Help me find a cure for my acne after 25 years. I'm so worn down.

[Anonymous]

I'm 41 and have mild to moderate cystic acne starting around age 13. The only thing that's worked for me for the past 15-20 years is a combination of an oral contraceptive and Proactiv.

[Anonymous]

Diet. No one wants to hear this. If you were truly worn down by this, you'd work through an elimination diet. A real elimination diet, not one where you cut out one food or another for 4-5 days. You need to cut out all dairy, all sugar, all wheat, all soy, all alcohol, etc for a full month. Then and only then, you should add back each one of those - ONE at a time. See what is breaking you out.

There are entire parts of the world where acne isn't really a thing. I had acne for years, including acne that behaved similar to yours (got better during pregnancy) but wasn't linked to my menstrual cycles, and antibiotics somewhat worked. It was still diet. Your diet drives your hormonal balance.

I started with the "clear skin forever" diet. There is some paid version online, but you can find the general gist of it online without having to pay.

As it turned out, dairy was doing my skin in.

That's really interesting about how acne ranges by country. Here is a study that does appear to support that: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/479093

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Diet. No one wants to hear this. If you were truly worn down by this, you'd work through an elimination diet. A real elimination diet, not one where you cut out one food or another for 4-5 days. You need to cut out all dairy, all sugar, all wheat, all soy, all alcohol, etc for a full month. Then and only then, you should add back each one of those - ONE at a time. See what is breaking you out.

There are entire parts of the world where acne isn't really a thing. I had acne for years, including acne that behaved similar to yours (got better during pregnancy) but wasn't linked to my menstrual cycles, and antibiotics somewhat worked. It was still diet. Your diet drives your hormonal balance.

I started with the "clear skin forever" diet. There is some paid version online, but you can find the general gist of it online without having to pay.

As it turned out, dairy was doing my skin in.

That's really interesting about how acne ranges by country. Here is a study that does appear to support that: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/479093

Thanks for this link! For you, does the type of dairy matter? I sometimes have have GI trouble with dairy, and go through spells where I have to give up soft cheeses, milk and I've cream, but generally eating yogurt and hard cheeses is okay. I'm wondering if there's an acne connection as well, or if it's likely all dairy.

[Anonymous]

+1 on the diet PP. I’ve had bad cystic acne since about 15 and went on hormonal BC. That plus consistent visits to the derm kept me generally clear until I went off BC at 32 to get pregnant. Face broke out, hair line got thinner. Was diagnosed with PCOS after 12+ months of not getting pregnant. I got naturally pregnant less a month after my diagnosis, so I didn’t think much about it.

During COVID, I’ve been breaking out nonstop. Back in April, I finally sat down and read about the link between diet and acne. I’ve worked really hard to reduce added sugar, dairy, and refined carbs. My skin looks sooooo much better. I’m not perfect, but I generally give myself some leeway on the weekend.

I do wish I had done the elimination diet, because now I don’t know if it was added sugar, dairy or carbs that were doing me in. But I can tell you that I’ve craving those things less and now they (cake, cheese, pancakes) are a treat like they should be.

[Anonymous]

I find it fascinating that there is so much resistance to giving up added sugars/dairy. We like these products but do not need them to live by any stretch. There is so much good food out there that changing your diet is far less of a sacrifice than some people assume.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it fascinating that there is so much resistance to giving up added sugars/dairy. We like these products but do not need them to live by any stretch. There is so much good food out there that changing your diet is far less of a sacrifice than some people assume.

I’m 1037. For me, it’s that added sugars are so good! I read (and this could be wrong) that at least for people with PCOS, our bodies crave sugar. And I can attest I have a serious sweet tooth, so I have to work at it.

I’ve found a good coconut yogurt and after several weeks, no longer crave my Siggis vanilla. I never thought I could wean myself off cheese, but now I maybe eat it once a week as a treat.

Salty food on the other hand? I could never have fries, burgers, or chips for the rest of my life and be just fine.

[Anonymous]

Clinique’s acne treatment line really helped me, especially their salicylic acid gel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it fascinating that there is so much resistance to giving up added sugars/dairy. We like these products but do not need them to live by any stretch. There is so much good food out there that changing your diet is far less of a sacrifice than some people assume.

Americans would rather pop a pill than change their diets.

(I'm one who had dramatic results with diet changes.) I usually don't even mention diet changes because of the reluctance.

The other thing about diet changes is you have to give it about 8 weeks to see results. People will ditch dairy for 2 days and say it was not effective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Diet. No one wants to hear this. If you were truly worn down by this, you'd work through an elimination diet. A real elimination diet, not one where you cut out one food or another for 4-5 days. You need to cut out all dairy, all sugar, all wheat, all soy, all alcohol, etc for a full month. Then and only then, you should add back each one of those - ONE at a time. See what is breaking you out.

There are entire parts of the world where acne isn't really a thing. I had acne for years, including acne that behaved similar to yours (got better during pregnancy) but wasn't linked to my menstrual cycles, and antibiotics somewhat worked. It was still diet. Your diet drives your hormonal balance.

