66 replies to this topic

[ambient]

can someone reccomend me some products to use in lauras regimen please.
maybe some products i can find in ontario and in shoppers drug mart or another store in this area. please and thank you

I think finding products in the drugstore for that regimen might be a bit difficult. If you are willing to order products online, I could probably make some products recommendations for you.

i was also wondering if anyone had any recomendations. i wouldnt mind ordering stuff online! i am just kinda lost though as to where to find some of this stuff. i wanna make sure i dont spend money on something that ends up having ingredients i didnt know were bad.

[willow569]

can someone reccomend me some products to use in lauras regimen please.
maybe some products i can find in ontario and in shoppers drug mart or another store in this area. please and thank you

I think finding products in the drugstore for that regimen might be a bit difficult. If you are willing to order products online, I could probably make some products recommendations for you.

i was also wondering if anyone had any recomendations. i wouldnt mind ordering stuff online! i am just kinda lost though as to where to find some of this stuff. i wanna make sure i dont spend money on something that ends up having ingredients i didnt know were bad.

Here are my recs for products:


Cleansing scrub: either Face Reality's Silica Scrub - order at facerealityacneclinic.com or Vivant's Buffing Grains at betterhealtyskin.com (you might also find the Vivant scrub on e-bay)

Toner: Just a few that I checked out where the ingredients seem to be okay for acne prone skin. I haven't used these myself, but based on the ingredients, they look ok to me. Unless you are using a pretty mild exfoliant and lower strength BPO with your regimen, I would recommend avoiding active ingredients in your toner like glycolic, salicylic or mandelic acid. The only toner below that has any active acne ingredients like this is the Vivant toner, which has a tiny amount of glycolic. If you are only using a mild exfoliant (e.g., a 10% mandelic product), you can use it. Otherwise, I would go with one of the other toners.

1. Peter Thomas Roth – Aloe Tonic Mist
2. The Body Shop – Aloe Calming Toner, for Sensitive Skin
3. Sephora – Face Refreshing Toner
4. Sephora – Face Soothing Toner
5. Clinique – Moisture Surge Face Spray Thirsty Skin Relief
6. Jason Natural – Red Elements Calming Toner
7. Vivant normalizing tonic (has glycolic, but low concentration)


Benzoyl Peroxide product: I would go for at least a 5% BPO product, unless you are very sensitive to it. The 2.5% BPO is great for inflamed acne, but generally doesn't work quite as well for noninflamed acne.

10% BP Products:

1. PanOxyl Aqua Gel, Maximum Strength acne treatment (10%)
2. Benzoyl Peroxide 10 – MD Formulations
3. Vivant Benzoyl Peroxide 10% Gel Medication
4. Benzac AC Gel 10%

5% BP Products:

5. Benzax AC Gel 5% Benzoyl Peroxide or any 5% BP from medical pharmacy
6. Acne Solutions Emergency Gel Lotion – Clinique (5% BP)
7. Mary Kay Acne Treatment Gel (5% BP)
8. DDF (Doctor’s Dermatologic Formula) – BP Gel 5% with Tea Tree Oil
9.

2.5% BP products:

15. Bioelements Breakout Control (2.5%)
16. Stri-dex power pads (2.5%)
17. Dans BP (2.5%)


Exfoliant: I prefer mandelic serums over glycolic products. I think they are much better at getting rid of noninflamed acne. Some good options:

1. Vivant 15% mandelic serum (available at betterhealthyskin.com)
2. NuCelle 10% or 15% mandelic (NuCelle has a website you can order from)
3. Garden of Wisdom 10 or 15% mandelic (GOW also has a website).

After your skin gets adapted to the products you might also consider adding an OTC retinoid - I really like Vivant's products - they have 3 strengths (Derm A Gel, Exfol-A and Exfol-A Forte). Lots of people also seem to really like Green Cream, which also comes in 3 strengths.

Moisturizer: Either get one with SPF, or get both a moisturizer and seperate sunscreen.

1. Face Reality's Cranberry Cream (order at www.facerealityacneclinic.com). I use this one and really like it. They also have a lighter, water based moisturizer called Hydrating Emulsion. I like that one as well. Neither contain SPF, so you'd need a sunscreen.

2. Neutrogena Healthy Skin Visibly Even Daily SPF Moisturizer

3. Neutrogena Oil Free Fresh Moisture, Ultra-Light Moisturizer

I'll try to add to this list later, but you might also search the boards for moisturizer recs. Also, use one of the lists of comedogenic ingredients to check your products against (lists are available on Face Reality's website and also on zerozits.com).

