Acne and water retention
Water retention is when there is a buildup of water in the
tissues and spaces between cells.
Water retention results from excess pressure on the blood
vessels. Water then begins to leak into the surrounding tissue.
There are many known causes of water retention. The biggest
cause of it is actually from not drinking enough water. When you
don't give your body adequate amounts of water, it will begin to
store water in the tissues for survival. When you supply your
body with regular glasses of water it will stop storing water.
Diet also plays a major role in water retention. Salt is one of
the biggest food related causes. Too much processed salt in the
body causes the water inside the cells to come out to dilute the
excess salt. To remove access salt, you need to drink lots of
fresh water so it can be flushed out your liver and kidneys.
Other foods and liquids like excess sugar, toxins in the body
and alcohol cause retention by putting strain on your kidneys
and slows them down.
Other than diet it is also important that you have healthy
kidneys, as kidney disease and other complications all
contribute to water retention. The other factor is exercise,
which helps keep the lymphatic system active which is essential
for removing access fluid from the bodies tissues.
How does water retention affect acne?
The pressure on the skin cells that water retention produces,
causes the pores of the skin to become blocked. Inside these
trapped pores, bacteria mixes with skin oil, dead skin cells,
and toxins to cause acne.
If you also happen to have over-productive sebum producing
glands, you could potentially have quite serious acne.
How do you combat water retention?
* As you read a little earlier, it could be as simple as
drinking more water. 6-8 glasses a day would be a good rule of
thumb.
* Exercising for at least 30 minutes each day to stimulate the
lymph and promote healthy elimination of toxins and body waste.
* Going easy on food additives such as sugar and salt. If you do
eat excessivly salty foods, be sure to drink plenty of water
afterwards.
There are other methods to reducing water retention. One of them
is by using diuretics. These cause excess water to be expeled
from the body. There are many types of diuretics.
Cucumber juice is know to be an excellent diuretic. Herbs such
as Dandelion leaf have also been known for hundreds of years as
diuretic in effect.