Hormonal changes are believed to be a significant contributing factor to the development of acne. Medical research projects have discovered that people who suffer from acne usually have oily skin due to high levels of androgen and testosterone hormones in the body. This observation naturally led researchers to conclude that a proper balance of androgen and estrogen hormones were required in order to maintain healthy skin that can avoid acne better.
The acne and hormones connection simply means that hormones affect acne. Hormones are most active around the ages of 19 to 24 and so they can affect young adults as well as teenagers. It is normal at this stage for people to get lesions on the lower face, mostly in the chin and the jaw line. Lesions can also appear on the chest and back, though this is a rarity and most people are affected only in facial areas.
Another strong point that affirms the acne and hormones connection is that acne has been typically observed to start affecting people once their body starts to produce androgen hormones. What the androgen hormones do is stimulate the sebaceous glands to enlarge and secret sebum. This oily secretion first attaches itself to the hair follicle and then slowly moves up the hair shaft, where it finally appears on the skin surface and makes the skin appear and feel oily and sticky. While moving up the hair shaft, sebum attracts and blends with bacteria that causes blockage in the hair follicle. These blocked follicles then become breeding grounds for more bacteria that eventually results in an infection that further develops into acne.
Hormones regulate every function of our bodies. Whether it is sleeping, growth, change in voice, hair color change, bone lengthening, etc., every major change in our bodies taking place with age progression depends on hormones. It is only logical that any imbalance in hormones can result in problems like acne. A body that has all its hormones in perfect balance would never face such problems. Unfortunately, there are no such perfectly balanced bodies, but don't worry, you don't need a perfect balance, just an adequate balance that is well within reach of most people.
In teenagers, the development of acne coincides with the hormonal changes that occur at the onset of puberty. Androgens are produced in high quantities during this stage and it has already been shown how closely they are related to the formation of acne. The acne and hormones connection has been demonstrated in adults through the link between the menstrual cycle of a woman and the resulting development of acne.
