Well I'm not sure about directly... but one of the liver's functions is to break down unused hormones in the body if it doesn't need them. I guess its possible that if the liver is over-saturated with breaking down toxins from digestion, the body could build up a lot of extra hormones that are waiting on the liver.

The liver doesn't break down unused hormones, it regulates levels of "free" (bioavailable) hormones by releasing a protein called Sex Hormone Binding Globulin. I've never seen a study that shows a reduced production of SHBG caused by the liver being over-loaded with toxins. It's actually mainly the job of the kidneys to filter toxins from the blood.

Can't say I agree that the liver doesn't break down hormones... A quick internet search found a couple of references saying it does:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liver
The liver performs several roles in carbohydrate metabolism:

• Gluconeogenesis (the synthesis of glucose from certain amino acids, lactate or glycerol)
• Glycogenolysis (the breakdown of glycogen into glucose) (muscle tissues can also do this)
• Glycogenesis (the formation of glycogen from glucose)
• The breakdown of insulin and other hormones

http://www.helium.com/tm/265715/liver-largest-gland-upper
3. It is responsible for the formation of urea from ammonia and other nitrogen-containing waste products; urea is then excreted in the urine.
...
5. The liver detoxifies many harmful compounds, including alcohol and drugs, which are eliminated in the bile and urine.
...
6. The liver inactivates hormones, particularly steroid hormones, by converting them into substances that are excreted in the bile and urine.

Its true that the kidneys expels waste from your blood, but the liver also processes the urea that the kidneys remove from the blood which is then excreted as urine. So its not to say the liver doesn't prepare waste to be removed from your blood.

Like I said in my original post, I'm no expert. Just making my best educated-guess here

Yeah, I got back from a naturopath and I am essentially following the same regimen. Low carb, no grains, no fruit. I have had cystic acne for years and accutane has accomplished nothing.

Your regimen looks pretty solid and realistic, the only thing I would consider would be a good source of probiotics. I recommend making kefir since it is really easy, cheaper and way more potent than any supplement you could ever buy at the store. And even foods like yogurt at the grocery store probably aren't that potent since I think many brands are pasteurized again before hitting shelves, in order to slow down/stop the fermenting process on the grocery shelves.

I cured my acne by changing my diet. It is now completely 100% gone. Diet is the CURE!
Click here to see my video about it.
Sorry that my voice sounds distorted, the camera sort of screwed it up.

bump

That's a lot of great info. Since I started taking glucomannan fiber, I found out that it thickens the lining of the intestines, helping to heal leaky gut if you have it. It may be one reason that it has helped me so much.

i believe that most people with acne have leaky gut, they simply do not know

didn't have time to read replies but i will say I believe that leaky gut is the only cause of acne. I beleive every single person who has acne has a leaky gut. If i keep up the soluble fiber intake, it gives my insides a chance to heal but if i decrease the intake my leaky gut symptoms come back.

Hello

I also got leaky gut/mild candida disease and I got clear (100%) in one week after cutting out fruits from my Paleo Diet.

Im taking following supplements:

Cod Liver Oil
Vitamin C
Chromium
Vitamin D
Zinc
Psyllium Husks
Magnesium and Calcium

Im soon taking:

Udo's Choice Probiotics
Cinnamon Supplement

What other stuff would you recommend me to take, as I try to cure myself from this disease? I know this was what caused my acne since I cleared up after changing my diet. So now I think I got it under controlg with my new diet, and that is such a great feeling. But I would still like to go a little further

Im looking forward to start taking my Probiotics as I hope they will help aswell.

Thanks for the info and your research. Everything you described really rings true with me and definitely connects a lot of the dots. About 5 years ago I was on antibiotics, probably consistently for a year or more. Since then Ive been experiencing fluctuating digestive problems, generally growing progressively worse, which have coincided with fluctuating acne. The last year or so Ive begun developing hypersensitivities to lots of different foods like wheat, sugar, peanut butter, milk, etc.. Ingestion of these foods, mainly high carb grains, sugar, and high sugar fruit can cause massive flare ups in my acne. After reading some of the post on this board I assumed that my acne was being caused by insulin resistance from sugar/carbs as well as specific food allergies. A little over a month ago I decided to go on a low carb/ high protein/fat diet and within a week I was seeing a dramatic reduction in my acne. Strangely I simultaneously began to develop strange skin rashes(definitely not acne) in various parts of my body like around the outside of my eyes, legs, genital region. I've been happy my acne is clearing up but Ive been clueless as to what was going on. Reading a recent post that mentioned the connection of candida/yeast with a white tongue, which Ive also had for years, all the pieces have begun to fall together for me. The low carb/zero sugar diet I've been on is pretty much an anti-candida diet. The diet has been slowly starving the candida causing a gradual die off, resulting in the developing yeast infected rashes on my body. My food allergies and sensitivities also make total sense in light of all this as well and why any sugar makes me break out..its food for the candida!! I'm really convinced that candida and the imbalance of microflora brought about through antibiotics is root cause of my adult acne, digestive problems, and food allergies. My teenage was very different and was probably just hormones.

Thanks for bringing it all together for me!! Now that I know whats going on in my body I'm confident that I will be able to take my regimen one step further and really cure my acne and other problems. Last night I started taking a candida cleanse supplement as well as oregano oil extract, and the rash around my eye has already started clearing up and I actually had a perfect bowel movement today..wow!! I think its working so quickly since Ive already been slowly killing it with my low carb diet for the past month or so. I hope to eventually be able to consume grain products and sweet fruits once I get the candida in check and beneficial bacteria re-established!!

I really want to try kefir but I'm afraid because of my digestive problems and issues with milk. Any suggestions? Maybe I'll try some in a couple weeks once the candida cleanse supplements have had time to work their magic.

Also, to the moderators, someone should really make this a sticky. I'm so glad I caught this thread before it faded into oblivion. I have a feeling there are many people on this board with similar issues that don't have any idea what candida is or that yeast maybe the root cause of a panacea of health problems they are dealing with, including acne.

There is already a sticky pertaining to this topic. I listed Leaky Gut Syndrome as LGS in a thread I created, however I went ahead and spelled it out and am merging the two threads.

All about Leaky Gut Syndrome, Possible root cause of acne? is now apart of this thread, ACNE DIET, CLEANSING & LEAKY GUT SYNDROME RESOURCE GUIDE

Peace

I'm amazed how many people this info is helping (myself included) I'd really like to get this info out into the general population and the medical community. What exactly can we do to get this out there for longtime chronic acne sufferers?

I agree. It really seems like all the problems people discuss here: acne, food allergies, problems with sugar/carbs/grains, etc..can all be linked back to candida and the leaky gut it causes. Although candida in itself still isn't the root problem. The real problem is the imbalance of beneficial and pathogenic/opportunistic bacteria and the ways through which this imbalance occurs, which for most of us is probably through antibiotics.

I just woke up and did the spit test (from http://www.adhdrelief.com/CandidaTest.html) and I see the strings. Does that mean I have LGS?

No, that's a test for candida, and a sham at that! Everyone will fail the test...

For those suspecting wheat/gluten induced leaky gut, ive made a thread bout how the probiotic bifidobacterium lactis prevents intestinal permeability from gliadin- may wanna try it out to support a gluten-free, limited or crap diet...

Wouldn't the best thing for everybody to do is get a comprehensive blood test to determine allergic substances and at the same time take macrobiotics and supplements of this nature?