Acne.org Products
Eddie,
Yes! That skin balancing sample kit is perfect and that's actually the system I would recommend for you too. She has a kit for acne, but I think it's for more severe acne, so this set should be all you need. Hope you like it if you decide to give it a try! Glad your skin is doing better and that you're feeling better as well! 
pun intended,
You are very welcome! Hope they work out for you! Let me know if you have any more troubles!
ElReY,
I'm excited that you're going to give them a try - especially since you hate veggies!! I recommend starting with a very small handful of spinach and whatever fruits you like most. You can add more and more spinach as times goes on and eventually start trying other greens as well and maybe even some veggie based smoothies! Just getting in blended greens every day though will be a huge improvement for you! If you need any help, please let me know!
so just had my first green smoothie ever. and it was GREAT it tasted really good... at first it looked really nasty and i was expecting the worse taste ever. i tasted it and ended up jugging the whole thing... i made it with a hand full of spinach and apples and a little pineapple with water. is to good to have more then one smoothie a day>? it also made me feel full. which i like alot
Yea!! That's so wonderful to hear!!!!! The amount of smoothies doesn't matter so long as you're getting one to two handfuls of blended greens a day. You may want to temporarily work your way up to two handfuls a day until your acne improves. You can then go back down to one, but I always do two, just because I know how nutritious the greens are for me! Sooo glad you liked your smoothie!!!
I'm happy to say that after drinking my morning smoothie I received no headaches! I think it was just my body getting used to the greens and I noticed yesterday that it wasn't as bad as before. I'm also happy to say that I've noticed quite a difference in my skin. The marks left from previous acne seem to be fading pretty quickly and the existing acne on my face looks like it's healing real nicely. I hope this will continue to improve my skin but I'm trying not to totally get my hopes up. No new breakouts, only the ones from when I binged on pizza all weekend a few weeks ago but I've decided to reaaally limit my intake of dairy since then so hopefully it'll will help with the addition of smoothies.
^ That is wonderful news! So happy to hear that!! I'd say wait a few weeks to know for sure how your skin will continue to react to the smoothies. When I first started the smoothies, I wasn't expecting clear skin at all - just better health! haha I don't remember exactly when my skin stopped breaking out, but I just remember after about a month realizing that I had no new breakouts, and then it just kept continuing. Back then, I was using an old, very vintage Vita-Mix that unbeknowst to me at the time, really didn't have that much power. haha I guess I should have realized there were better options with all the little green chunks I'd get in my smoothies. LOL But even with that old blender not blending quite as well, I still got great results, and despite those little green chunks of greens that weren't all that appetizing, haha, I kept going, as I felt green smoothies were the most awesome thing ever!! hehe
With things like pizza, it might be that you can eat it for dinner one evening, so long as it's not repeated over and over for each meal. I hate for anyone to feel they must be so strict that they can no longer enjoy their favorite foods. However, everyone is different in this area. For some, eating greens allows them to get by with eating bad foods here and there. Of course, for health reasons, we all want to try to eat healthfully the majority of the time, but on the other hand, like say when dining with friends, it's not always practical! haha Best of luck to all in this area. Pun intended, I hope your results continue to get better and better!!!
We have a Magic Bullet and I think it's pretty powerful, at least enough to get everything nicely blended. And even if this doesn't completely clear up my skin I know I'll still continue because I definitely didn't get enough veggies beforehand and this is such a great way to get them along with fruits.
Oh, and the pizza thing... I so agree. I think pizza and other foods that aren't exactly the healthiest are fine in moderation, but we used to get pizza every weekend and it would pretty much last the entire weekend so that wasn't good. I'm actually happy we've finally quit doing that.
^ I'm so glad you've found a way that works for you to get more veggies in. Makes me very happy to hear.
