Pizza has a lot of dairy in it, which has hormones that cause the skin to produce too much oil and can cause inflammatory “acne pizza face”. It also has gluten, which can hurt the gut and make acne worse, and unhealthy fats, which can cause inflammation. Lastly, pizza has a lot of carbs, which makes the body release even more hormones that cause acne.
Overall, pizza affects almost all of the acne causes at the root, including digestive, hormonal, and inflammatory acne. If you regularly consume pizza and get acne pizza face, consider making dietary changes to help control your acne.
Can dairy in pizza cause acne?
If you don’t get a vegan or dairy-free pizza, you’re probably going to eat a lot of low-quality cheese every time you eat pizza.
Several things make it likely that cheese will cause acne pizza face:
- Hormones called IGF-1 are found in dairy, and these hormones clog pores.
- Most dairy products cause a big response from insulin, which is a hormone that makes acne worse, so it’s double trouble for hormonal acne.
- Casein, a protein found in dairy, can hurt the digestive system.
- Dairy is high in calcium, which makes it hard to absorb zinc, an important nutrient for clear skin.
- There are a lot of people who are allergic to or intolerant of dairy, which can cause acne that is red and sore.
Pizza usually has soft, young cheese from cows that has been pasteurized. This type of cheese is one of the worst for acne.
Aged, hard, raw goat or sheep cheese is lower in hormones like IGF-1 that cause acne pizza face and is easier to digest than most pizza cheese. What’s wrong? It doesn’t taste as good as fresh mozzarella most of the time.
Can grease on pizza cause acne?
Your mom probably told you, if you’re like me, that
“Avoid greasy foods or you’ll get pimples!”
Even though this isn’t completely true, and there are many reasons why some fat is actually good for acne-prone skin, there is some truth to it when it comes to foods like pizza.
Soybean, sunflower, safflower, and canola oil are all vegetable oils that are used in artificial foods like pizza. The problem with these oils is that they are very hard to control, especially when they are hot. When these oils are cooked, they change into fats that cause inflammation. Inflammation is what turns a simple acne infection into a big, bright red pimple that sticks out.
Omega-6 fatty acids make up about 1.36g of a single slice of pizza.
That’s a lot by itself, but think about the last time you ate just one slice of pizza.
Can gluten in pizza cause acne?
Gluten, a protein found in wheat and a lot of other grains, can make acne worse. Gluten is in a lot of pizza crusts.
Gluten is a type of protein called a “lectin.” There are chemicals in plants called lectins that make it hard for animals to digest them properly. Some lectins can’t be broken down by our bodies, so they go into the small intestine without being digested and can damage the intestinal wall. This can cause a condition called leaky gut syndrome.
Acne is made worse by leaky gut syndrome for a few reasons: First, it lets protein that hasn’t been digested into the bloodstream. When this happens, your immune system sends out a response that makes the situation worse. If this happens too often, it can make your immune system work too hard, which can cause inflammatory acne. It can also cause insulin resistance, which can lead to hormonal acne and stop your body from absorbing nutrients like zinc that help fight acne pizza face.
In short, gluten hurts the digestive system because it makes it easier for food that hasn’t been digested to get into the bloodstream. This can lead to hormonal and inflammatory acne.
Can carbs in pizza cause acne?
A single slice of pizza has about 23.5g of carbs, which is a lot.
Carbs aren’t bad, and they don’t always cause acne pizza face, but if you eat too many of them too often, they will.
When you eat carbs, your body makes a hormone called insulin, which helps break down the carbs and get them to the muscles that need them. If you eat too many carbohydrates too often, your body will stop responding to insulin. Just like you need more and more coffee every morning to feel awake, your body needs more and more insulin to move carbs around.
This is bad for acne because insulin doesn’t work on its own. Instead, it’s a master hormone that makes three other hormones that cause acne pizza face come out:
- IGF-1 makes the skin produce more oil, clogs pores, and makes inflammation worse.
- IGFBP-3 makes pores clog up and close off.
- IL-1 makes inflammation worse.
Almost every case of acne pizza face can be traced back to one of these three hormones.
When you eat 3 or 4 slices of pizza, your insulin level goes up a lot. Even though pizza isn’t the largest source of carbs in the world, it will still make a difference.
Can additives in pizza cause acne?
Okay, this is a minor point, but have you ever looked at the list of ingredients on a frozen pizza?
Most of the time, pizza has:
- Enriched wheat flour
- Skim mozzarella cheese was
- Soy protein concentrate
- Starch made from corn (modified)
- Gluten, soybean oil, yeast extract
- Corn meal and corn oil
Oh no, that’s not good. If you’re not in Europe, your pizza probably has a long list of ingredients with a lot of things that can cause acne pizza face. It is not a good move for your skin.
Will pizza always give me acne?
At this point, you might be wondering if you can ever eat pizza again without getting acne. Everyone is different. That’s the deal. Some people might be able to eat certain kinds of pizza, while others might not be able to.
I can’t eat American pizza because the cheese is grain-fed, low-fat, and pasteurized; the crust is enriched and high in gluten; and there are a lot of extra ingredients. When I’m in Italy, I don’t mind having a good pizza once in a while (the cheese is almost always raw buffalo cheese, the grain is much lower in gluten, and the ingredients are fresh, local, and often organic).
You might be able to handle some pizzas but not others. Some of you might have to stop eating it and try it again later. There is no one size that fits everyone.
Having said that, there are some ways to make pizza much less likely to give you acne pizza face.
How to make pizza less likely to give you acne
There is no perfect pizza for acne, but frozen or delivered pizza is probably not the best choice for your skin.
Here are some starting points:
- Go for a crust that doesn’t have gluten. Instead of grains, try coconut flour or a cauliflower crust. Most places have a gluten-free crust option that uses eggs, nuts, coconut, or cauliflower.
- Use better cheese. If you can, choose a raw (not pasteurized), aged sheep or goat cheese. These cheeses have fewer hormones (IGF-1) and are easier for your body to break down.
- Make your own tomato sauce. Instead of buying one that is full of vegetable oils and sugar, make your own with real tomatoes and olive oil instead.
Again, it won’t be perfect, but making your own pizza or even just switching to a gluten-free crust can make a huge difference.