Sunscreen:

1. Face Reality's SPF 30 for Acne Prone Skin
2. Neutrogena Dry Touch Sunscreen

[ladybullgod]

Hey everyone, I'm pretty new to the boards but have been lurking a fair amount recently. Everyone here seems to be so informative and helpful =)
I just wanted to say that I gave Laura's regimen a try after exhausting many other options, all of which were unable to help my comodonal acne. However, after two weeks on Laura's regimen, I am finally starting to see a change in my skin. I don't have all the "ideal" products yet, but will purchase them when I have the extra money.

I am currently using:

Scrub: Aveeno Skin Brightening Daily Scrub
Toner: LUSH Tree Tree toner
Exfoliant: Garden of Wisdom alcohol-free Mandelic Acid serum (it's heavenly)
Moisturizer: Neutrogena Oil Free Moisture with SPF 15
BP: Clearasil Extra Strength 10% bp

The bumps under my skin which have been plaguing me for close to a year are finally shrinking and slowly are disappearing. I know it's still a bit soon to rejoice, as it's only been two weeks, but my face is looking better than it has in a long time. I'm definitely going to keep at this regimen and see what happens. Will update as things progress!

[willow569]

Definitely keep us posted on your progress. And let me know if you have any questions or problems with the regimen. I am pretty familiar with this regimen by now, so I'm happy to help out.

[ladybullgod]

I'm in the middle of my third week on this regimen. The only concern I have right now is that I'm getting some inflamed acne....not a lot, but a significant amount more than I had been. They're the big swollen ones that hurt too. :/

I'm thinking that a possible cause of this is that I went to a big party this weekend and ate a lot of greasy foods that I normally avoid, as well as dessert which was probably loaded with sugar. I'm back on track with eating healthy this week, but these huge bumps just don't seem like they want to go down.

I know I have to be patient though, and Laura did say that it may take up to three months to see a big difference. So I will continue on and keep posting any progress.

Willow, thanks for the support! I wanted to ask you - when you did this regimen how long did it take before you noticed true results?

[willow569]

It looks like some of your products are might be part of the problem. I wish I had checked the ingredients earlier. The one that worries me the most is actually the Clearasil BP product, It contains one moderately comedogenic ingredient - glyceryl stearate SE. and one VERY comedogenic ingredient - isopropyl myristate. I would definitely switch to a different BP product!!! I know it seems strange that an acne medication is pore clogging, but there are just some bad products on the market.


Active Ingredient: Benzoyl Peroxide (10%). Inactive Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Bentonite, Aluminum Hydroxide, Glyceryl Stearate SE, PEG-12, Isopropyl Myristate, Carbomer, Potassium Hydroxide, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

The Aveeno Scrub has Two problem ingredients - Sodium Laureth Sulfate (moderately comedogenic), and Laureth 4 (very comedogenic). If you can find another scrub, that would be best. However, since its not on your skin too long, it might not be as much of a problem. I'd still recommend switching to a different product though.

Water, Glycerin, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Polyethylene, Lauryl Glucoside, PEG 16 Soy Sterol, Glycine Soja Protein (Soybean), Carbomer, Phenoxyethanol, Glycol Distearate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Methylparaben, Butylene Glycol, Fragrance, Laureth 4, Sodium Hydroxide, Tetrasodium EDTA

The Neutrogena Moisturizer is probably ok. But, it does have one possible comedogenic ingredient - emulsyfying wax. This ingredient varies in how pore clogging it is - ranging from noncomedogenic to slightly comdeogenic. Not sure why it varies like that, but just so you know it might be a problem. It also contains silicones, which are technically considered to be noncomdeogenic. Some people do have problems with silicones - I know my skin reacts badly to them. Not everyone does though.

[ladybullgod]

It looks like some of your products are might be part of the problem. I wish I had checked the ingredients earlier. The one that worries me the most is actually the Clearasil BP product, It contains one moderately comedogenic ingredient - glyceryl stearate SE. and one VERY comedogenic ingredient - isopropyl myristate. I would definitely switch to a different BP product!!! I know it seems strange that an acne medication is pore clogging, but there are just some bad products on the market.


Active Ingredient: Benzoyl Peroxide (10%). Inactive Ingredients: Water, Propylene Glycol, Bentonite, Aluminum Hydroxide, Glyceryl Stearate SE, PEG-12, Isopropyl Myristate, Carbomer, Potassium Hydroxide, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

The Aveeno Scrub has Two problem ingredients - Sodium Laureth Sulfate (moderately comedogenic), and Laureth 4 (very comedogenic). If you can find another scrub, that would be best. However, since its not on your skin too long, it might not be as much of a problem. I'd still recommend switching to a different product though.

