Keke Palmer "felt shame about having acne".
Keke Palmer
The 'Hustlers' star previously revealed that she has suffered with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) - which can cause skin issues, as well as irregular periods, facial hair growth and pregnancy struggles - for many years but was only diagnosed last year.
And the 27-year-old star has admitted she felt like she had to wear make-up every day to hide her spots.
However, years of covering up her skin only made the problem worse.
She told InStyle magazine: "I was constantly hiding myself and felt shame about having acne.
"Wearing make-up became a chore because I always had to be 'on' wherever I went in case a fan asked me to take a picture; I didn't have the proper boundaries to say no. So instead of getting to the bottom of my acne and trying to understand it, I was covering it up, trying to be perfect. But you're never going to get to the nitty-gritty of something when you do a lot of covering up."
The actress explained how filming the upcoming thriller 'Alice' made her realise it was time to apply the same "energy and confidence" to her skin as she had done with her natural hair.
She said: "The movie is so much about standing up for your freedom, and that activated something deep in me.
"I started questioning what I could do for myself instead of just popping a birth-control pill to try to control my acne. I wanted to bring the same energy and confidence to my skin that I had already brought to my natural hair when, after it was changed by weaves and wigs, I learned how to protect it."
Keke added how important it is for women to be open about their health issues so it's no longer taboo.
She said: "I feel most beautiful when I'm being kind and of service to others.
"As females, we need to advocate for ourselves, because everything [in society] is kind of a rule-of-thumb by males. But it shouldn't be weird for us to talk about our health issues or demand what we need when we go to the doctor. We make it weird, but it's not really weird — and the more that we talk about it, the less of an issue it will become."
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