Hormones have a great effect on many changes in our body, and therefore also on our biggest organ, our skin. Check our guides ‘This is how your menstrual cycle affects your skin’, and ‘Your Skin, Pregnancy And The Changes You Might Experience’, to read more about hormones during these special periods in life.
This time we are going to talk about two subjects: hormones in birth control, and the influences of hormones on your skin due to stress and lack of sleep.
A little disclaimer in advance: as we said in our blog about the menstrual cycle, everyone is unique and therefore may react differently to hormones or experiences them.
Birth control
First, a little bit of theory. Most birth control methods contain hormones. They are either ruled by the hormone progestin, or consist of a mix of hormones. The contraceptive injection, the hormone rod, and hormone IUD, are categorised as progestin-only. Progestin-only birth control increases the production of sebum and can result in more impurities or discomforts like acne, on your skin.
The most common birth control pill is a combined pill. This means it consists of the hormone progestin as well as the hormone estrogen among other things. As the pill decreases sebum can have a positive effect on people who suffer from impurities or discomforts like acne.
Besides artificial hormones, we’ve got a lot of natural hormones in our bodies.
One of those hormones is called cortisol, a hormone that has much more influence than you might think.
Stress and lack of sleep
When you experience a lot of stress your cortisol level rises, which can have different negative effects on your skin. It can increase the production of sebum which could result in impurities. Besides, it affects the natural protective layer of the skin which can result in dehydrated skin. Cortisol also influences the production of hyaluronic acid, which is essential for our skin to stay hydrated.
Melatonin is also known as a sleep hormone. When we experience a lack of sleep, our body produces less melatonin. This hormone supports the recovery of our skin and helps in the production of collagen, which is essential for the elasticity of skin.
In the end we can say that hormones are a big part of our life. They let us experience things the way we do, and of course have their benefits. Accepting yourself and taking care of your mind and body is the best advice we could give. After all, all good things come from within.