Water, Glycerin, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Polyethylene, Lauryl Glucoside, PEG 16 Soy Sterol, Glycine Soja Protein (Soybean), Carbomer, Phenoxyethanol, Glycol Distearate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Methylparaben, Butylene Glycol, Fragrance, Laureth 4, Sodium Hydroxide, Tetrasodium EDTA

The Neutrogena Moisturizer is probably ok. But, it does have one possible comedogenic ingredient - emulsyfying wax. This ingredient varies in how pore clogging it is - ranging from noncomedogenic to slightly comdeogenic. Not sure why it varies like that, but just so you know it might be a problem. It also contains silicones, which are technically considered to be noncomdeogenic. Some people do have problems with silicones - I know my skin reacts badly to them. Not everyone does though.

Wow, thanks! You're amazing!
I had a feeling that the Aveeno scrub probably wasn't the best for me, but I'm really surprised about the Clearisil BP! I'll be getting rid of that one right away! Tomorrow I'll go and pick out a new BP and one of the other moisturizers you suggested, just to be safe. I've used that moisturizer on and off for years but I was never really sure if was helping or aggravating my skin troubles.

When I have some extra cash, I'll purchase one of those nice scrubs

Thank you so much for the info, you are an excellent resource! I'll keep posting my progress after I switch products.

[Adede]

Hey there. I found this extremely helpful thread when looking for a way to solve my non-inflamed acne problems! I've only just started having bumpyish skin over the past year or so. It's not very bad yet, but I'd like to try to get it under control before it starts getting too noticeable, and this regimen sounds like a great idea.

I wanted to know if you think that I would still need to do the gradual use of the BP if I'm only using 5%. I'm in Canada, and that's the highest percentage we have OTC. I've already used it for treating certain areas on my face and it doesn't seem to hurt me in anyway, so would it really be necessary to do the wash off after a couple hours thing?

[willow569]

Hey there. I found this extremely helpful thread when looking for a way to solve my non-inflamed acne problems! I've only just started having bumpyish skin over the past year or so. It's not very bad yet, but I'd like to try to get it under control before it starts getting too noticeable, and this regimen sounds like a great idea.

I wanted to know if you think that I would still need to do the gradual use of the BP if I'm only using 5%. I'm in Canada, and that's the highest percentage we have OTC. I've already used it for treating certain areas on my face and it doesn't seem to hurt me in anyway, so would it really be necessary to do the wash off after a couple hours thing?

If you haven't used the BP in large areas of your face on a daily basis, I think I would still do the gradual approach, even with 5% BP. It can still be drying and irritating to the skin, so you want to avoid that as much as possible. Even the acne.org regimen ("Dan's regimen"), which only uses 2.5% still recommends you start off gradually. They use a slightly different method - less product when you first start, and gradually increasing to using more, but the idea is the same.

If you have been using it every day. all over the areas you break out - then maybe you don't need to start off slow. Most people who have used BP in the past have used it more as a spot treat and only used it occasionally. This regimen uses BP as a preventative measure, so you use it all over, every day.

[ladybullgod]

I got rid of my old BP treatment and bought Clean and Clear Persagel 10%. I tried checking the ingredients against the list of comodegenic ingredients on zerozits, and I think it has two....something with the word disodium in it and laureth 4.

Inactive Ingredients: Carbomer, Disodium EDTA, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Laureth 4, Sodium Hydroxide, Water

Ugh, this is getting frustrating!
I guess they don't sell any true noncomodegenic BP products in drug stores then? I really want to do this regimen the right way but I guess I'm going to have to wait until I have money so I can buy products online. The Vivant BP seems to be the only one without any pore cloggers in it.

[willow569]

I got rid of my old BP treatment and bought Clean and Clear Persagel 10%. I tried checking the ingredients against the list of comodegenic ingredients on zerozits, and I think it has two....something with the word disodium in it and laureth 4.

Inactive Ingredients: Carbomer, Disodium EDTA, Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Laureth 4, Sodium Hydroxide, Water

Ugh, this is getting frustrating!
I guess they don't sell any true noncomodegenic BP products in drug stores then? I really want to do this regimen the right way but I guess I'm going to have to wait until I have money so I can buy products online. The Vivant BP seems to be the only one without any pore cloggers in it.

They must have changed the formulation for this product - it used to be one I recommended. I guess I should take it off my list! You might also check a medical pharmacy (like one in a Kaiser medical center) - they often have 5 or 10% BPO products that you can purchase over-the-counter.

