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Acne Mapping: Your GPS for Beauty

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Hi, I'm Tina!

I’m the owner of Carrots ‘N’ Cake as well as a Certified Nutrition Coach and Functional Diagnostic Nutrition Practitioner (FDN-P). I use macros and functional nutrition to help women find balance within their diets while achieving their body composition goals.

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Remember how I mentioned face mapping a couple of months ago? Well, quite a few of you had never heard of it before and seemed really interested in the topic, so when Hannah Do of Thank Your Skin offered to write a guest post for CNC, I just couldn’t refuse. (Plus, I wanted to learn more about it too!) I hope you find her post as interesting and helpful as I did!

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When you’re on a road trip and you’re unsure of the next turn, GPS can really be handy. For your skin issues, Traditional Chinese Medicine offers a similar tool- without the need for devices and gadgets. It’s called acne mapping. It suggests that the different zones on your face are connected with the various organs inside your body. This simply means that a pimple forming anywhere on your face can be an indication of something wrong inside you. But how’d you know? The following acne mapping ideas should help you out:

Forehead

If you’re frequently experiencing breakouts on your forehead, it could be related to a digestive issue. Your digestive system is considered as the highway throughout your body, and without the right diet, its roads can easily get blocked. Sluggish digestion can delay and sometimes prevent the elimination of toxins from your body. When these toxins accumulate, they frequently manifest as skin issues. Aside from its effects on your skin, it can also result in reduced absorption of nutrition from foods and vitamins. In other words, even if you’re eating healthier, your digestive problems will only prevent your body from absorbing all the nutrients.

Boost your digestive health

One of the best things you can do to keep your digestive track clear is to drink more water. Adding a good probiotic and incorporating leafy greens into your diet are good ideas as well. To take a burden off of your digestion, you can try avoiding processed foods and sugars, too

Nose

Breakouts around your nose could be triggered by stress and changes in your blood pressure. Stressful situations can result in hormonal imbalance and when your hormones get out of whack, your skin produces more oil than necessary. When this happens, it’s the skin around your nose that manifests the negative effects best. This is because the pores on the nose tend to be larger than those on the rest of your face. As oil collects around the area, pores become clogged and acne forms

Relax!

To manage breakouts in this zone, it’s helpful to develop stress management tools. Breathing exercises are a great way to start. You would be surprised at how much this helps, particularly since most of us breathe shallowly. Aside from deep breathing, meditation is another great tool to relieve stress. Meditation has been shown to change your brain over time for the better. Fifteen minutes a day, three times per week can make a huge difference in your stress levels.

Between Your Eyes (T-Zone)

Acne that pops up between your eyes, or around your T-zone, is an indication of an overburdened liver. You may also experience abdominal bloating and heartburn along with breakouts. This can be particularly troublesome because your liver is responsible for keeping your entire body clean. The liver detoxifies chemicals, stores glycogen for energy, and stores vitamins B12, D, and A. It also helps to neutralize free radicals that wreak havoc on healthy cells.

Give your liver a hand

So how do you help your liver to help you? The fastest way to improve your liver health is to cut back on alcohol and fatty foods. These foods take extra work to process and take away from the normal function of your liver. To give your liver a boost, try incorporating cleansing foods such as beets, lemons and garlic. Dandelion greens and grapefruit are also helpful.

Cheeks

Breakouts happening on your cheeks are linked to certain areas of the body, depending if they are in the upper or lower part of your cheeks. The upper cheeks are linked to your lungs while the lower cheeks are related to dental hygiene. When it comes to lung health, it may feel particularly challenging because we can’t really control the quality of air we’re breathing at all times. But, you may be surprised to learn that breathing bacteria on the surface of your cell phone or pillowcase can also put a strain on your lungs. Keep these surfaces as clean as possible to keep your lungs in good shape.

Don’t forget to brush & floss!

Breakouts on the lower cheek are more specific to gum health. When your gums are inflamed from poor dental hygiene, this may manifest in the form of acne. Lower cheek acne can be resolved by stepping up your oral care routine with regular brushing, flossing and rinsing.

Chin

Acne around the chin area is usually pretty common for most of us. You can thank your hormones for this one. Breakouts in this area could be brought on by any situation that results in a hormonal imbalance. This includes pregnancy, menstruation, PMS, menopause, and breast feeding. Diet can also be a contributing factor. There are certain foods that boost your testosterone levels such as shellfish and eggs; and foods that lower it, such as flaxseed and soy. Keep in mind that a higher testosterone level means more acne. Chin acne tends to be cystic as opposed to small whiteheads and blackheads. They are more deeply rooted in the skin and inflamed.

Get those hormones in check

The best way to manage chin acne is to keep your hormones in balance. You may do this by eating foods that are high in fiber, avoiding sugar, and drinking lots of water. Another alternative is birth control and hormone therapy; however it’s best to discuss these options with your physician.

Neck

Frequently, you’ll see acne on your neck when your body is trying to fight off some type of infection. Because of this, prevention includes assisting your body in fighting off illness. You can do this by resting and engaging in stress relieving activities, such as meditation and yoga. Another option is to eat immune boosting foods. Vitamin D may be one of the most powerful immune boosters you can add to your diet. Its sources include tuna, salmon and orange juice. Another option is garlic, which is nature’s antibiotic; although you may need to limit your intake as the odor can be quite strong!

Ears

Last, but not least, is the acne on the ears. It turns out that acne in this location is tied to your kidneys. The kidneys serve as a filter for the blood and water that passes through your body. It helps eliminate excess water and toxins out of your body. The more water you drink, the easier it will be for the kidneys to filter out impurities from your blood. If your water intake is low, the skin may do extra work to compensate.

Skin Detox

Impurities will find their way out of your body in one way or another. Iso if they aren’t being filtered through the kidney, they may exit through your skin in the form of acne. Some foods to help you maintain kidney health are lemon, grapes, watermelon and kale. An easy way to add lemon to your diet is by drinking it in water. Green smoothies are an awesome way to add kale along with fruits.

Conclusion

Facial mapping is an awesome tool to understand what’s going on in your body. Knowing which parts are affected can give you a clear idea of where you should start making changes. Beauty is holistic. More than the products you apply and the ingredients you use on your skin, your lifestyle and dietary habits can still impact your appearance.

About the author: Hannah Do is the founder of Thank Your Skin, a beauty blog dedicated to provide honest skin care advice and information. She aspires to help her readers achieve their most beautiful skin by sharing personal tips learned through both years of experience and thorough research. Check out thankyourskin.com to learn more about Hannah and her work. You can find her on Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook.

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