Pizza can be such a great tradition to do on weekends, and traditions do so much for one's sense of well-being, but if they harm your health, then that's not so great! haha Maybe you could only order enough pizza for one evening. If you order too little, you could have a salad as a backup. Or, buy a frozen pizza of a healthy variety - or just skip the pizza altogether and substitute with a healthier food that is still a treat for everyone. I just hate to hear of a tradition dying out. Growing up, my family did pizza/movies every Friday night with family and friends, and I looked forward to it all week. It was a really big deal to me. haha
Yeah, I was discussing it with my mom and we both agreed to only get one large pizza instead of two would be best haha because there's no way we could give up pizza. Now I need to begin working on my sleeping schedule because it's alllll outta whack and I know I should start sleeping earlier instead of going to sleep at 2 or 3am. Yikes.
i've been doing the smoothie thing for months now haven't really seen much of a substantial difference but there is a slight improvement from before. anyway i was wondering, are there any other leafy greens i can use besides spinach that doesn't require me to go to the bathroom as much?
i've been doing the smoothie thing for months now haven't really seen much of a substantial difference but there is a slight improvement from before. anyway i was wondering, are there any other leafy greens i can use besides spinach that doesn't require me to go to the bathroom as much?
Have you tried Kale or collard green?
pun intended,
Sounds like a good plan to just get one pizza! I hear you about the staying up late - I'm a real night-owl. It's not easy for me to be on a "normal" schedule, haha. I've read over and over though that being asleep before 11pm is really important, as our bodies do more healing during the hours of 11pm-2am.
EddieE,
Acne-wise, it doesn't sound like rice will be a problem for you. Nutrition-wise, just be sure you're leaving enough room for fruits and veggies.
Mindwitch,
Hang in there - hopefully you will continue to improve. Eddie listed some good greens for you. However, to combat the problem you spoke of, I recommend adding in some more starches to your diet - either grains or starchy veggies like sweet potatoes. Be sure to eat some good fats too from sources such as nuts and seeds. Just be careful not to add too much of either, as both can contribute to acne. You might also try supplementing with acidophilus, which helps with digestion. Hope this helps!
i've been doing the smoothie thing for months now haven't really seen much of a substantial difference but there is a slight improvement from before. anyway i was wondering, are there any other leafy greens i can use besides spinach that doesn't require me to go to the bathroom as much?
What's your fruits to greens ratio? Maybe you're just not throwing in enough greens? I usually fill my 5 cup blender to the top with spinach or kale and add 2 cups of water and 1 cup of frozen fruit + 1 banana (not always)
There are plenty of other leafy greens: kale, collard greens, mustard greens, swiss chard, dandelion greens, arugula, and romaine lettuce.
I think collard greens, spinach and romaine lettuce tend to have the mildest flavors. Kale has a somewhat bitter taste, but I also think that bitterness is easily overpowered by fruit. I'm not sure about going to the bathroom. Fruit does that to you anyhow, so even if you switched greens, you'd still probably have to go to the bathroom a lot.
Eating tons of fruit can actually give you mild diarrhea (figured that one out that hard way...)
Hello,
After hearing the miracles of juicing from a couple of my dad's friends, my parents decided to buy a Vita-Mix. We're waiting for it to come in the mail right now, but I've been trying to get information about what to put together as far as the greens and fruits. My mom and I will be going to the farmer's market when we get it in the mail to pick up some different stuff, and I think I've figured out what I'll mix around to get the right combo (I'm sure it'll take a few times to get it right though 
)
Anyway, for the short duration I have left living with my folks as I'm graduating college in May, I'd like to see what it can do for my health and acne. I've started running in the past couple months and taking different vitamins, in an attempt to live a bit healthier and battle my mild acne. I've always been very healthy without trying, but it doesn't hurt to go the extra distance to feel even better. I do have a couple questions though...
1. As far as greens, I figure I'd go with spinach and kale as it doesn't seem it could hurt to get what I rarely get on a regular basis. How do these mix together? Is it better to just do them by themselves as the only greens? I see the first post mentions something about it in the blue box, but I don't see too many recipies that actually say to do different greens at once, was just curious there.
2. Also, I do drink Emergen-C on occasion, after a workout or for the heck of it since its packed full of B and C vitamins. Has anyone thrown a packet of Emergen-C in with the juice? Is it worth it, or am I getting enough from the fruits anyway?
3. And finally, I'd like to juice in the morning. I mostly do my run in the morning after I wake up, so I'd juice after that. However, on the two days a week I have school, I wasn't sure how it was to make a double batch the day before and leave it in the fridge so I can just grab some for the drive to school. I have been searching all over and I haven't found much, although one person said that you don't get the same effect/all the nutrients as if you made the juice fresh.
