Acne.org Products
You pretty much described it word for word." But my skin was always really red, extremely oily, and dry at the same time. It always hurt, and I got new zits on a daily basis. It started getting worse as time went on. I had scalp acne, back acne, chest acne, and face of course. But it was more so a whole skin issue than just acne. The whole blotchy, red irritated dry and oily skin. Not sure whether to wash, or moisturize. Really embarrasing."
I've been using Proactive for the past few years, and my acne has been moderate to mild. However I broke out pretty bad within a week of getting off Proactive. That is when I got on Dan's Regime, and have been pretty clear for the past 1-1/2 weeks. Maybe 1 or 2 pimples active. However, just like you said, its not so much the acne as it is the whole skin issue. I have combination skin, and it gets extreemly dry and oily. Irriated and red. And that can make you feel pretty self concious even if your face isnt broken out with zits.
That is why I'm so interested in the Fish Oils and hope that it can indeed balance oil production and even out my skin tone.
Only time will tell.
Hopefully in about 3 months it will be more safe to get off DKR and see how well the Fish Oils hold up.
How old are you by the way? Sorry if it's been answered.
I remember when I used to get one or two zits and have them under control and say to myself, "well this is it, if I can control it like this, I will be done with it." Then another would come up, and I would blame it on something else, perhaps not cleaning as well as I should, or maybe even something I touched my face with. Anything, the cycle was mentally deteriorating. I've been to where you've felt man. That is why I really hope it works for you. So I'll do what it takes to help out as best I can. I can't promise you it will work, but I have good reason to believe it can, from the success of some people already (besides me), to the evidence in proof. It will be slow, of course, but it should work well.
I know you'll give it three months, and to be honest it should be sooner than that if you learn from my mistakes and do exactly what's listed. Don't waste time so you can get there as fast as possible. Hopefully in the end of that period, you can look back on this and be here helping everyone too. It may come down to the fact that your hormones are in check (after the time has elapsed) and your washing regimen needs to be changed. And at that point is when you will probably try dropping the dkr for a while to see what you can do etc. So don't give up hope anytime soon, there's also a lot of other things you can try :).
Does fish oil help in healing redmarks and scars? What's your experience on this Romeo? Do you have redmarks/scars on your face?
fish oil increases collagen production thats why its good for arthritis, but thats the same reason its good for acne because people with acne also have decreased collagen production.
From my experiance it has helped with red marks but its not like they are disappearing over night, it takes a couple weeks. One of the coolest things i noticed right away and i didnt even expect it, was that one of my deepest oldest scars seemed to fill itself in, now im not talking completly here but it really looked as if it was being filled in although i can still see it its way less noticable and i think that has to do with increased collegen production not to mention my face has just got back most of its healthy glow.this is over the course of two months and i also use tretinoin just so you know so my success is not based solely on fish oil but fish oil is a major part of it.
i feel the same way about the paleo diet. actually im real strict about the gi now, very very low gi/gl which permits little fruit as insulin theoretically is the major player in acne.things are looking good now.Hey Autonomous,
How long have you been doing the full paleo diet? i.e. no bread, pasta, potatoes (i count those as the most important to not eat)
Modern fruits are grown to be very sweet, therefore their sugar content is pretty high.
I'm not yet at a stage where i want to omit them.
For now i am omitting bread, pasta, potatoes and dairy products (of course i never eat sugary things anyway) and drinking plenty of water.
Good luck to you.
ive been dabbling with it for almost a year and there was actually one full month i did it and saw excellent results but i didnt have a good enough diet plan that was easy to follow and delicious enough for me to stick to it, so id go off and on to varying degrees.whats really helped me this time is getting calories from nuts and balancing o6/o3 4:1. I was doing 1:1 for two months but then decided if i was ever going to gain more weight and be on the paleo it was either more nut or more potatoes i chose nuts there so easy to consume and with one can i get 1700 calories and i can eat those anywhere and its so easy now to get the calories i need to gain weight.
But now after correllating so many breakouts to anything sweet, ive really began to rethink the role of insulin in acne which has now renewed my enthusiasm for cordains research and as of about two weeks ago ive been strict paleo.But ive always follwed the guidlines to varying degrees.
