Acne and Insulin Resistance
A 2015 Turkish study (PMID: 26366152) stated the main pathogenic factors of acne are: high sebaceous gland secretion (oil production), high androgens and inflammation — insulin resistance and blood sugar issues can relate to each of these
Blood sugar issues normally presents itself as insulin resistance - when our cells stop responding to insulin properly and then we get high blood sugar levels and then high insulin levels (can be measured through blood work).
The same Turkish study also looked to see if there was a connection to blood sugar issues and acne. They took an acne group and a “healthy” non acne control group and measured their blood sugar levels. They found that fasting insulin levels were significantly higher in the acne group which suggested insulin resistance may have a role in progression of acne.
Inflammation
If you have insulin resistance, you have higher than normal blood sugar levels.
High blood sugar is acknowledged as pro inflammatory condition. Another study (PMID: 16489259) found that oxidative stress (inflammation) exists in acne patients and also noted that some of the medications used for acne, function by decreasing inflammation.
High blood sugar = inflammation and inflammation = acne
High Androgens (aka male hormones)
Remember with blood sugar issues like insulin resistance, you’ll have high blood sugar levels and then eventually higher than normal insulin levels.
According to a 2021 study (PMID: 33995849) abnormally increased insulin levels lead to androgen over production (this is also a big factor in PCOS).
High androgens have also been shown to increase sebum productions (PMID: 24700926)
High insulin = high androgens and high androgens = acne
Sebum Production (oil production)
High insulin and high insulin like growth factor increase the production of sebum. Insulin like growth factor is also contained in dairy which is why some people break out in acne then they have too much dairy because of the elevated levels of IGF.
When dealing with insulin resistance, it is very common to have higher then normal levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.
Sebum is made up of different elements like fatty acids, cholesterol, triglycerides.
Tryglycerides account for a large portion of sebum (PMID: 20224686).
A 2016 study concluded that acne patients are more likely to have abnormalities in lipid profiles (like triglycerides and cholesterol).
High insulin = more oil production and more oil production = acne
High triglycerides can = more oil production and more oil production = acne
When dealing with any dysfunction in the body, its important to take a root cause approach vs a product only approach.
If you’ve been dealing which chronic acne, tried so many different solutions that havent been working or only work for a short period of time - consider going deeper by looking at how your blood sugar is doing.
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