It's completely frustrating (and honestly bs) to still be struggling with breakouts in your 30s, 40s, 50s, and beyond. It seems no matter how clean you eat, or how diligent you are with your skincare routine, sometimes acne happens at the most inopportune time, typically caused by stress or hormone fluctuations. What can be even more frustrating are the scars acne leaves behind.

What causes breakouts?

Typically overactive sebum (waxy, oil-like substance produced by sebaceous glands) can cause breakouts.  Why? If your pores are clogged with excess oils, dead skin cells, and acne causing bacteria, inflammation can occur and form a pimple. And if that’s not already stressful enough, additional stress can lead to more oil production due to overactive hormone cortisol. 

 

BONUS TIP to Reduce Cystic Acne Swelling: DIY Match Cubes to soothe painful cystic acne and reduce the inflammation is easy when you create matcha ice cubes. Prepare matcha as you normally would when you're enjoying a cup. But freeze the some of the prepared liquid. When you're experiencing an active painful breakout, pull out the matcha ice cube to calm (cold reduces swelling) and feed your skin all those antioxidants.

 

Pro Tip: You can do the same with chamomile, rose, hibiscus tea if you're not a matcha drinker.

Why do acne scars happen?

Basically your pores become inflamed from the pimple. Inflammation triggers tyrosinase activity in your epidermis. Wait, what is that!? Tyrosinase is a key enzyme that relates to melanin production. Which is why a darker spot forms after a pimple. It’s called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (aka PIH).

So if you’re still battling hormonal acne and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, aka (PIH) you’ll want to incorporate these powerful, yet gentle skincare ingredients to:

1. Unclog pores and fight breakouts
2. Stimulate collagen production to promote skin healing
3. Brighten, even skin, and fade those frustrating acne scars 

You’ll be enjoying your clearer, brighter, and more even skin soon enough with my 5 favorite underrated natural skincare ingredients.

5 Ingredients to Reduce Breakouts and Fade Acne Scarring

Licorice Root

Licorice is more than just a jelly bean flavor! Glycyrrhizin, a phytocompound found in  Licorice root is a skin-soothing antioxidant. Studies show that it helps to fight acne-causing bacteria, calms redness, and soothes eczema too thanks to the antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. 

Licorice also balances oil production, perfect if your skin is oily or acne-prone skin. 

Not only does licorice fight breakouts and balance the skin, it acts as a tyrosinase inhibitor because it contains a compound called glabridin. Remember, acne scarring such as post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation occurs due to the enzyme that stimulates melanin. Well, a tyrosinase inhibitor, like licorice extract, reduces the overproduction of melanin in the skin. You’ll find Licorice root in Glow Getter, a must have if you want to promote overall skin health, reduce breakouts,  brighten and even skin.

Kaolin Clay

Kaolin Clay is one of the ultimate multi-taskers. The most well-known benefit of kaolin clay? It absorbs excess oil on the skin but isn’t OVERDRYING. And it’s NOT harsh like other clays - I'm looking at you drying bentonite clay. 

 

But the benefits of Kaolin Clay don’t stop there. When mixed with a little bit of water and massaged onto the skin, it turns into a gentle physical exfoliator and stimulates blood flow to promote healing and collagen production which is important to overall skin health. 

You’ll love Clay Play, she’s packed with anti-inflammatory and skin barrier repairing lipids from oats, rosehip, and coconut milk ingredients to soothe and reduce blemishes. You can use her as a gentle skin-softening cleanser and a purifying mask to remove dirt and debris, gently buff away dead skin, brighten skin and clear breakouts. 

Kakadu Plum

Kakadu Plum is a natural source of one of my FAVORITE superhero ingredients: vitamin C! Why Vitamin C? It’s a vitamin that promotes collagen production to keep your skin firm, plump, and looking youthful, plus it plays a vital role in healing the skin. 

So basically, it’s a superfood that’s absolutely perfect if you’re looking to prevent, reverse, and protect your skin from UV damage, brighten skin, reduce hyperpigmentation, face scarring, soften fine lines, promote skin health, and achieve overall youthful glowing skin. Ya know..all the things!

BONUS INGREDIENT: Rosehip is a STAR at breaking up hyperpigmentation and scaring.  You'll find her in Glow Getter, Clay Play, Clean Slate, and Nourish Me.

 

See why I love incorporating Kakadu plum into both Glow Getter and Phyto Tonic, aka the Me Time Glow Duo. ? 

Honey

Another skin hero! Honey is a gentle exfoliator thanks to the enzymatic properties that loosen dead skin cells to reveal softer, smoother, glowing skin. Honey is also thought to speed up skin’s healing process and help balance your microbiome which is exactly why it’s the perfect ingredient to soothe active breakouts, repair skin, and reduce inflammation.  

One of the best ways to use honey is to apply it as a mask like Berry Bright 1-2 times weekly. Berry Bright comes with an added BONUS of antioxidant rich berries full of vitamin B and C to help support skin health, brighten skin, and stimulate collagen production.

Willow Bark extract

Willow Bark is a gentle BHA (beta hydroxy acid). A beta hydroxy acid is an oil-soluble acid, unlike AHA, and is absorbed deeper into the pores to gently exfoliate away dead skin cells, reduce oil buildup, swelling, and redness plus literally clear pores. 

Since willow bark is a natural source of salicin, where salicylic acid is derived, studies show it’s a safer alternative to salicylic acid, making it pregnancy safe. It's also soothing and anti-inflammatory, making it less harsh than other BHAs that can cause irritation. Be sure to always consult your doctor if you’re pregnant or nursing.

Basically willow bark, found in Glow Getter will help prevent acne but if breakouts happen, willow bark lessens the inflammation. WOOHOO, right!?!

Long story short, all 5 of these are powerful ingredients to reduce inflammation, clear pores, speed up and support healing of acne prone skin especially in combination with vitamin C to protect the skin from sun damage and reduce pigmentation significantly. 

Discover your new Me Time Botanicals holy grails packed with all things anti-inflammatory and pro skin health.

 

Looking for more... you'll love these 10 Secrets for Glowing Clear Skin