Spots can show up at the worst times and seem to pop up in the most random places. But what if we told you that where your spot appears could tell you what might be causing it?
A famous theory called ‘face mapping’ uses ancient Chinese wisdom to work out why you might be breaking out in certain areas of your face. It can even give you an insight into your health, which helps prevent future breakouts.
As much as we hate spots, they’re (oddly) a good thing. Spots are your body’s way of signalling hormonal fluctuations, changes in diet, poor hygiene or stress. Let’s dive deeper into the art of face mapping and find out what might be causing your acne.
What is face mapping?
Face mapping is the 3,000-year-old Chinese practice of dividing the face into zones that correspond to different internal organs. The zones vary depending on who you ask, but under this ancient practice, everyone agrees that energy flows between our organs along pathways invisible to the human eye. According to Healthline, ‘this hidden system has a degree of influence over both the cardiovascular and nervous systems’, which is how our skin could be showing us things we didn’t know about our lungs, heart, stomach and more.
If that sounds a bit ‘woo-woo’ to you, we completely get it, but if you keep getting a spot in the same place and want to work out why, face mapping might give you the answers you’ve been looking for.
What’s causing your acne?
We can all agree that bacteria, oil build-up and dead skin can clog your pores, which causes acne. But when those reasons don’t quite explain it and you suspect something underlying might be to blame, consider these other possible causes of acne:
- Hair and skincare products clogging your pores
- A diet heavy in greasy, sugary or processed foods
- Hereditary skin or health conditions
- Hormonal fluctuations in women caused by periods and contraception
- Overproduction of testosterone in men
- Poor hygiene habits for the face or hair
- Side effects from medication
- Stress response
Something as simple as letting sweat sit on your face for too long after the gym can cause breakouts. It can be tricky to pinpoint the exact cause, but dividing the face into zones with face mapping can make it much easier to narrow down.
Face mapping zones and their meanings
Face mapping practitioners divide the face into anywhere between 3 and 14 zones, depending on who you ask. According to The Healthy, most practitioners agree on these 5 zones:
- Zone 1: Forehead
- Zone 2: Nose
- Zone 3: Cheeks
- Zone 4: Chin
- Zone 5: Eyebrows
Let’s explore these 5 zones and find out:
- Which internal organ or system does each zone correspond to?
- What causes spots in those zones?
- How can I prevent future breakouts in that zone?
Zone 1: Forehead – Digestive system
Forehead spots are often linked to the digestive system, which means your diet could be to blame. This could indicate that you’re struggling to break down certain foods, such as overly processed or sugary foods.
Acne on your forehead could also mean you’re stressed or struggling to regulate your sleep pattern.
Hair products can also cause forehead spots, especially if you notice them along your hairline. Hats trap heat on the forehead too, and are a commonly overlooked culprit when it comes to forehead acne.
To prevent future forehead breakouts, you should:
- Build in some self-care time to de-stress
- Stick to consistent wake-up times and bedtimes
- Drink water with lemon to improve digestion
- Wash your hair more often
- Swap out any new hair products or headwear
Zone 2: Nose – Lungs and heart
Your nose reflects the health of your lungs and heart, meaning frequent breakouts on your nose could signal high blood pressure or high cholesterol. It could also mean your vitamin B levels are low, which suggests you might not be getting enough B12 in your diet. Worth knowing: this will also lower your energy levels!
To stop breakouts on your nose:
- Cut back on spicy food, meat and salt
- Eat more fruit, veg and nuts
- Include healthy fats such as omega-3 and omega-6
- Add more chicken, salmon, yoghurt or shellfish to your diet
Top tip: If you often struggle with spots on your nose, the Breakout Box is an essential part of your skincare regime – its nose strips help remove blackheads and excess oil, while the salicylic acid and hydrocolloid dots take care of any active blemishes.
Zone 3: Cheeks – Respiratory system
Breakouts on the cheeks are so common because we all tend to touch our faces with dirty hands throughout the day. This might be what’s causing acne on your cheeks, which we’ll come back to in a moment. First, let’s look at the internal factors that might be causing your cheeks to break out.
Chinese medicine assesses the left and right cheek separately, so we’ll do the same. As a whole, the cheeks reflect the respiratory system – the right cheek can tell you more about your lungs, and your left cheek is linked to your liver.
Right Cheek – Lungs
As the right cheek is said to be connected to your lungs, breathing exercises first thing in the morning could help reduce breakouts and prevent future ones, along with aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise is any form of cardio, such as walking, jogging, cycling or swimming.
The right cheek is also more sensitive to sugar intake than other parts of the face, so if you’re breaking out on your right cheek, it’s time to cut back on junk food, sugar, wine and even seafood.
Left Cheek – Liver
Left-cheek breakouts are linked to your liver, and Chinese medicine practitioners will often recommend ‘cooling foods’ such as melons and cucumbers to reduce spots.
If none of this sounds like it might be causing your cheek acne, it might be time to wash your pillowcase and change your bedding! You could also disinfect your mobile phone screen, wash your make-up brushes and avoid resting your cheeks on your hands. Our cheeks come into contact with loads of germs every day, and there’s no doubt one of these factors could be transferring bacteria, clogging your pores and causing cheek breakouts to form.
