Cutting Gluten Helped Manage My Acne: Here's Why It Worked For Me

I love cooking, baking, and most of all, eating. Unfortunately, I also have a very sensitive digestive system and have to be careful about what I eat. This means there are certain foods that trigger a negative response in my body, like corn, tomatoes, and dairy, to name a few. So I've made some dietary changes over the years to get my body back to optimal health.

Among those trigger foods? Gluten.

How on earth did gluten weasel its way into all of these things? Well, since gluten is gummy in texture, it's used as a binder in quite a few products, which means it's a full-time job trying to avoid the stuff.

I'm considered "gluten sensitive," which doesn't fall under the clinical umbrella of celiac disease, so I don’t face as dire consequences as someone with celiac. But I figured the best way to find out exactly how gluten was affecting my body would be to cut it all out and see what happened.

I was focused. I'd given up my beloved morning toast; I was finding a greater love for fruits and veggies. And after a few weeks, I started to notice positive changes: I had more energy, I stopped feeling bloated all the time, my stomach didn't ache, and my skin started to clear up.

Let's rewind a bit: What you consume shows up in the skin, be it puffiness from salt intake or inflammation from sugar. For me? I found that eating gluten was also spearheading that inflammation and worsening my acne—thanks to a little something called gliadin.

Gliadin is a component of gluten and is found in wheat and other cereals. It's essential for giving bread the ability to rise properly, and it's also the culprit behind celiac disease: The proteins activate the disease and the body responds via intolerance and rejection of gliadin (and in turn, gluten).

The reaction? Inflammation.

Since we know that the gut and skin are inextricably linked (dubbed the "gut-skin axis"), it makes sense why this inflammation would result in acne for me. In fact, research has found that more than half of all acne sufferers also have gut issues. I knew I was sensitive to gluten, yet I consumed it anyway (hey, those protein bars and pre-packaged meals are handy!). Not only was I putting myself at risk for an inflamed small intestine, but also inflamed and irritated skin.

When it comes down to it, eliminating gluten from my diet was extremely helpful, but it wasn’t the only thing I changed. I started eating a lot of fruits and vegetables. I drank more water than ever before. For the first time, I actually thought about what I was putting into my body.

I should note that gluten doesn't necessarily cause acne—there's no clinical data that says so. So if you can tolerate gluten, by all means! But if you have an intolerance or sensitivity to the inflammation already, you may find that it helps manage your skin woes. It certainly did for me. Consider this a friendly reminder to take stock of what you put on your plate—don’t assume that gluten is the only answer to skin problems (again, salt and sugar are also common culprits for many). Perhaps try an elimination diet, like I did, to help you identify any potential trigger foods.