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Does Drooling Cause Acne?

Does Drooling Cause Acne?

One of the major concerns in the world today is figuring out the cure for acne. As we speak, this monster has become a global pandemic where more than 40 to 50 million people are said to be experiencing it each year. Worse still, studies have revealed that 92 percent of these people also suffer from depression, with 14 percent of them having suicidal thoughts.  

Acne is a skin condition that mostly attacks teenagers and young adults. It occurs when your hair follicles become blocked, causing the sebaceous glands to produce too much sebum that mixes with your dead skin cells to form a plug that may either manifest as a blackhead on your skin or bulge outwards, forming a whitehead. 

So is drooling a cause of this condition? Let’s find out.

What Is Drooling?

Drooling refers to the unintentional flowage of saliva from your mouth. This can be due to having excess saliva in your mouth or having weak or underdeveloped muscles around the mouth. Excessive saliva in your mouth may result from taking certain medicines, diet, neurological conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, stroke, and other medical conditions such as acid reflux and allergies. 

Does Drooling Cause Acne?

Whether drooling cause’s acne depends on a number of factors such as your hygiene, diet and the time when the drooling takes place; for starters, morning saliva is widely known to be the purest and contains anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties that help in treating acne. What’s more, this saliva is water-based and highly acidic, which helps in drying out the pimples and accelerating healing. 

Away from the morning saliva, which may be safe to use, we cannot forget to mention that day and night saliva is generally high in bacteria. This, therefore, means that you drooling at night will lead to acne breakout. Furthermore, when this saliva gets on your pillow, it mixes with other dirt, oils and dust, foaming a grooming ground for bacteria which will cause your acne to increase. It’s also worth mentioning that the acidity in the saliva may dry out your skin, causing more breakouts. 

So if your hygiene and diet are unchecked, your drooling will cause acne since the saliva will be full of bacteria and highly acidic. 

How to Treat Drooling Related Acne

Drooling caused acne will manifest as breakouts around your mouth and cheeks. You can get rid of this acne using the following tips. 

Maintain Cleanliness

One way to fight acne caused by drooling is to maintain cleanliness with your bedsheets and pillowcases. This will help reduce the dirt, oil and bacteria that mixes with saliva from your drooling to cause acne. 

Also, make an effort to bathe before bedtime and wear light clothing to minimize sweating at night. 

Eat a Well-balanced Diet

Eating a well-balanced diet helps keep your skin healthy, glowing and able to fight infections. Moreover, some foods such as sugar and white bread are known to increase your body’s risk of getting acne. Having excess sugar in your body will, for instance, lead to increased production of insulin which causes your oil glands to produce more oil, thus increasing your risk of acne. 

To avoid acne, you should take foods containing complex carbohydrates such as legumes and whole grains. Moreover, ensure to take in skin-friendly foods such as those rich in Vitamin A and E and Zinc. In addition to taking healthy foods, ensure to take in a lot of water to keep your skin hydrated and healthy. 

Besides being an effective way of fighting acne, eating a well-balanced diet is a good way of keeping your saliva healthy and clean. 

Change Your Sleeping Position

One of the best ways to prevent drooling is to change your sleeping position. Sleeping on the back will help prevent saliva from splitting from your mouth. 

Limit Saliva Giving Foods

Besides paying attention to their quality, you also need to question the saliva production quantity of the food you take in. Some foods such as sugar and acidic foods are known to increase your body’s ability to produce more saliva. 

This results in your mouth having excess saliva, which will increase the drooling. To avoid this, you should stay away from excessive sugar and sour foods. Alternatively, you can opt to take in foods rich in fiber to help in reducing the saliva. 

Most foods rich in fiber, such as whole-grain bread and oats, are water-soluble, which means they will take in the excess saliva in your mouth, limiting the drooling. 

Treat Your Allergies and other infections.

Allergies and infections such as sinuses, tonsillitis and sore throat are major causes of drooling. Sore throat interferes with your swallowing ability which leads to you having excess saliva in your mouth. Besides, increasing saliva in your mouth sinuses makes it difficult for you to breathe through your nose, forcing you to breathe via the mouth, which opens the door for the saliva to come out when sleeping. 

Therefore to fight acne caused by drooling, you should start by treating the allergies and infections causing the excess saliva. This may require you to have a medical checkup to determine what allergies and infections you have. 

Apply an Oil-Free and Non-Comedogenic Moisturizer on Your Face Daily

One of the best ways to treat and prevent drooling caused by acne is to apply a non-comedogenic moisturizer on your face daily. The saliva from the drooling will, in most cases, leave your face dry and itchy. When your skin becomes dry, it signals the brain to produce more oil to help keep it hydrated. 

Your body producing more oil is dangerous as it may clog the pores causing more breakouts. 

Final Thoughts on Drooling As a Cause of Acne

Although drooling is not scientifically proven to be a cause of acne, it does worsen this condition. Whether or not drooling will result in breakouts depends on your diet, hygiene and skincare routine. If you, for instance, cleanse and moisturize your face on a daily basis drooling will have little impact on it. 

The best way to avoid drooling caused acne is to maintain high levels of hygiene, eat a balanced diet and maintain your normal skincare routine.