Does Gut Health Affect Skin?
Yes, your gut health and skin are directly linked. If you have an unhealthy gut, your skin will likely show it. In fact, scientists have found a connection between gut health and skin concerns such as acne, rosacea, and eczema¹. Therefore, if your skin is inflamed, broken out, or irritated, it is likely that there is an imbalance in your gut.
Having an imbalance in your gut’s microbiome can also cause oily skin. This occurs when one of your microbiota occurs with more frequency in the gut. Having an inequality in gut microbiota can affect your skin’s microbiome, due to the gut-skin axis. The gut-skin axis is the connection between the gut and our skin. Therefore, this means that when the gut microbiome is unhealthy, there is a lack of regulation in our skin’s microbiome. As a result, this can trigger the skin to overproduce oil and can trigger acne breakouts due to a lack of microbes and metabolites (such as the anti-inflammatory retinoic acid)
What Causes Oily Skin?
Oily skin is caused by the overproduction of sebum. Sebum is important in maintaining hydration and protecting the skin, and is produced by the sebaceous glands in the skin. However, while some sebum is good, an overproduction of sebum can lead to oily and greasy skin.
Having oily skin can trigger other skin problems, particularly acne. Generally, people with oily skin are more prone to acne since the oil on the face can trap dead skin, dirt and bacteria. This causes inflammation, breakouts, and blackheads, and will happen more frequently than for someone with non-oily skin.
Why Is My Skin So Oily?
Your skin may be oily due to several factors, including genetics, diet, hormones, or your environment.
A poor diet can lead to oily skin, as certain foods can influence our natural hormones and stimulate oil production. For example, sugar and dairy trigger high insulin levels that stimulate a hormone that causes oil production. In addition, these hormonal changes can be due to a lack of sleep, stress, or natural changes throughout the hormone cycle.
As well as diet and hormones, another cause of oily skin is your environment. If you live in a humid and hot climate, your skin will likely be oilier than someone living in a colder area. This is due to the high temperatures triggering overproduction of sebum causing that overly shiny skin we all try and avoid.