If you have acne, you need to be checking out your poop. I know. Super glamorous.
However, it’s one of the very first things we work on with acne clients in The Clear Skin Solution. But why start here if acne is on the face? And what if my acne is hormonal? Good questions - which I’ve got answers for! If you’re wondering about poo-acne connection, read on.
Why (Bad) Poops Lead to Acne
The colon, aka the longest part of the large intestine, is part of the body's digestive system and plays a significant role in overall skin health. Its role is to eliminate stool (made up of water, gut bacteria, digested food, excess hormones, and unused nutrients/electrolytes) from the body.
We need the waste to be properly exiting the body in a timely manner to ensure optimal nutrient absorption, maintain a healthy gut, reduce the workload on the liver, and help balance hormones.
Inflammation, including systemic inflammation and skin inflammation, often results from a disrupted elimination process. To understand how poor gut health affects acne sufferers, let me break it down.
There are two common poop issues: functional constipation and diarrhea. Both can lead to poor gut health and cause skin issues like acne vulgaris and hormonal acne.
- When constipation is afoot, toxins, bad bacteria or yeast and hormones the body is trying to get rid of end up back in circulation and increase inflammatory processes, which places additional stress on the body.
This increases the load on the liver and contributes to hormonal imbalance, contributing to skin conditions such as acne breakouts. - On the other hand, diarrhea, another form of irritable bowel syndrome, happens when the nutrients from your food aren't being properly absorbed.
Nutrient absorption occurs in the small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO)-free digestive tract when everything is functioning properly, but diarrhea disrupts this process.
Nutrients are “fuel” for your body and every system in it. They’re vital for proper liver function, hormone production and repairing the skin. Two areas that need to be in tip-top shape for clear skin.
A lack of nutrient absorption leads to malnourishment. Poor absorption of nutrients like zinc, magnesium, and vitamins impacts both overall health and skin health, leaving the body unprepared to fight inflammation or repair skin disease. Here’s where the skin issues arise.
The liver itself performs over 500 functions in the body, including being the main organ for detoxification and filtration of hormones. If the liver’s been overburdened (like having to refilter toxins and hormones it’s already got rid of), the body’s largest detoxification organ gets called in to help.
That’s your skin.
The “waste” gets pushed to your pores (through sweat) and leads to breakouts.
To further the issue, if the liver’s not able to properly filter the hormones, a hormonal imbalance can occur. You can think of your hormones as a finely tuned orchestra.
They all need to be balanced and playing in perfect harmony for a beautiful melody to follow. If one single “instrument” (hormone) is playing off-tune, it becomes very apparent.
In this case, it becomes very apparent when the hormones lead to an increase of pore-clogging sebum and acne erupts across your skin. If that wasn’t enough, there’s a second way that poor bathroom habits can lead to hormonal imbalances.
If the excess estrogens aren’t able to leave the body through stool, they end up back in circulation and can lead to estrogen dominance – and inevitably “hormonal” acne.
Now that we’ve gone through the why, let’s dig into what to be looking for (and how to improve it!).
What Is A Healthy Poop?
After having worked with thousands of clients around the world, I can confidently say that most people don’t know what a healthy healthy bowel movements look like. Bowel movements reflect the inner workings of your digestive system.
It’s not a commonly talked about topic. No one’s hanging around the water cooler or passing the plate of appetizers talking about their morning bowel movement.
So, let me share exactly what to look for…
- One to three bowel movements per day.
- Long, smooth, snake-like shape.
- No undigested food present.
- No straining, cramping or pain.
- Passes within a few minutes.
When these criteria aren’t met, it can indicate poor gut health, digestive tract imbalances, or gut dysbiosis, which can worsen acne breakouts or acne severity.
Tips for Healthy Poops
- Incorporate fermented foods like kimchi and yogurt to restore good bacteria. These can help reduce skin inflammation and lead to clear skin.
- Add prebiotic fiber to your diet. Whole grains, leafy greens, and bananas feed your gut microbes and build a healthy gut, improving acne. Aim for 35 grams of fibre per day.
- Drink water daily (about half your body weight in ounces).
- Avoid foods that contribute to inflammation, such as excessive dairy consumption, alcohol, processed/refined/fried foods, processed sugar/sugar alcohols, and gluten. Opt for other foods that promote gut health and healthy skin, like whole grains and greens.
- Use a squatty potty (or elevate your feet) when on the toilet to help bowel movements.
- Consult a practitioner for supplementation (e.g., probiotic supplements or targeted care for SIBO) or functional testing based on your needs.
- Do yoga, walking, or swimming and prioritize gut-brain-skin axis balance with practices like mindfulness for reducing stress hormones.
So as we’ve now learned, if you’re struggling with acne what’s going on with #2 needs to be your #1 priority.
Thank you for reading!
This article of the Skinsider Scoop was graciously written by Holistic Nutritionist, and Founder of Clear Skin Solution, Katie Stewart, and edited by the Clean Skin Club team. If you're interested in more from Katie, please shoot us an email, and follow her Instagram - @katiestewartwellness