[willow569]

I'm glad you mentioned those problem ingredients. I went back and checked the products I had on my recommendation list and either the formulation of some of them has changed or I was drinking when I made that list! Its been awhile, so its possible that the products have changed a bit. There are also a couple that were discontinued. Anyway, I updated my product list and any of the remaining products should be fine. You may have to order online, but I don't think they are all as expensive as the Vivant product.

[maaac.xo]

i love the haircut!

[ladybullgod]

I'm glad you mentioned those problem ingredients. I went back and checked the products I had on my recommendation list and either the formulation of some of them has changed or I was drinking when I made that list! Its been awhile, so its possible that the products have changed a bit. There are also a couple that were discontinued. Anyway, I updated my product list and any of the remaining products should be fine. You may have to order online, but I don't think they are all as expensive as the Vivant product.

Again, thank you for that! I was able to find the PanOxyl Aqua Gel in Harmon Discount Health and Beauty, a store that we have here on the east coast. I'm sure there are similar stores across the country though. I'll see how it goes...eventually I'm sure I'll want to try some of the other products that you recommended!

[ladybullgod]

My face has been looking okay. Not great yet, but okay, which is something! I'm still seeing a lot of closed comodone bumps, especially under and around my jaw line, as well as a sprinkling on my forehead. Once in awhile I get a couple of inflamed spots, but nothing major.

I'm going to order the Vivant Buffing Grains scrub that Willow recommended and buy more mandelic serum this week when I get my first paycheck of the year. Then I'll be fully equipped with an arsenal of supplies that can attack this problem dead on! Yeah!

[Lucius]

thanks for the update

[DapperDolphin]

I've always had an issue with non-inflamed acne. 2 weeks ago I discovered this regimen and did a lazy version of it by using just a BHA product for day and benzoyl product at night. But I've had some success!

My BHA is "Neutrogena Oil-Free Oil-Free Acne Stress Control, 3-in-1 Hydrating Acne Treatment" which contains 2% salycilic acid. Once this runs out I plan on purchasing a higher percentage BHA or perhaps try mandelic acid.

The benzoyl product is PanOxyl 10%.

Since my skin has been responding very well I've decided to commit fully to this regimen. I have yet to purchase a moisturizer. I'm also thinking of ordering polyethylene beads online as they are very cheap, and that way I can add them into my regular cleanser to make a scrub.

I just bought a toner and would love it if anyone could help me figure out if it's a decent one to use. I'd really appreciate it!

It's by Boots, 'Sensitive Gentle Refreshing Toner' and has the ingredients:
Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Polysorbate 20, Phenoxyethanol, Mineral Water, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Methylparaben, Propylene Glycol, Citric Acid, Aloe Vera leaf extract, Methylparaben.

I haven't used it yet as I'm afraid it'll throw a monkey wrench so to speak in my progress.

[ladybullgod]

Okay guys, it's time for an update! Skin is looking a little bit better...I guess there are slightly fewer little bumps under my skin than there were before. I've been getting more breakouts on and underneath my jawline - not sure if that's stress or purging. Anyway, I will stick with this regimen because so far it's better than anything I've tried.

I also made some changes to my products a couple of weeks ago. I took Willow's advice and tried the Vivant products and my oh my are they nice! I've been using the Buffing Grains scrub and the 15% Mandelic serum. My skin's texture overall seems smoother and my complexion looks a bit brighter since I've started using them.

I'm still using the Aquafil BP and the same toner and moisturizer....but I will probably end up switching these too (especially the moisturizer).

Here's hoping to more progress in the weeks to come!

[ladybullgod]

It's by Boots, 'Sensitive Gentle Refreshing Toner' and has the ingredients:
Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Polysorbate 20, Phenoxyethanol, Mineral Water, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Methylparaben, Propylene Glycol, Citric Acid, Aloe Vera leaf extract, Methylparaben.

I haven't used it yet as I'm afraid it'll throw a monkey wrench so to speak in my progress.

I'm not very good at this yet, but I just check the ingredients against the list on "zerozits" and they all look good except for Phenoxyethanol, which I didn't see on the list at all. I'm pretty sure the main important thing is that the toner doesn't contain alcohol.

[bobv]

Hi, i just just bought a scrub and and a toner the scrub is Neutrogena's Blackhead Eliminating Daily Scrub


and the toner is Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Toner


For the scrub do you want to gently or vigorously scrub the face, and for how long should i be scrubbing for?

I am also confused about whether to get glycolic acid or mandelic acid? and which one should i get?