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Western Culture May
Be Culprit Behind Acne
NEW YORK (Reuters
Health) - Calling into question the
current medical belief that diet does not affect acne, a new report
suggests that regularly eating breads, cakes, chips and other
staples of Western culture may promote the skin condition.
Dr. Loren Cordain, a professor
of health and exercise science at Colorado State University in
Fort Collins, and colleagues arrived at their conclusion after
studying two non-Westernized populations: the Kitavan Islanders
of Papua New Guinea and the Ache hunter-gatherers of Paraguay.
In the December issue of the Archives
of Dermatology, the study authors report that they found no evidence
of acne among 1,200 Kitavan Islanders aged 10 or older, including
300 of them between 15 and 25. They ate primarily fruit, fish,
tubers and coconut but almost no cereals or refined sugars.
The researchers also saw no acne
among 115 Ache hunter-gatherers, including 15 aged 15 to 25. Their
diet consisted mostly of the root vegetable sweet manioc, peanuts,
maize and rice, as well as some wild game. About 8% of their diet
was made up of Western foods such as pasta, sugar and bread. Previous
studies also have found that acne is rare or nonexistent in people
living in non-industrialized cultures but tends to appear when
they transition to a Western way of life, the report indicates.
In Western cultures, studies have
indicated that acne affects 79% to 95% of adolescents and persists
into middle age in 12% of women and 3% of men.
While genetic factors are known
to play a role in acne, the authors point out that other groups
of Pacific Islanders and South American Indians who live in more
Westernized settings have higher rates of acne.
So the investigators turned their
focus to environmental differences that might contribute to acne.
"The most likely environmental factor that can elicit the hormonal
cascade underlying acne is dietary in nature," Cordain told Reuters
Health. "High-glycemic-load carbohydrates have been demonstrated
to cause the exact hormonal changes known to occur with acne."
He said there is evidence to suggest
that high-glycemic carbohydrates--those that substantially boost
blood sugar levels--"set off a series of hormonal changes known
to underlie the development of acne."
Elevated blood sugar leads to increases
in insulin production, Cordain explained. This affects other hormones
that ultimately can cause excess oil in the skin to be produced,
pores to be clogged and bacteria that cause acne to thrive, he
said.
High-glycemic foods include cereals,
bagels and other breads, doughnuts and cakes, crackers, chips
and candy.
Low-glycemic diets, including plenty
of fruits and vegetables, might offer a new treatment option for
people with acne, Cordain suggested.
However, this remains to be proven,
note the authors of an accompanying editorial.
"Whether adherence to a diet with
a low glycemic load can alter acne in other populations is unknown,"
write Dr. Diane Thiboutot of Hershey, Pennsylvania, and Dr. John
Strauss of Iowa City, Iowa.
And while observations suggest
that acne can develop in groups such as Eskimos who didn't have
the skin condition until they started eating more high-glycemic
foods, the editorialists add, "no systematic studies are available
to fully support or refute these observations."
SOURCE: Archives of Dermatology
2002;138:1584-1592.
Reference
Source 89
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