5 Food Habits That Can Ruin Your Face

Did you know that your face can have problems as a result of bad meal choices? That's right: healthier skin is just another reason to eat healthier food. Learn about 5 food habits that you should avoid if you want great skin.
5 Food Habits That Can Ruin Your Face
Nelton Abdon Ramos Rojas

Reviewed and approved by the doctor Nelton Abdon Ramos Rojas.

Written by Lorena González

Last update: 09 October, 2022

Did you know that your face can have problems as a result of bad meal choices? That’s right: healthier skin is just another reason to eat healthier food.  

A bad diet can be horrible for your body for many reasons. However, it’s also bad for your face. Some experts say acne can appear because of an excess of sugar consumption. Other possible causes are chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, or even because of hormones.

Some researchers say there may also some foods that can make acne worse.

There’s whole list of foods you should avoid to take care of your skin. Remember to try to avoid them to get healthy, beautiful skin.

Let’s take a look at some of them.

1.  Too much sugar 

Overindulging in sugar can have a negative impact on your face. Your body will tell you when you’re doing something wrong.

Excess sugar may cause a thinning of your skin, painful pimples, looseness under your eyes, and wrinkles on your forehead.

Sugar reduces the elasticity of your skin. This symptom is mostly the result of an excess of foods made with processed sugars.

You should try to avoid excess sugar because its effects go far beyond your skin. Very sugary foods are also harmful for your body in general.

2. Too much gluten

Too much gluten may be bad for the face.

There are times when your body is trying to tell you something. It could be doing this if you always eat products that have a lot of gluten and you have skin problems.

You may have dark spots on your chin. It could be that you have pink, swollen cheeks.

Some people say these signs mean you’re eating too much gluten.

Because of this, if you see any symptoms like dark pigmentation or spots around your reproductive organs, you need to be careful of what you eat. It could be that you are gluten intolerant and you don’t know it.

You should always be sure to eat a lot of fiber and drink large amounts of water. If you do this, your skin health may improve.

3. Lactose intolerance

Too much lactose may be bad for the face.

There are many people who are lactose intolerant.

A good way to figure out if dairy products with lactose affect you is by looking at your skin. Of course, you should also listen to your stomach.

There are several symptoms of lactose intolerance you should look for in your face. It could appear as swelling in your chin, small white spots, bags under your eyes, and even puffy eyelids.

This is something that is rather common. Over the course of time, many people lose the ability to properly digest foods with lactose.

Lactose intolerance may appear in the form of pimples on your chin. To solve this skin problem, you should remove all lactose from your diet for about 20 days.

Doing this will let you know if the signs appeared due to dairy foods. In addition, you’ll probably notice that your face looks much better…not to mention that fact that you’ll have better digestion!

4. Fatty foods

Too much fat may be bad for the face.

Foods that have a high amount of fat also cause skin problems. Fat is related to blood sugar problems. It makes the amount of fat in your blood increase, as well.

Staying away from fatty foods can definitely help your skin.

5. Too much coffee may be bad for the face

Too much coffee may be bad for the face.

You shouldn’t have more than two cups of coffee per day. Caffeine increases adrenaline production. In excess, this can start to cause symptoms of stress. This is bad for both your health and your skin.

See Also: Coffee Consumption Protects Against Live Cancer

Caffeine also prevents you from sleeping well. Bad sleep can negatively affect your skin.

Keep in mind that these recommendations don’t mean that you need to completely avoid these foods.

It’s better if you eat them in moderation, replacing them with healthier foods. Some better options include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, natural fruit juices, etc.

Your body communicates through your skin. Don’t forget that.


All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.


  • Burris, J., Rietkerk, W., & Woolf, K. (2014). Relationships of self-reported dietary factors and perceived acne severity in a cohort of New York young adults. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2013.11.010


This text is provided for informational purposes only and does not replace consultation with a professional. If in doubt, consult your specialist.