I’m Breaking Up With Caffeine
I had to break up with my morning coffee. Well technically I just had to break up with caffeinated-coffee.
Unfortunately I’ve discovered my beloved morning cup has been betraying me and my skin.
I’ve had an on and off toxic relationship with adult acne for probably about 10 years now and most recently I discovered that caffeine was actually one of my major triggers. I have been working through trying to holistically heal my adult acne for some time and have uncovered other triggers, as well as made some shifts in my lifestyle to attempt to improve my skin and overall health. But I NEVER suspected that my morning coffee would be the one to stab me in the back.
I can’t remember exactly what made alarm bells go off but a few months ago I had decided to try and cut back on my caffeine intake–likely because I finally had to admit that I was consuming ridiculous amounts. In my attempt, I noticed a few improvements in my breakouts, so I decided to put it to the real test. I eliminated caffeine completely for three days. And when I tell you, my chin was clear of active breakouts in just three days, I kid you not.
Since my discovery, I have to admit, I hadn’t exactly taken it extremely seriously. I attempted to limit my caffeine, which wasn’t always very successful, but after a recent inflamed breakout, I decided that it was time to officially break up with caffeine. But, in true Olivia fashion, in order to be successful in either changing or quitting a bad habit, I needed to see the bigger picture. A solid reason why. I need a good understanding of how it’s affecting me before I can convince myself that it’s in my best interest to actually change or quit that habit. And because I want what’s best for your skin as well I’m sharing what I’ve figured out.
How Caffeine Sabotages Your Skin
Though I did find sources that showed caffeine to have some benefits to skin health like antioxidant support, and UVB protection, it does seem like the more caffeine you drink, the more likely it is to negatively affect your skin health. From cortisol levels to sleep quality and collagen production to inflammation, drinking caffeine has a variety of ways it can affect your health.
The Cortisol Connection
I think my biggest set back was how caffeine was affecting my cortisol levels. Caffeine is a stimulant and can increase your cortisol production and if you know about cortisol, one thing we don’t want is high levels of this stress hormone. Being a person who was blessed with anxiety, I already have to be mindful of keeping my nervous system in check, but here I was, fueling the fire with caffeine.
When it comes to cortisol, high levels can take a toll on our overall health, and then we see it in our skin. Here’s how elevated cortisol shows up on your skin.
It can increase your oil production. And especially for those of us who are already acne prone, more oil is never a good thing. More oil = more breakouts
It makes us look older. Did you know the more caffeine you consume, the less collagen you produce? I didn’t either. I’ll dive deeper into this later.
It increases inflammation. With inflammation we may see worsening conditions, like rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, and acne
It impacts moisture retention. To maintain healthy skin we want to maintain hydration. Your skin NEEDS hydration to work efficiently, and with a cortisol spike, it’s hard to retain that moisture.
it can cause disruptions in the sleep cycle and quality of sleep. One thing I have come to learn is how insanely important sleep quality is when it comes to not only overall health, but skin health. Poor sleep quality can show up as dark circles under the eyes, dull complexion, and it can slow skin regeneration.
High cortisol can wreak havoc on our skin, and when we exacerbate that with caffeine, we’re just asking for trouble.
The Research Shows
I read a couple of studies on the impact caffeine can have on natural skin processes like collagen synthesis and wound healing, and I am sorry to report the results were not good. In one 2014 study, researchers used human fibroblasts to test how caffeine can affect collagen synthesis. In the study, they also tested how caffeine affects collagen synthesis along with the use of hyaluronic acid–a moisture-binding ingredient found in lots of anti-aging products to help increase moisture attention in the skin, helping to keep skin hydrated and keep the barrier strong. When skin is hydrated, all of its natural functions can work more cohesively. Researchers found that the higher doses of caffeine consumption led to inhibited collagen synthesis, EVEN WITH the application of hyaluronic acid.
This breakout was my wake-up call—time to break up with caffeine.
Collagen is how we maintain a youthful complexion and slower development of fine lines and wrinkles. And if we’re producing less of it, well...I think you know what that means.
Another study found that higher doses of caffeine consumption had slowed some functions of the wound healing process. This could explain why my breakouts seemed to heal quicker once I’d quit. I’m not saying it’s definitive, but once I eliminated caffeine, my breakouts healed noticeably faster and my skin felt more hydrated.
The Game Plan
So what can we do to minimize the negative effects that caffeine has on our body and skin?
Stay hydrated. I feel like I overuse “one of the most important” but hydration is one of the most important aspects of healthy skin. Like I said before, thoroughly hydrated skin works properly, and keeping your skin hydrated means not only hydrating the surface, but also hydrating your body. Hydrate your skin and drink your water.
Reduce your overall intake. I personally have to take things in steps before I can go all in. So far, what I’ve done is cut back to only one Diet Coke a week (the Diet Coke is a WHOLE other story), and I’ve switched to decaf coffee. My goal is to completely eliminate caffeine with only occasional consumption but for now what I’m doing seems to be working.
Substitute your caffeinated drinks for something more mild like green tea. While green tea does still contain caffeine, it has much less than traditional coffee AND it provides great antioxidant support. I love a good matcha latte from time to time in the place of my coffee.
Eventually, like I said, I’d like to be completely caffeine-free, but in the meantime, I am just meeting myself where I am. I’m going to limit my intake and make sure I’m staying hydrated.
Once I got a clear picture of the effects of caffeine, I was motivated to make a commitment. A commitment to myself and to my skin. I put a plan into place and have taken steps toward my goal of eliminating caffeine.
I’m not saying caffeine is your problem. But if you’ve tried everything and your skin still isn’t cooperating, it might be worth a three-day experiment. Your skin might surprise you.
Health and skin health are extremely personal and bio-individual, and through enough trial and errors, I know that I am very sensitive to caffeine. Which is why I decided to dive in, do the research, and figure out HOW caffeine was triggering my breakouts. Knowing HOW was enough of a reason WHY I should give up my morning cup. Because I deserve to live a joyful life as a healthy and confident woman. Because I choose to be the healthiest version of me.
