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Social media users can’t stop talking about how the stress hormone cortisol can cause a condition called “moon face,” where the cheeks and eyelids swell beyond recognition.
“Your face is like the moon and can be very circular,” one woman claimed on TikTok. “It can look swollen and inflamed.”
“It’s due to high cortisol, which means high stress,” one woman said in another post. “When we were going through the pandemic, I was like a balloon face (with her cheeks inflated).”
In today’s busy society, constant stress can be a reality as people rush to adapt to more everyday life. But can such stress actually make your face bigger?
“Chronic stress can lead to increased cortisol levels in the body, but the levels are usually not high enough to cause moonface,” says dermatologist and clinical assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Dr. Rajani Katta says: .
“Fluid retention can be caused by a variety of things, from diet to medical conditions such as kidney disease. Some prescription medications can also cause fluid retention,” Katta said in an email.
According to Dr. Katta, a true “moon face” is a byproduct of Cushing’s syndrome, in which cortisol levels in the body are extremely high, and is typically caused by long-term use of prescription drugs such as the steroid prednisone or, in rare cases, by: It happens. A person’s adrenal glands are overactive.
In addition to a round face, Cushing’s syndrome can cause increased fat around the neck, a fat hump between the shoulders, and obesity in the upper body, according to the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine website.
“In the case of medical causes of fluid retention, treating the underlying cause can help. Your doctor may also prescribe diuretics to help eliminate excess fluid from your body,” says Katta. the doctor said.
While elevated cortisol levels due to daily stress may not be the cause of the so-called moon face, this hormone can negatively affect your skin in other ways.
According to dermatologist Dr. Whitney Bowe, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center, stress hormones such as cortisol can cause breakouts and dull skin, accelerate aging, and reduce skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis. It is said that it may worsen. in New York City.
“We know that consistently elevated cortisol levels inhibit the production of healthy lipids such as collagen, hyaluronic acid, and ceramides in the skin,” Bowe told CNN in a previous interview.
“Collagen is like the scaffolding in your skin that prevents fine lines and wrinkles,” Bowe says. “Hyaluronic acid keeps skin plump, and ceramides are healthy fats that form a barrier that prevents skin permeability, trapping moisture in the skin.”
Experts say people often eat salty snacks when they’re stressed, which could explain swollen eyes, faces, and swollen legs and feet.
“If your face is swollen, one of the first questions I ask is about your salt intake. High amounts of sodium can lead to fluid retention throughout your body,” says Glow: says Katta, author of “The Dermatologist’s Guide to a Whole Foods Younger Skin Diet.”
“If over-salt intake from last weekend was the culprit, it should improve within a few days as you return to your normal diet,” she added.
Another cause is overconsumption of sugar and ultra-processed carbohydrates, which “unfortunately can damage collagen in the skin over time through a process called glycation,” says Katta. say.
Glycation occurs when sugar molecules attach to fats and proteins and produce advanced glycation end products (AGEs), which make collagen and elastin proteins less flexible and make the skin more susceptible to wrinkles. He said it was possible.
“Foods rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties provide your skin with an extra layer of protection and help promote your skin’s defense and repair systems,” Dr. Katta suggested.
Experts say there are ways to reduce stress that can also benefit your skin. Exercising increases blood circulation to your face, which stimulates the release of endorphins, your body’s feel-good hormones.
Exercise also pumps oxygenated blood to all parts of the body, including the skin, which may accelerate the skin barrier recovery process, experts say. Additionally, yoga, meditation, and deep breathing are all known to reduce cortisol production and stress levels.
Getting a good night’s sleep is another way to improve your skin and reduce stress, says Dr. Raj Dasgupta, a sleep specialist and associate professor of clinical sleep medicine and pulmonary emergency medicine at Huntington Health in California.
“Sleep regenerates your skin at night, so this is called beauty sleep,” Dasgupta previously told CNN. “There is a hormone called growth hormone that is secreted during the deep stages of sleep and stimulates the growth of fresh skin cells.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, adults 18 and older need at least seven hours of solid sleep a night to be healthy. The sleep debt associated with irregular sleep schedules is associated not only with skin stress but also with increased risk of obesity, heart disease, dementia, and mood disorders such as anxiety and depression.
