has appeared on radio stations, in newspapers and on TV shows across the United States promoting beauty through health consciousness.

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