Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Acne and Nutrition

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Plewig and Kligman´s Acne and Rosacea

Abstract

Daniel Turner (1667–1741) of London was the first to emphasize dietary restrictions for acne therapy. Joseph Jakob Plenck (1735–1807) of Vienna related the frequency of acne in young people to a rich diet. Since then acne and diet has been a continuing debating issue. Over the last five decades, diet has been declined to play a role in acne pathogenesis. In 1969, the study of Fulton and coworkers, which was not controlled by glycemic index, showed that high amounts of chocolate did not affect the course of acne vulgaris or the output or composition of sebum. Though much more critical work is required, present knowledge suggests that the sebaceous gland has a high degree of autonomy. In 2002, Cordain and coworkers observed completely acne-free adolescents of Kitava islanders living under Paleolithic nutritional conditions excluding hyperglycemic carbohydrates, milk and dairy products. Further observations of low acne prevalence rates in less developed Paleolithic populations such as the Arche hunters in Paraguay, natives in rural Brazil, Eskimos, Okinawa islanders, and Chinese consuming traditional Chinese food suggested that acne is a disease of Western civilization.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 189.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 249.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Bibliography

Western Diet and Acne

  • Adebamowo CA, Spiegelman D, Danby FW, et al. High school dietary dairy intake and teenage acne. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2005;52:207–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Agamia NF, Abdallah DM, Sorour OS, et al. Skin expression of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), forkhead box transcription factor O1 (FoxO1) and serum insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in patients with acne vulgaris and their relationship with diet. Br J Dermatol. 2016;174:1299–307.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Aghasi M, Golzarand M, Shab-Bidar S, et al. Dairy intake and acne development: a meta-analysis of observational studies. Clin Nutr. 2019;38:1067–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Çerman AA, Aktaş E, Altunay İK, et al. Dietary glycemic factors, insulin resistance, and adiponectin levels in acne vulgaris. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2016;75:155–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cordain L, Lindeberg S, Hurtado M, et al. Acne vulgaris: a disease of Western civilization. Arch Dermatol. 2002;138:1584–90.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Danby FW. Acne and milk, the diet myth, and beyond. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2005;52:360–2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Landro A, Cazzaniga S, Parazzini F, et al. Family history, body mass index, selected dietary factors, menstrual history, and risk of moderate to severe acne in adolescents and young adults. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2012;67:1129–35.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dréno B, Bettoli V, Araviiskaia E, et al. The influence of exposome on acne. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2018;32:812–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fiedler F, Stangl GI, Fiedler E, Taube KM. Acne and nutrition: a systematic review. Acta Derm Venereol. 2017;97:7–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fulton JE Jr, Plewig G, Kligman AM. Effect of chocolate on acne vulgaris. JAMA. 1969;210:2071–4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Juhl CR, Bergholdt HKM, Miller IM et al. Dairy intake and acne vulgaris: a systematic review and meta-analysis of 78,529 children, adolescents, and young adults. Nutrients. 2018;10(8). pii: E1049.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaRosa CL, Quach KA, Koons K, et al. Consumption of dairy in teenagers with and without acne. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2016;75:318–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC. Western diet-induced imbalances of FoxO1 and mTORC1 signalling promote the sebofollicular inflammasomopathy acne vulgaris. Exp Dermatol. 2016;25:103–4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC. Acne vulgaris: the metabolic syndrome of the sebaceous follicle. Clin Dermatol. 2017a;36:29–40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC, Schmitz G. Role of insulin, insulin-like growth factor-1, hyperglycaemic food and milk consumption in the pathogenesis of acne vulgaris. Exp Dermatol. 2009;18:833–41.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC, John SM, Schmitz G. Over-stimulation of insulin/IGF-1 signaling by Western diet may promote diseases of civilization: lessons learnt from Laron syndrome. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2011;8:41.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC, Kakulas F, Geddes DT, et al. Milk miRNAs: simple nutrients or systemic functional regulators? Nutr Metab (Lond). 2016;13:42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qin LQ, He K, Xu JY. Milk consumption and circulating insulin-like growth factor-I level: a systematic literature review. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2009;60(Suppl 7):330–40.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Simonart T. Acne and whey protein supplementation among bodybuilders. Dermatology. 2012;225:256–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ulvestad M, Bjertness E, Dalgard F, Halvorsen JA. Acne and dairy products in adolescence: results from a Norwegian longitudinal study. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2017;31:530–5.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yu M, King B, Ewert E, et al. Exercise activates p53 and negatively regulates IGF-1 pathway in epidermis within a skin cancer model. PLoS One. 2016;11:e0160939.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Dietary Intervention in Acne

