The link between food and acne hasn't been completely proven or disproven by studies. The current thinking is that nothing is probably causing acne directly, but there may be ways to help influence your skin's health through diet that could reduce the risk of developing acne. However, anecdotes abound about skin magically clearing up after giving up a certain food— and of course, most people have a story about developing a zit after eating a chocolate bar or bag of fries. So with those in mind, are there ways to influence your acne risk?

Check for Allergies

It is always possible that the food you think might be leading to more acne is really an allergen that your body doesn't like. Let's say you think that you're breaking out more when you eat wheat products. That doesn't necessarily mean wheat causes acne. But what could be happening is that a slight allergy to wheat could be showing up as sensitive skin that's easily irritated and thus clogging up like there's no tomorrow. Have an allergy test done to determine if food allergies are affecting your skin.

Track Stress and Monthly Cycles

Regardless of gender, track your stress. If you're female and pre-menopausal, track your monthly hormone cycles as well. Now match those up to what you eat. It might not be that chocolate is causing your acne; it could be that you're eating more chocolate when you're stressed or when your hormone levels change, and it's the stress or hormones that are really causing your acne.

Revamp Your Skin Care Routine

It is possible that, in your quest to fight acne, you've started to overdo the skin care routine that you think will help your skin. If you're layering on more and more creams, serums, ointments, and toners, as well as cleansers and makeup removers, your skin could be under attack from all of those substances, leading to clogged pores. Try using a very simple skin care routine for a while, such as basic cleansing and moisturizing, with targeted acne treatments like patches as needed. Give your skin a break, and you may find your need for special acne treatments becomes a lot more reasonable.

For the acne that's already on your skin, and for future breakouts, fast treatment is essential. (Because who wants slow treatment for acne?) You can look at spot creams and microneedle zit treatment patches, as well as cleansers containing salycylic acid.