When it comes to acne, some are known to believe the system of Chinese Face Mapping — also known as mien shiang — to zoom into the cause of our acne problems. ‘Mien shiang‘ directly translates to ‘face reading’ and though this 3,000 year old practice has been passed through generations, there’s no real scientific basis to it. For instance, its claims that breakouts around the forehead is linked to the digestive system — including a poor diet, lack of sleep, and increased stress level. But as far as science is concerned, there’s little research that a specific factor can cause acne in a specific area. There is, however, an acne face map that’s based on scientific beliefs.
By splitting your face into different zones and sections, acne face mapping allows you to zoom in on where your breakouts appear and its triggers — allowing you to find out the right treatments to address these concerns. Ahead, we’ve debunked some of the probable causes of your acne problems and how you can treat them accordingly.
HAIRLINE
If you constantly find yourself struggling with acne on your hairline, then it’s time to look at the products that you’ve been using on your hair. Some of these said products may cause pores to clog, keeping natural oil or sebum from our follicles to exit, which eventually causes breakouts.
Whether you’re an avid user of hair styling products or even if you’re keeping your bangs, it’s important to note that you stick to a double cleansing routine to get rid of the pore-clogging buildup on your hairline, as well as noncomedogenic hair products that reduce the product buildup in the area.
FOREHEAD AND CHIN (T-ZONE)
You’ve dealt with it during your prepubescent years and you might still be struggling with this problem till now — whatever the case is, breakouts in your T-Zone is such a common occurrence and its most probable cause? Excess oil production and buildup. When you’re using products that strip your skin from its natural oils, your face will tend to replenish your skin by producing more oils causing an influx of sebum on your face. Product buildup can also cause breakouts which may be contributed by factors such as leftover makeup or from the lack of effective cleansing.
The next obvious cause that may lead to a breakout around this area is stress and the lack of sleep. According to the Study of Psychological Stress, Sebum Production and Acne Vulgaris in Adolescents by Acta Dermato Venereologica, 94 secondary school students in Singapore found that psychological stress has been found to exacerbate acne. Another study by Acta Dermato Venereologica, also states that “fatigue upon waking is strongly associated with the presence of acne”.
Hence, with its strong association to the lack of sleep and stress, those suffering with breakouts around the T-Zone should engage in stress-relieving activities and habits as well as exercise a good sleeping routine to avoid depriving your body from the rest it deserves everyday.
On top of that, you can also counter these breakouts by investing in skincare products that decongest your pores and finding the right product for your skin type to avoid drying out and stripping the oils from your face.
CHEEKS
In this digital age, we can’t live without our devices. With our constant need to stay connected with the digital world, we often overlook the importance of cleaning our phones. If you’re guilty of being one who brings his/her phone everywhere and anywhere you go, no matter the time of day, then we might have just found the cause of your acne concerns. If you find yourself constantly breaking out on one side of your face, then this might be because of your dirty phone, your pillowcase or your bad habit of touching your face.
To counter this, make it a habit to wipe down your phone before using it, switch out your pillowcases every 1-2 weeks and avoid picking your face at all cost.
Similarly, other causes of breaking out around this region can also be caused by dry skin that has been dried out by oil-stripping products, or just simply lacking in moisture and good oils — causing an imbalance.
Therefore, you should try incorporating a serum or moisturiser that suits your skin type and helps replenish the moisture in your skin, to avoid your skin from breaking out so often.
CHIN AND JAWLINE
For some of us, we experience clear skin on most days but on days that lead up to, let’s say, your period, you start to breakout on certain areas like your chin and jawline. Reason being: it might be caused by your hormones. According to Healthline, the excess androgens can spur the overstimulation of oil glands and clogging of pores, which can be caused by the sudden increase of hormones by your menstrual cycle or even if you’re on the pill.
In this case, it’s best to re-evaluate your diet as it may be correlated to the cause of your breakouts. So if you find yourself indulging in high-carb foods it’s best if you could cut down on your sugars, processed food and dairy products.
However, there are other causes to breaking out around this area. For example, from wearing your face masks too often or even for a prolonged period of time. To properly treat these areas and prevent clogged pores and breakouts, it would be best if you invested in a double cleansing routine and include water-based serums, oil-free moisturisers and mists to your rotation to avoid the overproduction of sebum.
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