Can menopause change the way my skin is? It's suddenly very oily!

Can menopause change the way my skin is?

It's suddenly very oily. So obviously menopause the more common things for skin to get dry. But in actual fact, as the the oestrogen levels decline, it can lead to testosterone actually being relatively unopposed in the body and showing some effect. So sometimes women get more, say acne or spots and break out because of this and other times you can get more oily skin. So the root is really the hormone imbalance that's occurring. And the fact that the testosterone is now kind of showing itself and having more effect.

So you can help to reduce this by using skin products which obviously are more tailored towards oily, skin or clay masks, which can be helpful and also by looking at your nutrition and diet and focusing on a Mediterranean type antiinflammatory diet with plenty of phytoestrogens in there to help with the hormone balance.

So things like ground linseeds, peas, beans and pulses, lots of vegetables that can all help. They are all rich in phytoestrogens and can help with the hormone balance. I would also say that herbal medicine can often be helpful, so I often use that in my clinic and you might want to see a qualified medical herbalist.

You could also help to support the hormone levels in a quite safe, natural way. HRT could be beneficial if your oestrogen levels are very low and you could look at bioidentical hormone therapy or conventional HRT or hormone levels checking and a doctor to help you supervise that.