Menopause is filled with changes of all kind, some of them emotional but most of them physical. Not all women living through menopause experience mood swings, night sweats and hot flashes, which are the most common physical symptoms of menopause. It tends to surprise women, however, when they discover that acne, a less talked about complaint of menopause, becomes a part of their lives, even if they never experienced acne in their youth.
Fluctuating Hormones
One of the culprits to be blamed for acne, regardless of what stage of life it is experienced, is fluctuating hormones. Teenagers experience hormone fluctuation that leads to acne, one of which is the male hormone androgen. Androgen is responsible for muscular development, stimulating hair follicles and creating skin oil or sebum. Excessive sebum, typically produced by too much androgen, is a condition which is more problematic for boys than it is for girls. Once boys reach puberty, they produce ten times the amount of androgen that girls do. This explains why boys tend to have more extreme outbreaks of acne.
In menopause, women still produce androgen, but their estrogen and progesterone levels are lower. The imbalance of estrogen and progesterone hormones whose overall levels drop significantly in menopause, allow the androgen (which remains in fairly constant supply) to rear its ugly head. The result: unwanted menopausal acne.
Hormone Replacement Therapy: An Option for Menopausal Acne
One of the surest ways to "clear" acne experienced during menopause is to take hormone replacement therapy or HRT. Millions of women whose menopausal symptoms are too problematic or difficult use HRT to combat hot flashes, mood swings and the other aspects of menopause. Acne that develops during menopause also responds to HRT and is the choice for many women unhappy with pimply, irritated skin. The increased estrogen the body receives via HRT helps keep the skin more elastic and tends to ward off blemishes and acne. (1)
Other Treatments for Menopausal Acne
If HRT is too drastic an approach to consider, there are other treatments a menopausal woman with acne can try. The most important treatment for acne, regardless of the stage of life in which you experience it, is keeping the skin clean. Washing the face twice daily with gentle, non-drying cleansers, followed by a light, water-based moisturizer is paramount in getting acne under control.
There are over the counter remedies that contain benzoyl peroxide for milder cases of acne, which when coupled with regular cleansing, offer good results. For more stubborn cases, a dermatologist may prescribe medications that contain retinoids, a vitamin A derivative, as a topical treatment, however, care must be taken regarding sun exposure when taking any form of retinoids. Severe cases may require taking medications such as Accutane or spironolactone, an anti-androgen diuretic. In all cases, just as was true during teenage acne outbreaks, picking at or squeezing blemishes is not to be encouraged.
Menopausal Acne is Not a Permanent Condition
Even though teenagers plagued with acne felt that it would never go away, that was not the case. It does go away or at the very least, is controllable. That is also true of women experiencing the discomfort of adult acne while undergoing menopause. While it is true that most women would rather not deal with any symptoms of menopause, acne is probably preferable to hot flashes or mood swings.
That may not sound like a great comfort, but those who have experienced either hot flashes or mood swings might gladly trade either or both of those if all they had to contend with was a little acne. There is always a more positive way in which to view our human frailties. Here is to those who manufacture all the products that help make menopausal acne a treatable condition.
References:
(1) www.everydayhealth.com/menopause, accessed 12/27/10
Luci Blasi - Luci Blasi Luci has dabbled in writing since she was a teenager, writing poetry about teenage love and angst. She is in the process of ...
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