  • Bowe W, Patel NB, Logan AC. Acne vulgaris, probiotics and the gut-brain-skin axis: from anecdote to translational medicine. Benef Microbes. 2014;5:185–99.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cordain L. Implications for the role of diet in acne. Semin Cutan Med Surg. 2005;24:84–91.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Deng Y, Wang H, Zhou J, et al. Patients with acne vulgaris have a distinct gut microbiota in comparison with healthy controls. Acta Derm Venereol. 2018;98:783–90.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fabbrocini G, Bertona M, Picazo Ó, et al. Supplementation with Lactobacillus rhamnosus SP1 normalises skin expression of genes implicated in insulin signalling and improves adult acne. Benef Microbes. 2016;7:625–30.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jung JY, Kwon HH, Hong JS, et al. Effect of dietary supplementation with omega-3 fatty acid and gamma-linolenic acid on acne vulgaris: a randomised, double-blind, controlled trial. Acta Derm Venereol. 2014;94:521–6.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lim SK, Ha JM, Lee YH, et al. Comparison of vitamin D levels in patients with and without acne: a case-control study combined with a randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2016;11:e0161162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindeberg S, Eliasson M, Lindahl B, Ahrén B. Low serum insulin in traditional Pacific Islanders - the Kitava Study. Metabolism. 1999;48:1216–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC. Western-diet mediated mTORC1 signaling in acne, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and related disorders of civilization: therapeutic role of plant-derived natural mTORC1 inhibitors. In: Watson RR, Zibadi S, editors. Bioactive dietary factors and plant extracts in dermatology. New York: Springer; 2013. p. 397–419.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Smith RN, Braue A, Varigos GA, Mann NJ. The effect of a low glycemic load diet on acne vulgaris and the fatty acid composition of skin surface triglycerides. J Dermatol Sci. 2008;50:41–52.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yoon JY, Kwon HH, Min SU, et al. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate improves acne in humans by modulating intracellular molecular targets and inhibiting P. acnes. J Invest Dermatol. 2013;133:429–40.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Western Diet and Its Possible Effect in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and Prostate Cancer

  • Graff SK, Mário FM, Alves BC, Spritzer PM. Dietary glycemic index is associated with less favorable anthropometric and metabolic profiles in polycystic ovary syndrome women with different phenotypes. Fertil Steril. 2013;100:1081–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Harrison S, Lennon R, Holly J, et al. Does milk intake promote prostate cancer initiation or progression via effects on insulin-like growth factors (IGFs)? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Cancer Causes Control. 2017;28:497–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kiddy DS, Hamilton-Fairley D, Seppälä M, et al. Diet-induced changes in sex hormone binding globulin and free testosterone in women with normal or polycystic ovaries: correlation with serum insulin and insulin-like growth factor-I. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 1989;31:757–63.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lu W, Chen H, Niu Y, et al. Dairy products intake and cancer mortality risk: a meta-analysis of 11 population-based cohort studies. Nutr J. 2016;15:91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC. Milk disrupts p53 and DNMT1, the guardians of the genome: implications for acne vulgaris and prostate cancer. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2017b;14:55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Melnik BC, John SM, Carrera-Bastos P, Cordain L. The impact of cow’s milk-mediated mTORC1-signaling in the initiation and progression of prostate cancer. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2012;9:74.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Torfadottir JE, Steingrimsdottir L, Mucci L, et al. Milk intake in early life and risk of advanced prostate cancer. Am J Epidemiol. 2012;175:144–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ugge H, Udumyan R, Carlsson J, et al. Acne in late adolescence and risk of prostate cancer. Int J Cancer. 2018;142:1580–5.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Ludwig-Maximilian-University Munich, Munich, Germany

    Gerd Plewig

  2. Department of Dermatology, Environmental Medicine and Health Theory, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany

    Bodo Melnik

  3. Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany

    WenChieh Chen

Authors
  1. Gerd Plewig
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Bodo Melnik
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. WenChieh Chen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Plewig, G., Melnik, B., Chen, W. (2019). Acne and Nutrition. In: Plewig and Kligman´s Acne and Rosacea. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49274-2_8

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49274-2_8

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-49273-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-49274-2

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation