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If you get acne breakouts, it can be really tough to add any kind of new product to your routine. (I have rosacea so believe me, I relate!)

That can be skincare, supplements, or food. Anything that might trigger a breakout. 

But if you’re working out, or you’re a health-conscious vegan, you might be monitoring your protein intake and realizing that you need to bump up your protein somehow. 

I remember first hearing that pea protein caused acne when I started lifting weights about eight years ago. I often opt for vegan products when I can, and I keep a vegetarian plant-based diet. So I was looking for a way to continue my muscle building diet without having to go for animal protein. 

​But the sales girl in GNC said, “Don’t start with that–it will make you break out.” 

And I avoided pea protein powder for years based on that!!! I bought a soy protein that was perfectly fine, and used it for ages. 

But the truth is a little more complicated than this common misconception… Though it might break some people out, most will be fine with pea protein. Let’s take a look at the causes, and how to guess if pea protein will give you acne before you buy it!

(Bonus: if you make it to the bottom, you’ll get some recipes for pea protein shakes that are delicious, complete proteins!)

What is pea protein? 

Pea protein is created by a process similar to how they make tofu. 

They start with yellow peas, which are approximately 25% protein per gram. (So, 100g of peas has 25g protein, and so on.) There are two ways of processing the peas (wet and dry), both of which have the same result: extracting as much of the protein as possible while removing the starch/carbs. 

The simplest way to picture it is to imagine that they dry the peas, grind them up really small, and use air to blow the light starchy parts away, leaving the heavier protein particles behind. This isn’t 100% the process, but you get the idea. 

And then this powder, once added to water, milk, or your smoothie, works just like any animal-based protein powders would. 

(Personally, I think the texture of pea protein in just water isn’t as nice as whey protein powder or soy protein powder…so I prefer to blend it with a cup of plant-based milk and a couple frozen strawberries. We’ll talk more about recipes in a minute!)

Who uses pea protein?

So, vegans like pea protein because it’s a protein-rich addition to plant-based diets. For various reasons, many people choose to avoid soy, so pea protein can be a great alternative for soy-free vegans.

It’s also great for allergies — most pea protein brands are soy-free, while it’s difficult and more expensive to find a dairy-based protein that doesn’t have soy in it as a preservative or filler. 

And pea protein adds additional nutrients and phytonutrients because it’s plant-based, which is a priority for many people. 

Finally, many people interested in longevity will opt for pea protein because it doesn’t raise your IGF-1 levels in the way that a protein supplement derived from cow’s milk would. IGF-1 is actually a huge part of our discussion about acne and protein powders, so let’s get into that now!

Does pea protein cause acne?

Can vegan protein powder cause acne? 

For most people, no! Pea protein is actually less likely to cause acne flares than dairy foods like whey protein powder, because of those IGF-1 levels! 

IGF-1 stands for Insulin-Like Growth Factor -1 (the 1 just means there are multiple…don’t worry about the others for now!). IGF-1 does a lot of things in our body and impacts a lot of different systems. For the conversation we’re having right now, here’s what you need to know:

• IGF-1 stimulates growth in the body (which is good sometimes and bad others)
• After we’re done growing, we want our IGF-1 levels lower as it’s associated with a longer lifespan
• IGF-1 levels are tied to what you eat — vegans will have the lowest levels, but meat-eaters can lower their levels by eating less meat or dairy without having to cut it out altogether. (Vegetarians do not have significantly lower levels than meat-eaters, because dairy causes IGF-1 levels to rise too.)

And more importantly, studies have proven that IGF-1 causes acne, and makes it worse if you’re already experiencing it. Basically, increasing IGF-1 increases sebum production and inflammation, so you get more development of acne, and what you has looks bigger and redder.

So, if you are currently experiencing acne and it’s making you afraid to switch to pea protein, you may actually find that your acne improves! Plant-based proteins like pea, soy, or hemp protein may actually improve your acne if they’re replacing whey protein supplements. 

If you’re already using a dairy-based protein, switching to vegan protein powders can improve your overall complexion. If you’ve been taking protein powder supplements for years, you might not realize the role that it has in your skin. Replacing a whey product with pea protein the next time you run out might prove to make all the difference!

 

If you’re finding that pea protein is causing you to experience acne, you might consider trying a different brand before you go back to animal-based; since it isn’t a hormonal effect of the protein itself, you might be reacting to another ingredient.

Do animal-based proteins cause acne? 

So, when they’re asking ‘does pea protein cause acne’, they should really be asking ‘does whey protein cause acne’!!

In many people, whey protein will cause breakouts. Even though it’s probably the most popular choice for people looking to gain muscle mass, this milk protein frequently causes acne. (But so does casein protein, the other most popular animal-based protein.) Because they raise IGF-1 levels in the body, many people will find that whey protein cause acne for them! It’s increasing oil production that makes the skin more likely to clog, and then increasing inflammation so that those pimples look worse. 

Many people won’t experience a breakout from animal-based protein powder. If you’re less acne prone, you may not get any skin irritation at all, and you are good to keep using what you’re using. But if you’re experiencing breakouts, trying a different type of protein for a while might help you to decide if the animal-based products are the cause.

Not everyone has a personal attachment to vegan products and I totally get that! If you’re not experiencing negative side effects from an animal-based product and you’re not called to vegan products, keep doing what you’re doing. 