But one alteration to the paleo that ive made is no fruits whatsoever and if you do it has to be with a meal but even then i prefer to do no fruits because anything sweet is gonna set it off i believe. Also i eat legumes as they have little effect on insulin and as of now i believe insulin to be number one in the acne fight.
So in a nutshell and in order of priority my belief as of now is.
1. insulin/hyperinsulinemia improved/controlled by paleo diet/ultra low gi/gl.
2. balancing o6/o3 1-4:1 with Fish oil to improve inflammatory response and possibly increase insulin sensitivity
3. topical retinoids(this has nothing to do with diet but its the best treatment next to accutane,but i cant speak for women on this one i have very little knowledge of the effectivness of antiandgrogens, metformin(heard it works great) or birth control.
ive been dabbling with it for almost a year and there was actually one full month i did it and saw excellent results but i didnt have a good enough diet plan that was easy to follow and delicious enough for me to stick to it, so id go off and on to varying degrees.whats really helped me this time is getting calories from nuts and balancing o6/o3 4:1. I was doing 1:1 for two months but then decided if i was ever going to gain more weight and be on the paleo it was either more nut or more potatoes i chose nuts there so easy to consume and with one can i get 1700 calories and i can eat those anywhere and its so easy now to get the calories i need to gain weight.But now after correllating so many breakouts to anything sweet, ive really began to rethink the role of insulin in acne which has now renewed my enthusiasm for cordains research and as of about two weeks ago ive been strict paleo.But ive always follwed the guidlines to varying degrees.
But one alteration to the paleo that ive made is no fruits whatsoever and if you do it has to be with a meal but even then i prefer to do no fruits because anything sweet is gonna set it off i believe. Also i eat legumes as they have little effect on insulin and as of now i believe insulin to be number one in the acne fight.
So in a nutshell and in order of priority my belief as of now is.
1. insulin/hyperinsulinemia improved/controlled by paleo diet/ultra low gi/gl.
2. balancing o6/o3 1-4:1 with Fish oil to improve inflammatory response and possibly increase insulin sensitivity
3. topical retinoids(this has nothing to do with diet but its the best treatment next to accutane,but i cant speak for women on this one i have very little knowledge of the effectivness of antiandgrogens, metformin(heard it works great) or birth control.
I agree about the huge insulin spike being the culprit.
Now when i think of bread i just think of it as sugar which is digested immediately and results in an insulin spike.
The text i have emboldened makes me ask the question: do you eat potatoes?
I myself class bread, potatoes and pasta as THE main offenders.
I concur about the legumes thing. Maybe we couldn't eat some of that stuff in caveman days but it doesn't appear to have much effect on insulin. I have, however, read of various enzyme blocking mechanisms they have so i will always keep that card to play.
As for fruit: I have a lot of fruit salad (i've only been on this diet for 2 full days so results as of yet are inconclusive to say the least). I don't know if the fruit salad is going to fuck me over due to its sugar content. It is something i can experiment at a later date.
I had to have pasta on one day so i don't class that as a 'full day'. I only had to have it because i was at school and i had told myself i wasn't going to starve myself just because on one occasion i might have to eat some non-paleo food.
I've not done a whole lot of research on the atkin's diet but it appears to be very similar. I myself am aiming to gain muscle on the paleo diet as i am a weightlifter, as opposed to losing fat like on the atkin's diet.
Oh I read in your thread that you should stay away from nuts.
Actually, walnuts are one of the main sources of omega 3 in a person's diet, so they're fine. 
You should read this:
In a letter released in September 2004, the FDA approved the use of a qualified health claim for foods and dietary supplements containing EPA and DHA. It states that dietary or supplemental EPA and DHA intake should not exceed 3 g/day, and encourages manufacturers of dietary supplements not to recommend doses exceeding 2 g/day [FDA letter].
[SOURCE]
Oh I just thought this was a bit useful:
Hibbeln's theory is that because the omega-6 fatty acids compete with the omega-3 fatty acids for the same metabolic pathways, when omega-6 dominates in the diet, we can't convert the omega-3s to DHA and EPA, the longer chain versions we need for the brain. What seems to happen then is that the brain picks up a more rigid omega-6 fatty acid DPA instead of DHA to build the cell membranes - and they don't function so well.
