How Hormones Can Fuel Adult Breakouts

As a teen, you probably experienced regular acne breakouts as your hormones went wild and your skin struggled to deal with the side effects. However, just because you managed to make it through puberty doesn’t mean you can’t still suffer breakouts as an adult. What can you do about these embarrassing and even painful skin eruptions?

At Leading Edge Dermatology, with locations in Plantation and Ft Lauderdale, Florida, dermatology specialists Dr. Elyse Julian, Dr. Benjamin Kahn, Alana Willis, PA-C, Natalia Prieto, PA-C, and Dr. Paloma Reiter offer adult dermatology services to rectify issues like adult acne breakouts.

Acne breakouts in kids

Acne usually starts to show up at the start of puberty, which usually begins between the ages of 8 and 13 for girls and 9 and 14 for boys. The production of androgens like testosterone (the dominant hormone in males) in both sexes causes changes across the body, including in the skin.

The sebaceous glands around the hair follicles can go into overdrive, producing extra sebum, a natural, oily substance that continually hydrates and protects the skin surface. Too much sebum can collect dirt and dead skin cells, blocking pores and causing small bulges filled with the mixture of sebum and bacteria.

These bumps, commonly called pimples, can get infected, red, and filled with pus. It can be hard to resist picking at these spots, which spreads bacteria and infection and can cause scarring. The best way to deal with childhood acne is good skin hygiene, washing daily with gentle soap and water then using a mild moisturizer.

Adult acne breakouts

Hormone levels usually calm down after puberty ends, although some people still struggle with acne through their twenties. However, acne breakouts later in life are also commonly fueled by hormones. Hormonal acne in adults is typically driven by overproduction of hormones or hormone treatments.

Adult acne in women

Women usually suffer from adult acne connected to hormonal changes during their menstrual cycles, pregnancy, menopause, or oral contraceptives. Changing to a different contraceptive may resolve both irregular menses and hormonal acne, while the end of pregnancy and cessation of menopausal symptoms may also see an end to acne breakouts in women.

Adult acne in men

Acne in men can be driven by excess testosterone production or testosterone supplementation, use of anabolic steroids, or folliculitis due to improper skin hygiene and shaving products. Lifestyle changes, discontinuing hormone and steroid treatments, and topical remedies can help.

If you are having issues with hormone-related adult acne breakouts, contact the team at Leading Edge Dermatology. Visit our contact page to learn more about locations near you, or request an appointment online.