I started with the "clear skin forever" diet. There is some paid version online, but you can find the general gist of it online without having to pay.

As it turned out, dairy was doing my skin in.

That's really interesting about how acne ranges by country. Here is a study that does appear to support that: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/479093

Plus 100. Changing diet really works.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Diet. No one wants to hear this. If you were truly worn down by this, you'd work through an elimination diet. A real elimination diet, not one where you cut out one food or another for 4-5 days. You need to cut out all dairy, all sugar, all wheat, all soy, all alcohol, etc for a full month. Then and only then, you should add back each one of those - ONE at a time. See what is breaking you out.

There are entire parts of the world where acne isn't really a thing. I had acne for years, including acne that behaved similar to yours (got better during pregnancy) but wasn't linked to my menstrual cycles, and antibiotics somewhat worked. It was still diet. Your diet drives your hormonal balance.

I started with the "clear skin forever" diet. There is some paid version online, but you can find the general gist of it online without having to pay.

As it turned out, dairy was doing my skin in.

That's really interesting about how acne ranges by country. Here is a study that does appear to support that: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/479093

Thanks for this link! For you, does the type of dairy matter? I sometimes have have GI trouble with dairy, and go through spells where I have to give up soft cheeses, milk and I've cream, but generally eating yogurt and hard cheeses is okay. I'm wondering if there's an acne connection as well, or if it's likely all dairy.

For me I've found it's all dairy. I used to really enjoy Greek yogurt in my smoothies and of course cheese, but once I stopped, I found that my skin changed dramatically. Now I don't even crave anything with dairy because there are so many great alternatives and surprisingly a lot of yummy fake cheeses. They aren't super healthy, but neither is traditional cheese plus there is the whole environmental/animal impact of the dairy industry.

I will have dairy on a Saturday at restaurants, but the other 85% of the time not, and my skin is 85% better .

[Anonymous]

I don’t think it’s just laziness. Some of its ignorance. I agreed with you on the diet point, but for years I focused on a really consistent skincare regimen*, clean makeup brushes, and clean silk pillowcases. It’s all a lot of work, but it never occurred to me - especially before my PCOS diagnosis when I got off birth control - that my diet was the issue. And I disagree that popping a pill is somehow an easy solution. Pumping your body full of chemicals to see which one might work is no fun.

* - from about 15-25 I bemoaned that I had to be so careful with my skin, esp at an age when most girls do nothing and have perfect skin. I accepted long ago that I had to be mindful of skin in the way some of my friends had to be careful with weight. It sucks, but we all have our issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So I have dealt with acne since about age 15. In my teens it was on my forehead mostly. It's slowly migrated down and now that I'm middle aged it's mostly on my chin and jawline. If you'd told me at 20 that I'd STILL be dealing with acne in 20 years, I'd probably have had a psychotic break. I'm so worn down by feeling disfigured all the time. I can't enjoy summer because my makeup melts off.

It doesn't correlate with my menstrual cycle. I've tried everything (differin, tea tree oil, proactiv, antibiotics, diet changes, and more) but my acne isn't really severe enough for accutane. No derm has suggested it. The only thing that ever touched it was doxycycline, but that's a very strong antibiotic and I can't be on that forever. My derm prescribed me low dose doxy and it did NOTHING.

What the hell is causing my acne? Do I just get to feel gross for the rest of my life? Is it hormonal? How do I get my hormones balanced? Is it possible they've been off for decades? My acne was better during pregnancy.

Thanks for any insight.

Diet. No one wants to hear this. If you were truly worn down by this, you'd work through an elimination diet. A real elimination diet, not one where you cut out one food or another for 4-5 days. You need to cut out all dairy, all sugar, all wheat, all soy, all alcohol, etc for a full month. Then and only then, you should add back each one of those - ONE at a time. See what is breaking you out.

There are entire parts of the world where acne isn't really a thing. I had acne for years, including acne that behaved similar to yours (got better during pregnancy) but wasn't linked to my menstrual cycles, and antibiotics somewhat worked. It was still diet. Your diet drives your hormonal balance.

I started with the "clear skin forever" diet. There is some paid version online, but you can find the general gist of it online without having to pay.

As it turned out, dairy was doing my skin in.

Not OP but your advice - while valid - smacks of some unwarranted condemnation and oversimplifies the causes of acne. Yes - diet can be one way to address the reason for the breakouts but medical experts often repeat that it is the combination of diet and the right medication.

Glad your skin is clear, though and you found out what works for YOU.

Uh no, OP has struggled for 25 years. Understand she won't get diet advice from the medical community. Probably 50% of medical maladies can be improved
by diet, I'm not saying cured but improved. Notable ones are heart disease and diabetes.

[Anonymous]

Hear, hear! People are never told that sugar causes inflammation and can play a key role in so many diseases. We think bloating and constipation are unavoidable and that diabetes can be prevented by "moderate" diets but some of us have extremely sensitive digestive and immune systems.

[Anonymous]

Stop eating dairy. Really.