[SOURCE]
Does fish oil help in healing redmarks and scars? What's your experience on this Romeo? Do you have redmarks/scars on your face?I'm trying to find a direct source that says something like "yes, omega 3 helps with blemishes" but since I cannot find any, I will have to answer with logic. Here, read this:
EFA Functions: "EFAs are involved with producing life energy in our bodies from food substances, and moving that energy throughout our systems. They govern growth, vitality, and mental state. They hook up oxygen, electron transport, and energy in the process of oxidation. Oxidation, the central and most important moment-to-moment living process in our body, is the `burning' of food to produce the energy required for life processes." EFAs are also important in oxygen transfer, hemoglobin production, and control of nutrients through cell membranes. They markedly shorten recovery time from fatigue. And EFAs are also key in preventing damage from hard fats. EFAs are anti-sticky and tend to disperse them. EFAs play a part in almost every function of our body, far too many to list here.Basically, yes, it promotes healing very well. But the time frame is still relatively long that you may not realize it. But it does increase it. Say for example: exercise. It's great, and has been proven to speed up healing immensely. But it's relatively true, instead of 30 some odd days, it shortens to 20 some odd days. So it's not too noticable in the same regard, but it does. But obviously, it will be after your levels build up :).
I say that the best thing for blemishes is the acv/lemon juice+water toner along with this.
hope it helps a little :think:
Thanks a lot mate. You are by far the most helpful person I've met on any forum. 😀
2 questions...
I've been taking 3.6 grams of Fish Oil everyday for the past few weeks. I was thinking about upping it to 4.2 grams, but is this unnecessary? I can totally understand the mentality of "The more I take, the quicker I'll see results", but I don't want to up the dosage if it's not necessary or won't make that much of a difference.
Secondly, this is a bit unrelated, but in regards to the ACV/Lemon Juice Toner - is it ok to use bottled lemon juice or are fresh lemons the way to go?
Oh I read in your thread that you should stay away from nuts.Actually, walnuts are one of the main sources of omega 3 in a person's diet, so they're fine. 🙂
You should read this:
In a letter released in September 2004, the FDA approved the use of a qualified health claim for foods and dietary supplements containing EPA and DHA. It states that dietary or supplemental EPA and DHA intake should not exceed 3 g/day, and encourages manufacturers of dietary supplements not to recommend doses exceeding 2 g/day [FDA letter].[SOURCE]
Oh I just thought this was a bit useful:
Hibbeln's theory is that because the omega-6 fatty acids compete with the omega-3 fatty acids for the same metabolic pathways, when omega-6 dominates in the diet, we can't convert the omega-3s to DHA and EPA, the longer chain versions we need for the brain. What seems to happen then is that the brain picks up a more rigid omega-6 fatty acid DPA instead of DHA to build the cell membranes - and they don't function so well.[SOURCE]
No, walnuts are not fine at all. That is a dangerous statement to make. Granted they have lots of omega 3, one should always be aware of how much omega 6 it has.
Total Omega-3 fatty acids 10623 mg
Total Omega-6 fatty acids 44567 mg
So it's dangerous to believe by eating walnuts you are helping your omega 3 : 6 overal ratio.
Also, 3 grams is fine. Nothing can happen above that unless it's a ridiculous range. The main point is that you must have a daily net gain of omega 3 in your diet. The more you do, the faster your results, otherwise you may never see them. Or if you do, it will be really slow.
And you are correct, omega 6 and 3's compete, but primarily in the ALA form, that is why we don't use flax but just fish since it needs no converting =) (in a sense).
Thanks a lot mate. You are by far the most helpful person I've met on any forum. 😀
No problem, if you have any other questions feel free to ask 🙂
2 questions...I've been taking 3.6 grams of Fish Oil everyday for the past few weeks. I was thinking about upping it to 4.2 grams, but is this unnecessary? I can totally understand the mentality of "The more I take, the quicker I'll see results", but I don't want to up the dosage if it's not necessary or won't make that much of a difference.
Secondly, this is a bit unrelated, but in regards to the ACV/Lemon Juice Toner - is it ok to use bottled lemon juice or are fresh lemons the way to go?