Psssst! Keep reading for some brilliant tips on how to reduce current breakouts and prevent future ones with our favourite skincare products!
Zone 4: Chin – Hormonal fluctuations
The chin is another really common place where we tend to rest our dirty hands, but it’s also the zone of hormonal fluctuations. If you’re experiencing recurring chin breakouts, it could signal that time of the month for women or high testosterone levels in men.
On rarer occasions, it could signal a hormonal abnormality such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in women, so it might be worth mentioning at your next GP appointment.
Stress is also a major cause of breakouts on the lower third of the face, such as the cheeks, chin and jaw. It’s easier said than done, but try not to stress about your breakouts – it could be making them worse!
Zone 5: Brow area – Gallbladder and liver
Acne near the eyebrows is linked to your gallbladder and liver. If you’re getting breakouts around your brows, this could be a sign you’re eating too much junk food! It’s time to be honest with yourself – is there too much fat in your diet? Spots rear their ugly heads when you overindulge in unhealthy food.
Brow spots could also be a sign that you’re drinking too much alcohol, or that you have a food allergy. Try cutting out gluten or dairy to see if your breakouts settle down.
Making healthy choices whenever you can will reduce spots on the upper part of the face.
How to prevent future breakouts
Now that you know what could be causing your breakouts in specific zones of your face, let’s look at some more preventative steps to reduce future spots:
Follow a morning and night-time skincare routine
If your morning skincare routine isn’t quite cutting it, it’s time to elevate your morning routine with skincare products that will help protect your skin. You should consider adding these ingredients to your morning routine:
Antioxidants: Defend the skin from free radical attacks
Hyaluronic acid: Balance hydration
Niacinamide: Reduce redness and oil production
If you don’t have these ingredients in your skincare regime yet, have a look at the Illuminate Face Mask for a healthy dose of vitamin C and the Rosé Sheet Mask to replenish and retain moisture.
The Bubbly Hydrogel Mask is also the perfect sheet mask for bringing back the bright, even complexion you had before the breakouts.
Don’t forget to exfoliate!
Regular exfoliation could be the key to reducing breakouts once and for all. When the skin holds on to dead skin cells and doesn’t shed its outermost layer, it can trap dirt and oil in the skin, resulting in recurring breakouts.
The SmartMud™ Smooth Exfoliating Mud Mask is a great way to gently dissolve dead skin cells – expect visibly brighter, smoother skin in just 10 minutes! It’s also far less messy than most exfoliators, as it comes in a no-mess sheet format that peels away in one clean motion – no scraping and no rinsing residue off your sink. Packed with lactic acid (AHA), salicylic acid (BHA), kaolin clay and a fruit enzyme blend, this mask works into the pore lining as the clay dries to help visibly clear congestion, so by the time you peel it away, your skin looks cleaner, more refined and ready to absorb whatever you put on next.
It might be time for a skin detox
When your skin can’t seem to catch a break between breakouts, it might be time for a full-body detox! This guide to detox your body, mind and skin will show you 6 ways to help your body detoxify.
Detox your skin at the same time with the Detox Smartmud Mask – a revolutionary mud mask in sheet mask form, packed with volcanic ash, kaolin clay and activated charcoal to absorb dirt and oil while purging toxins from the skin to avoid future breakouts in any zone.
Try natural remedies
Back in the day, people didn’t have innovative sheet masks and high-end skincare solutions to banish breakouts. Instead, they relied on good old-fashioned home remedies and naturally occurring ingredients. The Good Fight Sheet Mask offers the best of both worlds, with new-age sheet mask technology packed with natural ingredients such as willow bark, tea tree and peppermint. These anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial ingredients help reduce inflammation around breakouts, control oil production and soothe pain and irritation.
We highly recommend this sheet mask for a speedy recovery from any breakout and to prevent future blemishes.
Pimple patches and nose strips are an absolute lifesaver
Pimple patches are the future. If you haven’t tried one yet, it’s time to read up on the science behind pimple patches. Salicylic acid dots help reduce the size of a spot as soon as you feel it coming on, while Hydrocolloid dots help draw the gunk out of a whitehead and stop bacteria spreading to surrounding areas. It literally works like magic, and you’ll need to try it for yourself to believe it.
The Breakout Box is a brilliant combination of salicylic pimple patches, hydrocolloid pimple patches and charcoal nose strips that will help you tackle any breakout that comes your way.
Master the art of face mapping
Whether you’d rather lean into face mapping and learn more about the many ways your internal organs could be causing your breakouts, or you’d rather rely on a traditional skincare regime, the choice is yours.
Either way, you’ll notice that looking after your body through healthy eating, regular exercise and a consistent skincare routine could help reduce the chance of blemishes on most areas of the face.
If you haven’t found the cause of your spot just yet, don’t stress. Spots are a natural part of life and we all get them! It’s an act of self-love to look in the mirror and see beauty. Choose to speak kindly to yourself instead of focusing on the little blemishes or imperfections you might see. Most of the time, we’re all so worried about our own insecurities that we barely notice anyone else’s. Best of luck with your skin journey, and happy face mapping!