Acne.org Products
Hey, I currently take 1000mg of C, 100mg of zinc, 1000 iu of E and Borage Oil. I have only been taking 1500mg of Borage Oil at night after a meal but read someone reccommend 4000mg morning and night. I was never told how much to take, just take it lol, so is 4000mg the amount I should be taking?, thanks for the help.
I also eat a vegetarian diet, no meat or poultry, but will rarely have a piece of salmon. I plan on starting colonix and toxinout on Monday because ive heard such great things about it, also run at least 2 miles a day, phew, theres my regimen. I left the OTC bullshit products, I am a HUGE believer in cleaning the inside first, then the outside will follow. After accutane my skin just heals so slowly its crazy, if I break out it takes me like a month to clear, and I topically apply ACV at night and drink a glass diluted in water everyday, along with 90 oz of water a day. Been doing this for a few weeks now, just really started with the vitamins and I hope once I cleanse internally they will have a greater effect. If nothing else, the daily excercise increases the seratonin and makes the day at least somewhat tolerable. Just my current ideas.
Anyways, before my ramble, my question was about the dosage of Borage Oil and thanks to anyone who can help.
heres the update I promised---I've been using borage oil (8 1300 mg capsules per day) and lecithin (2 capsules per day) for a little over a week. I'm also taking some other supplements recommended in someoneintheuk's website.
overall its had a positive effect on my acne. I'm not 100% clear but I'm down to just a few "active spots." Still, my skin still doesn't look THAT great because of blackheads and red spots left from previous acne.
According to one of the previous posters, Rache, he said he was about 70% clear after two weeks and his sig now says "100% clear" from borage and lecithin so it may take a while. I'm going to continue use it and will update in another week or so. Or you can PM me if you want to know my progress
Hi. I have been taking these supplements (listed below) for about 1 1/2 weeks. My skin is now 80% clear. I no longer have any cysts on my chin, pustules on my cheeks, or white heads. I do still get blackheads and very small clogged pores that are easily taken care of and do not last for days and days, as they did before. Using a scrub daily seems to help with this problem. My skin also seems to heal much more quickly. Once I'm done with the bottles I'm using I plan on going down to half of the dosage I'm currently taking.
Also, I had begun taking ACV internally but quit about 4 days into the program so I know thats not whats been helping to clear my skin. I also noticed that applying ACV topically was making me break out like crazy. I think its also important to mention that anyone who has been on antibiotics for a long period of time should take probiotics at least for a week or two to restore the "good" bacteria which have been killed by the antibiotics.
This is the only thing that has ever worked for me besides birth control pills. Good luck everyone! I highly recommend taking these supplements!
P.S. I take the multi-vitamin (Food Based One) just for overall good health, it has never helped me clear my skin.
Supplements:
Natures Way brand Borage 1000mg (2x/day)
Natures Way brand Evening Primrose (high potency) 1300mg (2x/day)
Health from the Sun brand Black Currant 1000mg (2x/day)
Solgar brand Zinc Citrate 30mg (2x/day)
The Lecithin from Lewis Labs (granules) (1 tbsp 2x/day) tastes nasty straight or mixed in milk (probably because its mango/pineapple flavor but surprisingly good in a chai tea flavored soy protein drink)
Whole Foods brand Food Based One (1 tablet 1x/day)
NOTE: I take the Borage, Evening Primrose, and Black Currant capsules with a half cup of soy milk mixed with 1 tbsp of Lecithin, this aids in the body's ability to absorb the oils. I do not necessarily take it with a meal.
Wash: Desert Essence brand Thoroughly Clean Face Wash or honey (raw, natural)... it's very important to use a simple (very few ingredients) and gentle face cleanser, this one (Desert Essence brand) works particlarly well for me, for those in the US, I picked it up at Whole Foods
Moisturize: Desert Essence brand jojoba oil... my skin has become increasingly supple since taking these vitamins and I therefore no longer have the need to moisturize
Scrub: Aubrey Organics brand Jojoba Meal & Oatmeal: Mask & Scrub... any scrub should do but it's better to avoid those containing the exfoliants apricot, almond or walnut shell granules because these can spread infection; microgranules and oatmeal work best. I exfoliate twice a day, I believe it is ever so slowly getting rid of the blackheads I have accumulated.
Mask: Aztec Secret Health & Beauty brand Indian Healing Clay (Calcium Bentonite Clay)... any green clay mask works, I only put them on active spots/cysts
Make-up: Everyday Minerals brand... any mineral brand should work just fine (it's best to try to not wear any when you can, of course)
OK I have a question. Somewhere else on this forum someone recommended taking EPO, Borage oil, and flaxseed oil. Now, 2 of these oils have omega-6 fatty acids, while flax has omega-3. Is this recommendation contradictory? Secondly, I thought that most Western diets were way too high in the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Why would supplementing with omega-6 help? I admit that my knowledge of the whole issue is rudimentary; if anyone has some good scientific information on this, I'd love to hear it.