Thanks a lot! Sorry if these questions were answered at all in this thread, but 110 pages is a lot to go through.
^ Congrats on getting a Vita-Mix! You will LOVE it!!!!!!! It's by far my favorite kitchen appliance! You can mix any greens together - no problem there. If you're doing a green smoothie in addition to the rest of your diet, you most likely are getting plenty of vitamin C. About making your smoothies the day before - I actually did this in the beginning. I would make my smoothies every other day, and I still got great results with my skin. The nutrition may be reduced a little but probably not enough to worry about, and if this is the only practical way for you to do smoothies, then go for it. Hope your first smoothie goes well!!
For fun, here are some recipes of mine that you might enjoy trying with your Vita-Mix. I make this dressing all the time, and the sorbets are awesome.
Creamy Ranch Salad Dressing
A delicious and creamy dressing - also works as a veggie dip or a coleslaw dressing and is a favorite dressing among everyone. Adapted from ‚Å“Healthy Ranch-Style Dressing‚ at www.leangreenmama.com by Jennifer McCay.
‚1 ‚¼ cups raw, unsalted cashews
‚1 cup water
‚2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
‚3 tablespoons lemon juice
‚3 tablespoons no-salt Dijon mustard
‚1 teaspoon black pepper
Blend all ingredients together. Store in refrigerator for up to 4-5 days
Zangy Orange-Raspberry Sorbet
‚‚¾ bag frozen tropical fruit mix
‚‚¼ bag frozen raspberries
‚Juice of one orange
Blend on high until smooth. If using a Vita-Mix, use the tamper to push the ingredients down to the blades while blending. If you don‚„t have a high powered blender, you may need to use more orange juice.
Note: Many variations can be made from this! Substitute different fruits, and keep in mind that raspberries are always great for adding superb flavor to fruit sorbets.
Gourmet Chocolate-Cherry Ice Cream
Everyone‚„s favorite! Adapted from ‚Å“Bree‚„s Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream‚ in Dr. Fuhrman‚„s online Recipe Guide
‚1 10 oz. bag of frozen cherries
‚About ‚½ a cup of unsweetened almond milk or soymilk
‚1-2 tablespoons of natural cocoa powder (not Dutch processed)
‚1 teaspoon vanilla extract (can be omitted if using vanilla milk)
‚1 or 2 dates, pitted, can be added for sweetness (or 3-6 raisins)
Blend on high until smooth. If using a Vita-Mix, use the tamper to push the ingredients down to the blades while blending. If you don‚„t have a high powered blender, you may need to add more milk. This recipe is very rich and is a favorite among most everyone ‚œ a great substitute for sweets!!
ABG -
Thanks a bunch! I'll be giving it a shot *hopefully* in the next couple days. I've been counting down the days, waiting patiently for it to arrive.
And also thanks for those recipes, those do sound excellent! I'm sure I'll want to be trying all kinds of stuff, that should help me get started!
Hey to all greensmoothians - I haven't posted for a while because things have mostly been good for me I thought I'd post the before/after shots I promised when I started green smoothies so people can have some evidence of effectiveness. The difference here is over about 80-90 days of vege smoothies.
As you can see a lot of redness and bumpiness got taken away.
Hey Pangarl! haha, I like "greensmoothians." hehe So glad you wrote with an update, and oh my gosh, your skin looks amazing!! Wow!! It looks very clear and has healthy coloring as well. What an inspiring before and after - a major difference for sure. That's totally awesome - thanks for sharing this!!!!!
Hey haven't popped in here for a while, just want to say congrats for all the newcomers. I'm still just having my spinach with fruits. Managed to go grocery shopping today to buy some shredded coconut, berries, bananas and green applies.
Tip: If you bake some shredded coconut in the oven (watch, it may burn, it burns very quickly!) for literally a minute and then sprinkle a large dose over smoothies - YUM!
I've been using baby spinach in my smoothies for the past two weeks but I think I'm going to change it up a bit this and try out some kale soon. I noticed my skin tone has been looking better, my blemishes are clearing up, but I did have a mini breakout a few days ago. I'm not too worried about it though. Hopefully the change to kale will help some, maybe I'll mix some kale and the leftover spinach together.