Body Building & Working Out

Before you head to the health food store to buy your next fitness supplement, beware! Sure, they can help you increase your muscle mass, but guess what? They can also lead to breakouts!

Certain ingredients can aggravate acne. The first of these ingredients to look out for is iodides.  Iodides are found in whey, soy, spirulina, chlorella, blue-green algae, kelp and seaweed. Tthe body will absorb the amount it needs but the excess will be excreted through the oil glands, irritating the follicle and triggering breakouts. Large enough amounts of iodine can actually induce acne in anyone, even those who are not prone to acne!

Instead of whey or soy protein powders, opt for pea, egg white or hemp protein.

Another ingredient to be aware of is biotin. This B vitamin can also be found in supplements touted to help grow hair, skin, and nails.  So, why is it a problem? It accelerates cell production, which is an issue with acne-prone skin. If you have acne, you are already producing too many excess layers of dead skin cells for your pores to keep up with! 

And now for something that you won’t find on the shelves at your local natural foods market: anabolic steroids. Illicitly available as testosterone pills and shots, steroids cause a very rapid onset of inflamed acne or exacerbate existing acne within a few days of dosing. Since testosterone is responsible for activating your oil glands in the first place, just think what mega doses of it will do to your skin! And just like iodine, steroids can affect people who are not acne-prone. Keep in mind also that strength training on its own—without the aid of steroids—can boost the production of testosterone in the body, in both men and women. More muscles may mean more acne.

You don’t have to give up your quest for clear skin on the road to a hard body, but if you’re dealing with more than sore muscles post-workout, think twice before taking that fitness supplement!