Acne breakout is a problem that gets anyone upset about their skin. But beauty is not only skin deep. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), our health and skin are interconnected. By reading the skin, you can diagnose the imbalances that causing your skin dilemmas and clear up your skin along the way.

TCM Causes of Acne and Breakouts - Pathogenic Heat

There are two types of pathogenic heat, excess heat that is caused by too much yang energy, and deficiency of heat caused by deficient yin energy. Besides cleansing your face properly, regular exfoliation, using acne reducing serum and masks, include ‘cool’ food to help dispel the heat inside your body. Furthermore, reduce fried, spicy and ‘heaty’ food from your diet.

The Location of Acne Tells Us Which Organs are Imbalanced

A 3,000 years old practice, TCM face mapping, also known as “Mian Xiang”, deciphers the skin to tell us what is going on inside our bodies. It is believed that when your health is in optimal condition, your skin will show by being clear, hydrated and full of radiance.

When there are regular breakouts, bumps and blackheads, they tend to consolidate on specific locations on the face. These locations reflect the imbalanced energy in the organs affected.  When imbalanced energies cannot pass through the body freely, they accumulate and become toxins resulting in breakouts on the face.

TCM recommends adjusting these imbalances instead of squeezing the pimples to clear them out for good.

When You Should Use TCM Face Mapping

Like it or not, you are bound to experience a pimple or two once in a while. Our pores get clogged and get infected even when you are very disciplined in daily skin routine. If you have a pimple that just pooped up on your forehead, and does not reoccur at the same spot frequently, it may not be suitable to apply an accurate face mapping. Adopt a good skincare routine for pimple and oily skin to fix the breakouts instead.

A breakout or bumps that appear consistently on the same problem areas, you can use a face map to read your body and address the underlying causes of your pimples. Take note that the accuracy of face mapping increases when your skin is on natural/organic products and is not constantly layered with non-biocompatible skincare ingredients.

Our TCM Face Map Guide

1. Forehead

Links to: Small Intestine
Recommendation: Eat less ‘heaty’ food.

2. Side of Forehead

Links to: Bladder

3. Between the eyebrows and temples

Links to: Liver

Recommendation: Eat less oily food, eat more vegetables, and have sufficient rest to restore the liver’s energy.

4. Nose and cheeks

Links to: Spleen (nose), Stomach and digestive system (cheeks)

Recommendation: Eat less ‘heaty’ food and add more bland tasting food such as green beans and bitter cucumber to help remove pathogenic heat.

5. Eyebrow

Links to: Heart

Recommendation: Avoid over-exercising, over-tiring yourself, control your temper, maintain a good mood, and have enough sleep. Eat lotus seed soup and green bean soup to get rid of heat in your heart.

6. Chin and Jawline

Links to: Reproductive System

Recommendation: Observe if your menstrual cycle is regular, check for irregular flow and blood clots. Use Meditrina Ageless Herbal Cream to balance your hormones and regulate your period. Keep your womb warm by cutting down on cold drinks and use Meditrina QiActiv Pelvic Care Essential Oil to keep the womb warm. If you constantly experience heavy periods and bad period cramps, you may be showing symptoms of uterine fibroids and we suggest you seek a professional opinion on your condition.