Do you get that same annoying breakout in the same exact spot every single month before your period? As we always say, your skin isn’t the problem. It’s just the messenger. And we don’t shoot the messenger!
Hormonal breakouts are one of the most common complaints in our community, and yet they’re also one of the most misunderstood. SO many of us are handed topical prescriptions or recommended medications when the real issue is an imbalance much, much deeper. In your gut, your liver, and, ultimately, your hormones. Which is exactly why Liver Juice and Flow Balance were created.
After all, your skin is in constant communication with your endocrine system. Every hormonal shift throughout your cycle (like the rise and fall of estrogen, progesterone, and androgens) can show up on your skin in real time. When these sex hormones are being metabolized and cleared properly, your skin stays clear and healthy. But when they’re not? Your skin becomes an elimination pathway for clearing waste. Let’s talk about why.
The Underlying Factors at Play
1. Androgens Surging
In the days leading up to your period, estrogen and progesterone both drop off sharply, signaling your endometrial lining to shed. This shift allows androgens (like testosterone) to become more dominant. And since they’re responsible for stimulating your sebaceous glands to overproduce sebum, hellooooo clogged pores and breakouts. This is why the jawline, chin, and mouth areas are the most common spots – they have the highest concentration of androgen receptors.
But here’s the nuance: this androgen surge is completely normal and universal. Everyone with a cycle experiences this relative androgen dominance before their period. It’s not about having too much testosterone (like a PMOS situation), it’s just how the hormonal ratios are at this point in your cycle. But why do some people break out in these zones while others don’t? The androgen surge itself isn’t the problem. It’s the other culprits on this list that make your skin more susceptible to it.
2. A Sluggish Liver
Our livers work so hard for us, it’s honestly emotional to think about!! Not only do they filter waste and toxins, they’re also central to hormone balance, thyroid function, and so much more. Estrogen metabolism specifically happens through a two-phase liver detox process, and when that gets slowed down or overburdened, estrogen doesn’t get cleared properly. Instead, it recirculates in your bloodstream, throws off your estrogen-progesterone ratio, and drives a whole host of symptoms downstream.
This is often referred to as estrogen dominance, and it doesn’t necessarily mean your estrogen is sky high. Sometimes it just means that the ratio is off because estrogen clearance isn’t happening properly.
Some signs of estrogen dominance are:
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Heavier or more painful periods
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Breast tenderness
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Water retention and/or unexplained weight gain
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Mood swings that ramp up in your luteal phase
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PMS
3. Gut Dysbiosis
Have you ever heard of the estrobolome? If not, buckle up because this one’s a game changer. The estrobolome is a specific collection of gut bacteria whose entire job is to metabolize and eliminate estrogen through your digestive system. When it’s working well, it packages up used estrogen and eliminates it through your poop. But things like antibiotic use, chronic stress, poor diet, and infections can cause the estrobolome to overproduce an enzyme called beta-glucuronidase, which reactivates estrogen that was packaged for elimination and sends it right back into your bloodstream. This leads to more recirculating estrogen, more hormonal imbalances, and more breakouts. The gut-skin connection cannot be emphasized enough!
4. Chronic Stress
We’ve all had at least one stress breakout in our lives, right? There’s a very real reason for that. Cortisol directly triggers sebum production and cellular inflammation, making breakouts worse almost immediately. But it goes way deeper than that. Cortisol also suppresses progesterone production, worsening the whole estrogen dominance situation. And as if that weren’t enough, chronically high cortisol burdens the liver, impairing its ability to clear estrogen efficiently. Stress is a full-on physiological cascade that touches every single root cause on this list.
5. Blood Sugar Imbalances
This one may surprise you at first, but it makes sense once you see the domino effect. It goes like this: blood sugar spikes → insulin release → insulin stimulates your ovaries to produce more androgens → more sebum + clogged pores → more breakouts. Sound familiar? Simultaneously, blood sugar spikes → cortisol release → sebum production and cellular inflammation AND progesterone suppression.
What Actually Helps
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Eat cruciferous vegetables daily. Broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and others in the brassica family contain DIM and indole-3-carbinol that directly support estrogen metabolism in your liver.
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Hit at least 25g of fiber per day to support healthy estrogen elimination through your gut
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Optimize your estrogen-progesterone balance with Vitex, found in Flow Balance.
A balancing and regulating formula designed to optimize hormone health and support minor PMS symptoms.* STAR HERB: Chaste Tree Berry
Flow Balance
Important note: only do this if you have signs of low progesterone or high estrogen. Vitex is not for everybody.
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Reduce alcohol and refined sugar consumption to reduce the burden on your liver and prevent blood sugar spikes
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Eat fermented foods and take a high-quality probiotic to support microbiome diversity
An advanced prebiotic, probiotic, enzyme blend designed to support gut microbiome diversity, skin health, digestion and elimination.* STAR HERB: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG.
Not Your Average Probiotic
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Keep your blood sugar stable with balanced, consistent meals throughout the day
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Find your stress management non-negotiables (meditation, hobbies, yoga, breathwork, time in nature, journaling, or whatever works for YOUR specific body and nervous system)
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Support phase I and phase II liver detoxification pathways with herbs, like those found in Liver Juice.
Liver Juice
A blend of herbs that encourage the body’s natural detoxification processes in order to support skin, energy and hormone health.*
STAR HERB: Oregon Grape Root
