What Does Perimenopause Do To Your Skin?
Are you having skin dramas during perimenopause?
- Has your skin decided not to behave and you feel like a teenager again?
- Are you all of a sudden reacting to the skin care products you have used for years?
Understanding why it's happening can help you as you go through this time in your life.
Okay! Time to dive innnnnnnnn…
Why Does Your Skin Change in Perimenopause?
As our levels of estrogen drop during perimenopause, our skin barriers become less robust which can cause combination (oily and dry), super-sensitive and breakout-prone skin.
The symptoms of peri skin can happen slowly - they're caused by less moisture in the skin which makes it dry and a dropping pH level making the skin more sensitive.
We also start losing collagen at 1% per year from the age of 20, this increases in perimenopause and menopause with the falling of oestrogen levels and as part of the natural ageing process.
Collagen is the protein that gives our skin the plumpness and bouncy youthful skin. Read more on collagen here.
Taking 3g of collagen daily will help improve skin elasticity and hydration.
Itchy Skin in Perimenopause
Itchy skin is commonly linked to perimenopuase, some even calling it the Menopause Rash.
Ah, happy days (urgh!)!
As we talked about above, during perimenopause our skin becomes sensitive prone and dryer which is what causes that very uncomfortable and annoying itchiness.
It’s helpful to focus on keeping your skin moisturised. Because your skin is so sensitive during perimenopause, we recommend using a skin moisturiser free from perfumes and any nasties.
Note that taking long hot showers can worsen dry skin and itchiness as it can remove too much of the body's natural oils.
Try taking a shorter, not-too-hot shower with a non-soap body wash, patting your body dry and then moisturising straight away.
Rosacea and Perimenopause
Rosacea is more common in women between the ages of 30 - 50, so we tend to see more cases in perimenopause.
Rosacea symptoms are a pinky face, nose and skin. You might see broken blood vessels and lumps and bumps that aren’t acne.
Causes and triggers that can worsen Rosacea include:
- Hot food or beverages
- Spicy foods
- Alcohol
- Temperature extremes
- Sunlight
- Stress, anger or embarrassment
- Strenuous exercise
- Hot baths or saunas
- Oral and topical corticosteroids
- Drugs that dilate blood vessels such as blood pressure medications
- Inappropriate use of skin care products such as facial creams and oils.
Read more here about how to treat rosacea from the Australasian College of Dermatologists.
How Can I Help My Perimenopause Skin?
- Apply sunscreen daily
- Go gentle on the product - we don’t need 10 million creams
- Use products developed for sensitive skin - no highly perfumed products with less active ingredients
- Hydrate and calm your skin
- Switch from a gel cleanser to a cream cleanser
- You might need a different routine in summer and winter (your skin might get dryer in the winter months)
- It might be trial and error trying different products until you find something that works for you
- If your body is dry - moisture your body daily
- Pat your skin dry after a shower and moisturise straight after as it’s the best time to do it
- Don’t use soap.
When To See a Specialist
Whilst it is common to experience changes in our skin during perimenopause, if you have any skin conditions during perimenopause that are affecting your quality of life, consider seeing a dermatologist for a once over. It is a common time for skin changes and you might be dealing with eczema, rosacea or acne.
Resources
The M Word, How to Thrive in Menopause, Dr Ginni Mansberg