Are other vegan proteins less likely to lead to acne development?

All vegan proteins are going to have the same anti-acne benefit — they don’t raise IGF-1. 

(This is also a longevity and anti-cancer benefit, it appears!) So, all vegan protein powders will benefit you in that way. However, there are some plant-based protein sources that might lead to acne. 

Soy

​For some people, soy is an acne trigger. This is also for hormonal reasons — soy mimics estrogen in the body. (That thing your brother said about soy being a feminizing agent after he spent too much time on raw-meat-TikTok is not true! It doesn’t affect the body enough to interfere much, but it is enough to cause acne.) 

So soy is not the best option for everybody out of all the plant-based protein powders. If it doesn’t cause acne for you, then keep at it! It’s typically the most affordable plant-based protein powder, and it is a complete protein all by itself, which is not true of every type of plant protein. We’ll get back to that. 

Rice

Rice protein is generally not going to cause acne. Even if you typically get acne from rice because of its high glycemic load, brown rice protein is not going to have the same effect on you because the starches have been removed. So most people are not going to experience acne from rice protein. 

One of the drawbacks of rice protein is that it’s not a complete protein by itself. That’s why you often see it in a blend with other proteins. (Including pea protein!) It doesn’t have all nine essential amino acids, but it can be mixed with other types of protein to get them all. 

Hemp 

Hemp protein is considered “gentle” on the stomach and the skin, so acne-prone people might choose hemp as a good option. Having hemp protein as an ingredient won’t increase your likelihood of acne or skin inflammation. 

Hemp is low in lysine, one of the amino acids, so it is not considered a complete protein. Like rice, it will work better for you balanced in a blend, or added to one of the recipes below. 

Is pea protein a complete protein?

​We’re getting into the technicalities here! 

Technically, pea protein has all nine amino acids. But really, two of them are in such low, low quantities that it’s not really a complete protein. 

I think it’s important to have all the information, especially for us vegetarians and vegans who really need to be smart about our protein sources! A meat-eater who’s choosing pea proteins to reduce breakouts probably won’t need to worry too much about combining her proteins, but a vegan really does. 

What pea protein does have going for it is that it’s high in all three of the branched-chain amino acids (which you might know as BCAAs, a common ingredient in preworkout drinks). So, compared to other proteins, it has an especially good mix of amino acids for muscle growth. However, you always want to make sure you’re getting as much protein as you think you are and in the right balance. 

If you are eating a whole foods diet and pea protein is just a part of it, and the rest of your protein comes from either animal products or legumes and soy products, you are probably doing just fine! You may not need to worry much about complete proteins vs incomplete proteins at all. 

But if you’re a vegan who is relying on pea protein (or rice, or hemp) for the majority of your protein needs, you need to be smart and strategic about how you’re balancing all the amino acids you need. 

Which amino acids does pea protein not have?

Pea protein is short on methionine. It’s not that it doesn’t have any, but there’s not quite as much as you would ideally have in balance to the other amino acids. 

(And, again, if you eat animal products at all, you’re getting methionine from egg whites or fish! So this is focused on vegans specifically.) 

So, your goal is to rebalance your protein powder by adding a dietary source of methionine into the mix. 

There’s a few ways to do that: 

First, there are several protein powder brands on the market that do this for you! Typically, they add rice protein to the pea protein in order to get you the right balance of amino acids. Here are a few options: 

There’s also this similar product where the rice is replaced with quinoa and chia (this is my preferred protein powder — I like the unflavored). 

If you aren’t looking for a pre-made blend or you already have pea protein on hand, you can also make a mix yourself. Just use 3 cups of pea protein for every 1 cup of rice protein and you’ll get a ratio that’s about right. Using soy will work here too — it’s actually pretty difficult to find a blended pea and soy protein powder! Because a lot of the people who buy pea protein do it because they’re allergic to soy. But you can mix it yourself and get a great, balanced blend. 

Or, you can do it the lazy girl way — just switch back and forth every few days between your pea and rice or soy protein. Or, drink mostly pea protein but have the rice 2-3 times per week. 

Pea protein shake recipes to get complete protein

If you’re a little more gourmet, or you already have the pea protein and won’t be going out to buy more, you can also add whole food ingredients to balance your amino acids. 

Ingredients that will add methionine:

• brazil nuts
• soy (tofu, tempeh, or soy protein posder)
• pumpkin seeds
• chia seeds 
• walnuts
• pistachio nuts
• oatmeal
• chickpeas

​And a few simple recipes for shakes: 

Pre-cardio smoothie:

• ​1 serving pea protein powder
• 1/4 cup oats, microwaved in 1/2 cup water*
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 cup fruit of your choice
• 1/2 cup vegan milk of your choice
• cold water to cover

Allow the oats to cool, then combine all these ingredients in a blender and blend. 

*I prefer to cook oats before putting them in a smoothie to make them easier to digest.

Filling breakfast smoothie: 

• ​1 serving pea protein powder
• 1 cup strawberries
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup cooked chickpeas, rinsed very well
• 1/2 cup vegan milk of your choice
• cold water to cover

Combine all these ingredients in a blender and blend. (You will not taste the chickpeas at all!)

Does pea protein cause acne? Now you know better….