Eat Your Veggies, Clear Up Acne
Reported September 17, 2009
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — Though getting pimples or blemishes is a part of growing up, a Norwegian study suggests vegetables and a low-glycemic diet may protect your teen from acne.
Researchers interviewed just under 4,000 adolescents to examine the relationship between acne, diet and mental health. The 18- and 19-year-olds participating were given questionnaires to monitor their diets, mental condition and lifestyle. Each participant reported his or her own acne conditions.
Study results show a significant link between girls with acne and a diet low in vegetables. Researchers say this indicates a low-glycemic diet — or a diet low in “fast” carbohydrates like white bread and high in “slow” carbohydrates like fresh vegetables — may play a protective role in acne development.
“Our study shows a possible link between diet and acne,” Jon Anders Halvorsen, a researcher at the University of Oslo, was quoted as saying. “However, when we introduced symptoms of depression and anxiety in our statistical model, the role of diet became less clear. On the other hand, the association between acne and mental health problems was still strong when diet was introduced. This underscores mental health problems as an important aspect of young people’s acne.”
SOURCE: BMC Public Health
