Look Who's Coming To Dinner...
By Barbara Strickland, Certified
Para-Medical Esthetician
In case you don't have enough to worry about, some of your favorite fodder may
exacerbate your acne! A stealthy culprit may be lurking in your food and medications...Iodides.
Excessive, long-term ingestion of
Iodide (also known as Iodine) whether from drugs or food can cause ACNE. Once Iodide
enters the body and mixes into the bloodstream zits start appearing with regularity. If
there is Iodide present in the blood, the body excretes the excess Iodide through the oil
glands of the skin. As the Iodide is excreted, it irritates the pores and causes acne
flare-ups. If you are acne-prone, your pores are especially sensitive to Iodide.
"Ha! but I'm not
acne-prone!" Well, thank your parents for the great genetics, but you're not out of
the woods. Iodide can even cause normally clear skin to break out too, when ingested in
large amounts. This is true if you have the recessive acne gene as well. This does not
mean that you should remove all traces of Iodine from your diet, since a big goiter might
cancel out any "good feelings" you were having about your clear skin. Everything
in moderation...
It is interesting to note that
Iodide is showing up in very unexpected foods, like bread (wheat products,) meat, and
dairy products. Farmers feed their livestock nutrients with Iodine in them and it is
passed on to you, the consumer. Vitamins, mineral pills, and food supplements are some of
the biggest offending sources of Iodides. Vitamin and mineral companies also love to
include Kelp, Seaweed, Algae, etc. in their vitamins and minerals and for the acne
prone this is the kiss of ZITS! Be sure to read the labels before purchasing and shop for
a brand that does not contain high levels of Iodide.
Some swimming pool disinfectants
contain Iodides and Chlorine, which can remain in the water, causing skin problems for
frequent swimmers. Many swimmers find that the combination of hot and humid weather, the
physical exercise of swimming and the chlorinated pools, can cause major acne flare-ups.
Remember that whether ingested in
food, or absorbed on the skin, sufficient quantities of Iodide can cause zits!
Iodide (Iodine)
Content In Foods - rated in parts per million
This
is, by no means, a complete listing of all Iodide-rich foods.
Like everything else here at Sage, the Iodine List is a continuously evolving body of
information.
If you would like to know the Iodine rating of any food not listed, please e-mail me at
barbara@sageskincare.com