OK I have a question. Somewhere else on this forum someone recommended taking EPO, Borage oil, and flaxseed oil. Now, 2 of these oils have omega-6 fatty acids, while flax has omega-3. Is this recommendation contradictory? Secondly, I thought that most Western diets were way too high in the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. Why would supplementing with omega-6 help? I admit that my knowledge of the whole issue is rudimentary; if anyone has some good scientific information on this, I'd love to hear it.
I'm not an expert or anything but from reading some sites on this.....Omega six is made up of of both LA (which is pro-inflammatory) and GLA (which is anti-inflammatory). The typical western diet contains too much LA so the purpose of taking EPO or borage is to get GLA into your system. Omega 3 is mostly anti-inflammatory so it can be used against acne as well.
What brand of Evening Primrose Oil are you using? I started using that also. I bought it at Walgreens and the brand Im currently using is Natures Bounty. Ten bucks seems awefully expensive for a bottle with only sixty capsules in it, doesnt it? I take two pills a day so it wont last very long before I need to buy some more. I still have a horrible problem with cystic pimples developing, hence my username. I only started using it last week. Hopefully, I will see results in a couple of weeks.
What brand of Evening Primrose Oil are you using? I started using that also. I bought it at Walgreens and the brand Im currently using is Natures Bounty. Ten bucks seems awefully expensive for a bottle with only sixty capsules in it, doesnt it? I take two pills a day so it wont last very long before I need to buy some more. I still have a horrible problem with cystic pimples developing, hence my username. I only started using it last week. Hopefully, I will see results in a couple of weeks.
GNC: 180 1300mg pills for $25. Eeep.
I haven't really noticed a HUGE difference..
Am I supposed to be getting, like, an IB?? Please tell me that is all this is.. That way I will not give up. :sigh:
after reading your post, i went and looked up EPO at answers.com, and it said it's even more effective when used in conjuction with zinc, and especially for teenagers...well, i'm 16, i started getting acne around 13-14, like the big, bad everywhere kind, not just the once every other month kind...anyway, isn't teen acne supposed to be hormone-related? isn't it a surge of testosterone in the blood? basically, what i'm asking is, do you think this would be effective for me?
<3 kADY
I think the Evening Primrose Oil is starting to kick in for me. Usually I would break out every single day. I started taking this Evening Primrose oil and finally today I had no new pimples for the first time in like six months! I do have a few from two days before but they are drying up and I am so HAPPY I dont have any new cystic pimples today! 
Bump, whos getting results from this programme. Continue the updates please folks - im thinking of trying this out
My update:
Definitely seeing some sort of improvement, thusfar. Although, it has just hit that "time" and I believe that is what is behind its latest lashout. It's definitely worth a shot.
I should be going on OTC shortly.. I will continue to take the EPO. I hope this combination will ultimately clear me.
..Does anyone know when it's safe to cut back? Should it be only after a couple weeks, or should I wait until I'm pretty much clear? And how much is the maintaining dose?
So if I take 5 in the morning, and 5 caps during dinner that'll help clear me up faster and more successfully. You can't overdose on GLA? I am just wondering another thing too..did you get an IB from this?
Because I was only taking 1 in the morning, and 1 during supper, will the sudden increase in GLA cause my hormones to go: "Wtf?"..ending up breakin me out. (sorry..i am just being cautious here). To me it doesn't matter if I get an IB..as long as I clear up wonderfully, thats all I ask. for
Should I stop takin the Zinc, Vitamin B-Complex?
And just stick to 1 Letchin in the morning with the 5 borage oil caps, 1 Letchin at meal time, 5 borage oil caps. And my vitamin C, Bifodhilus.
Thanks mucho
Damn! Youre taking ten pills of evening primrose oil everyday?!?! Youre only supposed to take one at each meal
well ive been looking into all this lately and here is some info
the main point of this study and its relation to gla is that gla is an Arachidonic acid inhibitor, aa is a precursor to leukotrine b4 which is known to stimulate the sebaceous glands.
J Mol Med. 2006 Jan;84(1):75-87. Epub 2005 Dec 31. Links
Enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of leukotriene B4 and prostaglandin E2 are active in sebaceous glands.Alestas T, Ganceviciene R, Fimmel S, Muller-Decker K, Zouboulis CC.