I had that same fear about bottled lemon juice, I used to use it for a while and nothing happened. But a few nights ago I used it at awake with some clogged pores. It may be just coincidental but the only difference was that I waited for my moisturizer to settle in then I put it on top of it. What may have happened was it created a really sticky surface instead. So if you use it be sure it's straight after washing, and that there is more than 50% water in it. So it should be fine. If you can get fresh lemon, even better.
It's not necessary to up it, but if you wish to you may. I upped it because I do want my results faster and the more net o3 I have, the faster my stores increase (my logic), it may not be so, but I have a feeling it may lean toward that concept. What you can do is ensure your diet is as optimal it can be.
Well, maybe I'll just go ahead and up it to 4.2 grams. I just won't up it anymore after that. It does make sense that the higher amount you take in, the faster you'll see results. I just remember reading about how some the intake could come out in your urine, so I wanted to make sure it wasn't completely unneccessary.
By the way, Romeo, are you still mixing your lotion with Aloe Vera gel?
Just some Fish Oil/Omega 3 info I found...
If you want to control acne breakouts, you need to supplement your diet with fish oils which contain omega-3 and omega-6 oils. These fish oil also contains EPA and DHA fatty acids which are necessary for creating prostaglandins.
Normally, enzymes in your body break down omega-6 into DGLA, AA, EPA and DHA fatty acids.
Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA)
Arachidonic Acid (AA)
Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA)
Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA)
These four fatty acids eventually change into prostaglandins.
What are prostaglandins?
Prostaglandins are chemical hormones that come from omega-3 and omega-6 oils and that help,
regulate every function in your cells and organs.
Postaglandins also keep androgen hormones in control so that excess sebum is not produce in the hair follicle, which results in acne.
This is the reason why Essential Fatty Acids aaoe Omega-3 and Omega-6 aaoe are critical foods to eat.
However, eating plenty essential fatty acids may not insure that you produce enough EPA and DHA, which produce the essential prostaglandins.
It is critical for acne and more importantly for your health that you get enough EPA and DHA in your cells and organs so they can produce the required prostaglandins.
To increase the prostaglandins in your cell walls, it is necessary for you to take a fish supplement, which contains both the EPA and DHA.
Of course eating salmon, halibut, and mackerel twice a week will be a plus in providing your body with more EPA and DHA.
Hereas what I use daily. Spectrum Essentials puts out an excellent product called
Omega-3 Norwegian Fish Oil
Two capsules contains
EPA aaoe 360mg
DHA aaoe 240mg
Omega-3 aaoe 892mg
Stearic, Lauric, Palmitic Acids - 508mg
Using the Omega-3 Norwegian Fish Oil is critical in getting relief from acne, so take two capsules per meal.
When your body creates prostaglandins, it creates a good prostaglandin and a bad prostaglandin. Hereas how to encourage the production of good prostaglandins.
AMaintain a ratio of two times more omega-6 than omega-3 in your diet.
AEating too much omega-6 can lead to producing excess bad prostaglandins.
ATake a multi-vitamin and minerals with your meals to provide these nutrients for breaking down the
essential fatty acids into prostaglandins
AReduce the amount of meat, saturated fat, dairy, and eggs you eat to reduce the production of AA, which blocks the activities of the good prostaglandins
AEat cold water fish at least twice a week to provide EPA and DHA to your diet
Include at least 20% of your diet calories as good fats aaoe omega oils and fish oil. This is essential for controlling the excess activity of your hormones and reducing the inflammation of your acne.
I thought this was interesting...
In two separate studies, regular fish oil supplements were found to protect the skin from the harmful UV rays of the sun:
In just one month the volunteers were noticeably less likely to burn than before taking the oil, rising to 33 per cent less likely in three months. A second group who suffered sun allergies doubled their skinsa defence against UV rays after six months. Dr Lesley Rhodes, a dermatology expert, thinks it could have implications in preventing skin cancer, but should you ditch the sun block?
aoeIt could have a very significant effect on skin cancer prevalence in the future
a I am not saying that we should stop using sun creams, but this could be an additional measure to protect the skin all the time.a
http://www.fishoilblog.com/benefits/spf-om...nts-sunburn.php
For the past few days I've been taking the green tea a few hours apart from the fish oil and i have noticed quicker results in that time. my skin tone is evening out a bit and i feel (can't say for sure since only a few days) that i'm getting more benefit out of the fish oil caps now. btw, i got a compliment on my skin yesterday by a co-worker who said it looked like it was really clearing up. she hadn't seen me for a month which funny thing is how long i've been taking the fish oil. coincidence? i think not....
