Medical expert of the article

Dermatologist, onkodermatolog

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Hormones and skin

Alexey Portnov, medical expert
Last reviewed: 20.11.2021

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Hormones play an important role in the physiology of the skin, so the violation of the hormonal balance immediately affects its condition. For example, an imbalance of thyroid hormones can lead to excessive dryness of the skin. A decrease in the level of sex hormones in menopause leads to faster aging of the skin, increased growth of hair on the face and body.

With an excess of estrogens, skin pigmentation may increase, dark spots appear on it. Male sex hormones (androgens) cause atrophy of hormone-dependent hair follicles on the head, which leads to baldness, and stimulates sebum secretion, which makes an important contribution to the pathogenesis of oily seborrhea and acne. Now actively study the effect on the skin of growth hormone and even try to use it to rejuvenate the entire body in the elderly.

There is virtually no hormone that does not affect the skin, so hormones could be a powerful means of affecting the skin. But in cosmetology, the use of hormones (as well as other substances of systemic action) is prohibited. Therefore, the popularity of substances that, when applied to the skin, can have an effect similar to the effect of a hormone (this is the apparent effect, and not the molecular mechanism of action) is so great. By its structure, this substance can resemble a molecule of the hormone (although this similarity is sometimes very remote). Such compounds include, for example, phytoestrogens - the most popular group of cosmetic "hormone substitutes" derived from plants. Phytoestrogens will be devoted to a separate section on the site.

trusted-source [1], [2], [3]

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