Acne, Hormones and Gut Health

Hi, I’m Susan

My diet growing up was pretty normal for a child in the UK and included lots of cereal, bread, pasta, cakes and chocolate. In my early teens I developed cystic acne and was prescribed all sorts of creams and antibiotics. I tried various beauty treatments and endless skincare products but nothing made a difference. Eventually, I went to see a Dermatologist who put me on Roaccutane and my skin cleared up. Unfortunately I had to go back on Roaccutane a further two times as the acne kept returning. I was always told it was just my hormones and I would grow out of it but I was still suffering in my twenties. I also had frequent tonsillitis as a teenager and continued to have digestive symptoms.

It’s just your hormones, you’ll grow out of it.

After school, I trained as a Beauty Therapist to learn more about skin and help others suffering like I was. Despite all my knowledge and access to high end products and treatments, my skin was still oily and blemished. I also started suffering from really bad energy crashes and would struggle to stay awake if I was ever in a class room setting which I was for 9 weeks whilst I trained to be an Inflight Beauty Therapist. One of the trainers suggested I get myself checked out but all my tests came back fine. Then, at the gym one day, my personal trainer decided to measure my fat with fat calibers. Afterwards, he told me that I could be carbohydrate intolerant.

Acne and blood sugar

Having no idea what this was, I looked it up online and found that it was the same as being insulin resistant. The only thing I knew about insulin was that it had something to do with Diabetes but I’d been checked for that so I knew I didn’t have it. I read a bit more about insulin resistance and found that it is basically where your cells stop responding to insulin so your pancreas produces more and you end up with high levels of insulin circulating in your blood. High insulin can be inflammatory and really mess up your hormones. Furthermore, I had quite a few of the signs and symptoms so I began researching and really looking into nutrition and blood sugar. I was amazed at how they can affect so many systems in your body, especially your skin and hormones.

Acne and Nutritional Therapy

Learning this gave me a taste for more knowledge and I consequently completed a 3 year course in Nutritional Therapy at The College of Naturopathic Medicine. Through nutrition and lifestyle changes to support insulin resistance, I have seen huge improvements in my skin, digestion and hormones and it’s my mission to educate others about the role diet can play in disease prevention and getting you back to wellness and vitality.