It would be cool if some of you guys could experiment with both GLAs (from borage oil) and o3's together and see what happens. I'm already combining o3 with something else right now so I can't, plus I've ended up spending lots of cash in the past 2 months so I am a bit limited. If any of you guys do, please keep updating.
I've added EPO to my diet. I'm taking 3 pills a day. Bottle says
GLA 90mg (9%)
CispLinoleic Acid (LA) 730mg
Its worked in the past to keep acne at bay so that's why i went back to it. I'm not sure if one could get clear from it but it's helping me right now. I'll keep you guys posted how it works in combination with the omega 3s/fish oil which i'm taking 3.1g of.
That's a good idea. Another note, what are some natural sources of vitamin A and do most people get enough in their diet? I know I get lots of D daily from dairy. Plus as you said, since you don't get D since you don't take dairy, it's a great source then! It's perfect for your diet, fits right in there. Do you take it with a source of fat? Since A is fat solubleBaby carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A, they have almost 300% DV per serving which is around 15,000 IU.
Hey im not sure about the amount of capsules i should take every day to get 3-4 grams omega-3.My fishoil bottle says this:
3 capsules=
1500 Mg fishoil (18% EPA, 12% DHA)
That means 1 capsule is 500 Mg, 30% of it is omega 3 (EPA, DHA)
500x0.3=150
So every capsule contains 150 Mg of Omega 3.
Lets say id have to take 3 grams a day.
3:0.15=20
So id have to take 20 capsules a day only to get 3 grams?!
My bottle only contains 50 capsules so id have to buy another bottle every 2-3 days. :S
If my calculation is very wrong id like to hear but im confused :S
Yeah, I'd definitely try to get a different brand. Anything with 300+ of Omega 3 is good, so you won't be popping 15 pills a day. Do you live in the US? If so stop by a GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, or really any drug store (Meijer, CVS, Jewel Osco), they have plenty of options.
If you are in the U.S. try Shoppers' brand which is Daily Source. I'm taking the Daily Source Extra Strength fish oil pills. 1 pill has 450mg of EPA/DHA combined. So i only take 7 a day and i get 3.1g out of it. much better than popping 20 pills! You can find them by the prescription counter next to the vitamins. Hope that helps =)
It would be cool if some of you guys could experiment with both GLAs (from borage oil) and o3's together and see what happens. I'm already combining o3 with something else right now so I can't, plus I've ended up spending lots of cash in the past 2 months so I am a bit limited. If any of you guys do, please keep updating.I've added EPO to my diet. I'm taking 3 pills a day. Bottle says
GLA 90mg (9%)
CispLinoleic Acid (LA) 730mg
Its worked in the past to keep acne at bay so that's why i went back to it. I'm not sure if one could get clear from it but it's helping me right now. I'll keep you guys posted how it works in combination with the omega 3s/fish oil which i'm taking 3.1g of.
That's good news 🙂 What you posted above! About how you got complimented, no one seems to care because I'm a guy if I get clear or not haha.
One thing I want you to note is if your results start decreasing, or increasing. There are two things that can happen. Since you are taking in alot of LA, it will hinder your omega 3 results, but since you are still at a net gain (assuming your diet is great), you will get results, just much slower.
next, is that the LA won't affect your omega 3 intake but the GLA will add on to the benefits and you will get results faster. :think:
So keep us updated and keep that in mind! You may want to try borage oil since the GLA content is 200 some off mg per pill.
How long did it take for the EPO to work last time?
I didn't really stick it out with the EPO long enough the last time I tried it. I took it for only a week or so and I only took 1 pill a day. It kept me from getting the acne around the time of the month heh heh but the reason i stopped it was because i wasn't eating very much at all and I was worried i was going to start losing weight on it. I hardly weigh much as it is so i didn't want to endanger my health. but now i'm taking it with the fish oils and trying TRYING to eat a healthy diet (lean meats/veggies/fruits/nuts/seeds and i cheat here & there with a bit of bread or pasta, a sweet or 2) and i've been eating fine. i eat less, but i eat right so i think that's more important anyways.
