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How to Prevent and Treat Hormonal Acne, According to Dermatologists

You’ve got two major options when it comes to regulating and stabilizing your hormones: oral birth control and spironolactone. Both of these medications work by limiting, regulating, or decreasing the effects of acne-stimulating androgens in your body (androgens, which include testosterone, are thought of as male sex hormones, though they’re found in all humans at varying levels). “Spironolactone blocks androgens from binding to receptors in the skin,” Dr. Howe has told Cosmo, while birth control pills help regulate your hormones and decrease testosterone levels. Dermatologists often prescribe both at once, and this combo really, truly works: “We usually start to see great results after three…

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Stubborn acne? Hormonal therapy may help

Many studies have looked at how well oral contraceptive pills fight acne. The pill has been found effective at treating blackheads, whiteheads, pimples, and acne nodules and cysts. In fact, the pill has proven so effective that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved some oral contraceptives for treating acne.

Adult female acne: a guide to clinical practice

Hormones are highly effective for AFA, even in patients without serum hormone changes, they are suitable for long-term therapy because they have no potential to induce bacterial resistance and represent an alternative to systemic antibiotics.

What Is Hormonal Acne, Exactly, and How Can I Get It Under Control?

Oral contraceptives can do a great job of clearing acne in people assigned female at birth, Dr. Peredo says. That’s because they’re typically composed of ethinyl estradiol (a synthetic form of estrogen) plus either the progestin norgestimate, norethindrone acetate, or drospirenone (synthetic forms of progesterone), “which work together to alter levels and activity of hormones that can trigger acne,” according to Dr. Peredo.14 So if you’re not on the pill, you might want to ask your doctor if they recommend it to help stabilize your hormones and treat hormonal acne. Ortho Tri-Cyclen10 and YAZ11, for example, are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) specifically for these types of breakouts. Of course, age alone isn’t a definitive indicator that you’re dealing with hormonal acne, which is why it’s important to pay attention to the other factors below too.

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11 Ways to Treat Hormonal Acne, According to Dermatologists

If you're comfortable and if a gynecologist says you're a good candidate, oral contraceptives can help balance out your hormones, including those that are responsible for acne. Dr. Zeichner says that the best prescription options for hormonal acne are birth control pills and Spironolactone (more on that in a second). Birth control pills help regulate your hormones and decrease testosterone levels, which can mean fewer hormone-induced breakouts