Department of Dermatology, Charite Universitaetsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Fabeckstrasse 60-62, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
The expression of enzymes involved in leukotriene and prostaglandin signalling pathways, of interleukins 6 and 8 and of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors in sebaceous glands of acne-involved facial skin was compared with those of non-involved skin of acne patients and of healthy individuals. Moreover, 5-lipoxygenase and leukotriene A(4) hydrolase were expressed at mRNA and protein levels in vivo and in SZ95 sebocytes in vitro (leukotriene A(4) hydrolase > 5-lipoxygenase), while 15-lipoxygenase-1 was only detected in cultured sebocytes. Cyclooxygenase-1 and cyclooxygenase-2 were also present. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors were constitutively expressed. Enhanced 5-lipoxygenase, cyclooxygenase 2 and interleukin 6 expression was detected in acne-involved facial skin. Arachidonic acid stimulated leukotriene B(4) and interleukin 6 release as well as prostaglandin E(2) biosynthesis in SZ95 sebocytes, induced abundant increase in neutral lipids and down-regulated peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha, but not receptor-gamma1 mRNA levels, which were the predominant peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor isotypes in SZ95 sebocytes. In conclusion, human sebocytes possess the enzyme machinery for functional leukotriene and prostaglandin pathways. A comprehensive link between inflammation and sebaceous lipid synthesis is provided.
in this sutdy a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor reduced sebum to the equivalent of isotretinoin, 5-lipoxygenase transforms efas into leukotrines, but for our interests it turns aa into ltb4. so this inhibitor proves that if you stop leukotrines you stop acne or at least accoring to the study.and as gla competes with aa there is no aa to make luekotrines and that would be why this would work.
Dermatology. 2005;210(1):36-8. Links
Zileuton, an oral 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor, directly reduces sebum production.Zouboulis ChC, Saborowski A, Boschnakow A.
Department of Dermatology, Charite University Medicine Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Berlin, Germany. [email protected]
BACKGROUND: Zileuton, a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor, reduces the number of inflammatory lesions in moderate acne and inhibits the synthesis of sebaceous lipids. OBJECTIVE: To detect whether zileuton directly reduces sebum synthesis. METHODS: A 40-year-old female with mild disseminated sebaceous gland hyperplasia and seborrhea was treated with zileuton 4 x 600 mg/day over 2 weeks, was followed-up for 6 weeks after discontinuation of zileuton and was re-treated with low-dose isotretinoin 10 mg/2nd day over 5 weeks. Casual skin surface lipids and sebum synthesis were determined. RESULTS: Under treatment with zileuton increased casual skin surface lipids were normalized and synthesis of facial sebum was decreased. Six weeks after discontinuation of treatment casual skin surface lipids were increased again and synthesis of sebum returned to baseline. Subsequent low-dose isotretinoin treatment led to similar changes of casual skin surface lipids and sebum synthesis with zileuton already after 2 weeks. CONCLUSION: Zileuton directly inhibits sebum synthesis in a transient manner with a potency similar to low-dose isotretinoin at least in our patient.
i hope this makes sense.I know its more then anyone would ever like to read.
So if I take 5 in the morning, and 5 caps during dinner that'll help clear me up faster and more successfully. You can't overdose on GLA? I am just wondering another thing too..did you get an IB from this?
Because I was only taking 1 in the morning, and 1 during supper, will the sudden increase in GLA cause my hormones to go: "Wtf?"..ending up breakin me out. (sorry..i am just being cautious here). To me it doesn't matter if I get an IB..as long as I clear up wonderfully, thats all I ask. for
Should I stop takin the Zinc, Vitamin B-Complex?
And just stick to 1 Letchin in the morning with the 5 borage oil caps, 1 Letchin at meal time, 5 borage oil caps. And my vitamin C, Bifodhilus.
Thanks mucho
Damn! Youre taking ten pills of evening primrose oil everyday?!?! Youre only supposed to take one at each meal
too much gla will be converted back into arachidonic acid. which is counter productive.
I've been on a special non-grain/sugar/carbohydrate diet for months and on top of that i've been taking 1000mg fish oil and 500mg evening primrose oil for a week and i am 95% clear as i write this - my skin hasn't looked this good in 12 years. I don't use ANY over-the-counter products. I don't even use soap more than like once or twice a week.
It's a safe, inexpensive way of treating yourself - try it!
just read this
Sesame lignans inhibit an enzyme (delta-5-desaturase) that causes dietary fats to be converted into arachidonic acid, a precursor to the toxic inflammatory factors prostaglandin E2 and leukotriene B4.
so, something else you could add to your gla supplementation.