Guys I need your help. There's still one question left that none of us know since we are still in the 'early' phases.
How long will it take for omega 3 to completely work for, specifically, acne?
That's the question I am looking into. Remember that this is considered as a "degenerative disease"
I did find something:
The benefits of therapeutic supplementation may become evident in a few weeks when blood parameters (triglycerides, fibrinogen) are involved, but may take 3 months or longer to materialize in degenerative diseases
http://www.angelhealingcenter.com/Omega3Oils.html
And it's true, it works fast on tri levels, and almost immediate in blood pressure, but apparently really long for cases like ours.
I suppose we are on the right track, now it's just a really long waiting game. But if you guys can find more information regarding that topic let's see what we can collectively find. I am not a patient person either, and if it wasn't for you guys I would have probably given up on this omega 3 thing a long time ago so this support is awesome. 
Well, maybe I'll just go ahead and up it to 4.2 grams. I just won't up it anymore after that. It does make sense that the higher amount you take in, the faster you'll see results. I just remember reading about how some the intake could come out in your urine, so I wanted to make sure it wasn't completely unneccessary.
By the way, Romeo, are you still mixing your lotion with Aloe Vera gel?
Thanks for posting the articles, I liked this part:
This is essential for controlling the excess activity of your hormones and reducing the inflammation of your acne.
And nope, now I am using just 100% cetaphil because I realize if it's too thin, it won't moisturize properly, and after washing it really does sink in but it takes time, but it's worth it, it really does bind moisture to the skin!
Guys I need your help. There's still one question left that none of us know since we are still in the 'early' phases.How long will it take for omega 3 to completely work for, specifically, acne?
That's the question I am looking into. Remember that this is considered as a "degenerative disease"
Well, whos been doing it longest so far....is it bber? Ive been doing it for about 2 months and a week, and I think you and autonomousone started a week or two before me...I dont know how to answer the question except for us to just continue to chart our progress.
lol I found something, which is like the opposite of fish oil:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=2480491
andro generator 
Guys I need your help. There's still one question left that none of us know since we are still in the 'early' phases.How long will it take for omega 3 to completely work for, specifically, acne?
That's the question I am looking into. Remember that this is considered as a "degenerative disease"
Well, whos been doing it longest so far....is it bber? Ive been doing it for about 2 months and a week, and I think you and autonomousone started a week or two before me...I dont know how to answer the question except for us to just continue to chart our progress.
True say. It just gets so tedious and it's like a movie you want to know what the ending is, but you have to wait so long to see it.
Ok, so i got the cetaphil. NdnRomeo, do you use it with water or without (for the moisturizing effect)? i got some nutraderm lotion (same make as the cetaphil) to moisturize, as i was not sure if a cleanser will moisturize my skin adequately.
Noo, cetaphil, as in the moisturizer 😆
http://www.epinions.com/pr-Sensitive_Skin-...isplay_~reviews
And I found nutriderm to be on a list of bad products 🙁
🙂 Sorry for the confusion :). I hope you can still take it back or use it if possible (as a cleanser).
I love peanut butter, but after finding out about Omega fats I've felt like I can't have it. Today I bought some Smart Balance Omega Peanut Butter though. It contains 1000 mg of Omega 3 (from Flax Oil) and 1300 mg of Omega 6 per serving. Would this be alright to eat, considering I'd be taking in Fish Oil with it as well?
I love peanut butter, but after finding out about Omega fats I've felt like I can't have it. Today I bought some Smart Balance Omega Peanut Butter though. It contains 1000 mg of Omega 3 (from Flax Oil) and 1300 mg of Omega 6 per serving. Would this be alright to eat, considering I'd be taking in Fish Oil with it as well?
Well, see the issue with flax is that only 10 to 15% gets transfered to omega 3 that our body can use. So you figure that 100 mg or 200 mg max is used, so there is 1300 mg of bad fats and 200 mg of omega 3 essentially. So it could hinder it. I have some at home too but never use it.