Is your birth control causing you acne?

You might want to call your Physician instead of your Dermatologist to help combat your acne. REALLY!?

Yes! Helping young women have clear skin is my thing. And often times it’s all in their hormones. Am I advocating every teenager get on the pill…NO! I’m suggesting it may help as a very last resort, its much better than antibiotics and prescription acne creams and pills and irritating retinoic creams. My goal is to share information that I don’t believe is being discussed fully with women by their healthcare providers based on both my own experiences and that of my clients. The choice is ultimately yours to make, and knowledge is power.

There are many types of birth control available. The birth control pill is one common form of birth control. Typically birth control is divided up as estrogen or progestin dominant and have varying degrees of androgenic (testosterone like) effects. As a general rule of thumb, those with the potential for higher androgenic symptoms should be avoided for people prone to acne because they promote breakouts. As an acne sufferer it is important to speak with your doctor about selecting a form of birth control that is higher in estrogen and lower in androgen potency.

The most commonly prescribed in this category are:

• Brevicon
• Demulan
• Femcon
• Kelnor
• Modicon
• MonoNessa
• Necon
• Ortho Tricyclen
• Ortho-Novum
• Ovcon
• Previferm
• Sprintec
• Tri-Nessa
• Tri-Previferm
• Tri-Sprintec
• Zovia

It is best to avoid the following that are high in androgen activity and low in estrogen:

• Alesse
• Amethyst
• Apri
• Azurette
• Caziant
• Cryselle
• Cyclessa
• Depo-Provera
• Desogen
• Emoquette
• Estrostep Fe
• Implanon
• Jolessa
• Kariva
• Lessina
• Levora/Levonest
• Linessa
• Loestrin
• Lo-Feminol
• Lo-Ogestrel
• Lo-Ovral
• Lutera
• Marvelon
• Microgestin
• Mircette
• Mirena or Skylar IUD
• Nexplanon
• Nordette
• Norplant
• NuvaRing
• Ogestrel
• Ortho Tricyclen Lo
• Ovral
• Paragard/Copper IUD*
• Portia
• Reclipsen
• Seasonale/Seasonique
• Sronyx
• Triphasil/Trivora

Only you and your doctor can determine what form of birth control is right for you. The above is just a basic guideline that should be used to initiate a conversation between you and your physician. If you are considering using birth control, it is important to know that it can be associated with a high risk of blood clots, weight gain, nausea, mood changes, depression and breast tenderness. Serious side effects include strokes, digestive issues and embolism.

Finally, it is entirely possible to treat acne without using birth control. If you have no underlying health issues that require you to be on birth control and are considering using birth control only to control your acne, please feel free to talk with one of the estheticians to get some additional perspective on how we can help you with the use of topical products and treatments.

*Although the Paragard/Copper IUD does not contain any hormones, we have observed that is has aggravated acne with our clients.

The notion that that copper IUD is related to acne is widely dismissed by the medical profession, but when I consulted with a few naturopaths specializing in skin - Copper toxicity can occur from copper water pipes, pesticides, oestrogen based contraception, IUD's and nutritional deficiencies (mainly zinc)!

Excess copper in your body builds up in the liver and disrupts the liver's ability to detoxify excess oestrogen (which causes acne). In addition, excess copper prevents your body absorbing zinc - which is an essential mineral for our skin; it plays a role in the function of sebum (oil) secretion in skin cells, as well as being essential for healthy skin repair and healing. It can also increase anxiety and other mental health issues and increase psoriasis and eczema skin disorders.

If you need help with your acne, you can book a Virtual Acne Consultation with me or sign up for my MBK Acne Detective Clear Skin Program. 

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"Information courtesy of www.mebykatie.com, Katie Marshall is a certified Medical Esthetics Practitioner, Acne Specialist, Holistic and Functional Nutrition Counselor. Specializing in both skin health, gut health, hormone health and the whole body. The basic premise is that functional nutrition gets to the root of the problem and resolves the actual problem. This is different from conventional medicine which is about prescribing multiple meds to deal with symptoms, with little regard to resolving the root cause of the symptoms. Functional nutrition is more personalized, customized, and holistic. My job is to work in tandem with your medical team and be an advocate for you if necessary."

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