As a naturopathic doctor, Dr. Shaon Hines believes in the healing power of nature and healing the “whole” person on a foundational level.
Originally from Wisconsin, she often visited her grandparents who lived in Missouri, making stops in St. Louis to visit the Gateway Arch, learning about Lewis and Clark, and visiting the Campbell House Museum, which she thought was beautiful.
Now president of the Illinois Association of Naturopathic Physicians, she has several areas of expertise, including environmental health, mold exposure, gut health, mental and emotional balance, fatigue and acne. The latter being a particular concern for those who suffer from it while wearing required face masks during the pandemic.
“Acne is troublesome for many, but there are solutions aside from medication,” Hines said. “Gut health, nutritional deficiencies, different foods, allergies, products used and hormones can all play a factor in acne formation.
“To protect your skin from breakouts while wearing a mask, it’s important to make sure you keep your skin clean and use a fresh mask every day,” she added.
A few more tips on mask wearing:
- If you work in higher temperature areas that may induce sweating, you may want to change your mask once or twice a day.
- If you are especially prone to breakouts, you may want to cleanse your skin mid-day with a cleanser, face cleansing cloth or toner pad. This will clean impurities from your skin that could potentially cause breakouts.
- Try to stay as cool as you can to avoid sweating.
Beyond the mask, Hines went on to say that the food you eat, beverages you drink, and air you breath all play a factor in your skin health.
“Skin is our largest organ, and what is going on inside the body greatly affects the appearance of our skin. If you eat clean, drink plenty of purified water and breath good air, you can keep your skin looking bright and young,” she said.
Acne can come from many factors, including hormones, a poor diet with too much fatty and sugary foods, using products that are not good for your skin, not cleansing properly – it can even come from the fragrance used in laundry detergents used to clean towels and sheets.
“For a lot of people there are often several factors that need to be corrected before banishing acne for good,” Hines said.
A licensed naturopathic doctor would do a comprehensive consultation to find out what could be causing acne and develop a treatment plan from there.
“If this is something people wish to tackle on their own, I would start by eating a balanced diet with lots of brightly colored fruits and vegetables, eliminating fatty and sugary foods, eating leaner proteins over fatty ones, avoiding any fragrance in products and choosing cosmetics wisely,” Hines said. “If it happens to be hormonal in origin, you will definitely want to work with a naturopathic doctor to help get hormones balanced.”
Many people have also been anxious in recent months about many things, like contracting the coronavirus, changes in work or school habits, loss of jobs, health of loved ones and themselves, and Hines said the best approach is to learn how to cope with anxiety, in general.
“Give yourself space to understand your own feelings, where they come from, allow yourself to feel this way, and give yourself acknowledgment and care,” she said. “Do your best to stay safe according to the CDC guidelines and know you are doing all that you can to stay safe.
“Anxiety is often a result of letting your mind get carried away with ‘what ifs.’ Try to change your mind into the ‘right now.’ If you do all that you can to protect yourself from COVID right now, then you have done all you can to protect yourself from the what ifs,” Hines added.
If you still happen to get COVID and you did all that you can, then at least you know you were being responsible, and you should give yourself all the credit in the world for that.
Hines recommends taking things one step at a time and not letting yourself get wrapped up in the things that you cannot control.
“Whatever comes your way, deal with it the best that you can, and then let it go,” she said.
If you do find yourself to be extra anxious and can’t gather your thoughts, she said two of her favorite supplements for anxiety are magnesium and lavender.
Hines is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, and served tours in Saudi Arabia and Qatar following high school. During her time in the Air Force she was able to complete her prerequisites for medical school and prepared to embark on the path toward practicing traditional medicine, which had been her ambition since childhood. However, along the way she discovered the world of naturopathic medicine, which offered patient-centric care through natural remedies, and she decided to switch her focus from becoming a medical doctor to becoming a naturopathic doctor. She earned her doctor of naturopathic medicine degree from National University of Health Sciences.
The Illinois Association of Naturopathic Physicians is a nonprofit, professional trade organization that focuses on advocating for and educating people about naturopathic medicine in Illinois. With 15 years of experience, Hines has dedicated her practice to providing clients with individualized care that focuses on the entire person and lifestyle, trying to find the root cause of health and well-being issues. She is also a certified nutrition specialist, certified personal trainer and a raw food chef, all of which she integrates into her holistic practice.
For more information or to book a telehealth appointment with Hines, visit hinesnaturalhealth.com.
Photos by Damien Gobron, taken in Bora Bora
