Hey, any news about using Pantethine instead of Pantothenic acid ?
I have been using B5 for years, megadosing in the beginning (6g/day), then slowly decreasing years after years, not because of any side effect but because I felt like taking such dosages for so long maybe was not a good thing. I'm now taking 500mg every 3 days. B5 helped a lot, but maybe because I reduced the dosage so much, I sometimes get breakouts, and moreover I'm sometimes getting cystic acne which I didn't before: I have one specific spot on my chin, always reddish under skin, which will wake up every 3-4 months, hurt like crazy and swell like hell.
I'd like to get rid of this; I'm thinking about raising again my B5 dosage but if lower dosage of Pantethine really has the same effect, I'd prefer to use this.
So, would you guys - those who had results with B5 and switched to Pantethine - advise Pantethine instead of B5 ???
bump
Hi all,
Well since I was 13 I've had severe acne. I've tried everything but in 2009 I tried antibiotics and they helped alot. My acne almost vanished but I stopped taking antibiotics because of the harmful effects they have. I recently read about vitamin B's like Niacin and Pantothenic acid. As of today I am switching from pantothenic acid to pantethine since I don't think high doses of pantothenic acid are necessary. So my regiment will be 1 gram of Niacin and then 1-1.5 grams of pantethine. I will post my results later in a month or 2. I will also be taking Saline injections on my rolling scars and will post my results. Good luck on your regiment. 
I haven't tried B5(Pantothenic Acid), thought I'd give the Pantethine a go first, I suppose it's the opposite way round to what most people do, so it should be a good test to see whether it works on it's own.
I'm 2 days in now, if/when it works I'll post my thoughts on here. If I don't see much of a change within a month or two, then I'll hit the Pantothenic Acid BIG time, though don't really care for some of the stated side affects, but no pain no gain I suppose.
Lets see.
Well I much like everyone here, have been fighting Acne for years! I got it bad when I turned 17 all the way til about 19-20, then it just went away. Got it again, in my later 20's and now it has come back steady for about three years in my early 30's. I've never had oily skin or facial redness in my life til this last re-emergence of acne. I wish I knew why all of a sudden i started to develop oily and red skin like this. Add to that, that now in last 6 months or so, Im developing back acne now, with some oil as well. Ive tried creams, lotions, BP, regularly use Epiduo (which does work well at times), antibiotics, thinking about lazer UV treatment and even Accutane. My derm says 'tane is safe but I've read on here and other places of what it can potentially do to you. I've been on antibiotics off and on, mostly on for about 2 or so years now, which does clear me up. However, I still get the oil slick on my face. Usually within 2-3 hours I'm at full shine. So even with a clear face I still have to deal with the dam shine and I've noticed now that because I've been on antibiotics for a length of time, I am starting to still get some cysts even while Im on meds, although very minimal, but still. Im guessing because Im still producing so much oil, i will keep breaking out. The antibiotic take care of the bacteria that feeds on the oil, but the oil is still there, which means, a week-2 weeks once I stop the meds, BAM.
So since I am considering Accutane anyway, i've decided to give this B5 doping thing a shot. Ive read this thread from start to finish, line by line and I want to say thank you to everyone for sharing their experiences. Helps a lot emotionally and is good research. So what I've concluded to do is to start with a high dose of Pantothenic Acid first, Im thinking at least 8 grams and then work up to 10 daily. With the amount of oil i produce, my gut is just telling me to start off that high. Just a feeling I have, maybe my body is telling me something, i dont know. I will probably switch over to Pantethene after a few months to test it and see how it works.
I will say that the high dosage scares me long term but I guess if i tone it down over time, i may be safe from any long term affects. I'll just have to be diligent and honest with myself and adjust when necessary. Anyhow, I am starting my 10 grams a day dosage today in a few hours. Im not on any meds at the moment other than the Epiduo cream I use to spot treatment.
Let's see what happens. I'll be taking pics and tracking my progress. Ive taken some pics of my current breakout as day 1 begins. I may not post every day on here but when changes start to happen or not within a fews days at a time, I will post.
Thank you and good luck everyone!
Btw, anyone have any suggestions on how long i should start seeing a difference in the oil on my face? I've been on Pan Acid since the 6th which is about a week now and Ive broken out pretty bad and the oil is still there. Some days it seems somewhat less but idk.
Any advice anyone?
Who I am
-I'm a 32 year old female with very oily skin and mild acne
What I've done for my skin
-I've tried everything under the sun for acne. Topically I find there are significant limits on what you can accomplish. But having said that, there are a few products that have worked for me. Finacea is a prescription cream for rosacea but it works amazingly well on my acne. You have to ask for it and be persistant.It's an off-label use. Caudalie purifying oil is fantastic at night. And I always try to use a cleanser that is as mild as possible. Anything that dries will perpetuate the acne. Accutane was a miracle drug that kept my face looking completely flawless and oil free for 2 years, but it's very difficult to get the prescription now. Antibiotics work of course, but temporarily. After trying antibiotics and accutane, I realized that the results of something that works internally cannot be beat.
-Which brings me to pantethine and other supplements. It's been two days and I'm noticing my skin dry out and the acne dissipate once again on 450 mg of pantethine and 450 mg of pantothenic acid. I had been on 10 grams of pantothenic acid (country life-time release tablets) along with twinlab b-complex. That worked beautifully for a month. For some reason I thought pantothenic acid was the same as b-12 and I switched to taking b-12. I kept wondering why my acne was coming back. Once I figured out that b-5 was what I was supposed to be taking, I also had definitive proof that there is no placebo affect that can make a persons face less oily. I than went on Vitamin Shoppe brand pantothenic acid.......it did not work at all after 1 week of taking it, and the pantothenic acid which I had started out on had worked within 2 days for me. So instead of going back on the country life pills which are huge and hard to swallow, I did some research and found the pantethine info. From what I can tell it is working incredibly well, and I think 2 days is how long it takes me to find out whether or not something will work. Although accutane took much longer than that to work.
-And so I will post again in three months to say whether or not it kept on working.
Why I tried it
-I went on the paleo diet starting last year because I felt fatigued all the time. It helped my skin and my mood and after exaustive research i believe I've had a wheat allergy for my entire life which was uncovered by being on the paleo diet. Possibly I have celiac? If one is allergic to wheat and they eat it for years, it injures your intestines in such a way that you don't get proper nutrition. And B-5 is made in your gut (if your gut isn't disturbed by something). So when you get rid of the wheat and any other grain containing gluten, it improves your skin because you make more b-5 naturally. But my skin wasn't perfect which leads me to believe that I'm still healing my gut. There are these little things called villi that are like microsopic fingers in your gut that absorb nutrients. If you have screwed up you gut with foods you are allergic to, it takes up to 3 years for them to grow back. So my theory is that if I keep off wheat for 3 years I won't need the supplements at that point. But for now it seems to be what I was missing.
-If you want to look into this more check this out
How it's worked
-I should talk more about the before and after of the pantethine and the pantothenic acid. Pantethine being what I'm on currently. I used to get oily about 10 minutes after washing my face. Now it's more like 10 hours. I'm not joking. Having oily skin is uncomfortable and having pimples just plain sucks. I feel more confident, I don't need as much makeup. I feel better and have more energy. It's quite simply amazing. And I really like my theory behind why it works, because if it's true, it means that I don't have some disease. It means that I should not have been eating wheat and that the wheat caused a b-5 deficiency. All this research has given me a very new perspective on acne and the modern diet.
I have so much more to say about the research I've done, but I'm going to cut it short because this is already a very long post. I'm very excited to be on here.
Btw, anyone have any suggestions on how long i should start seeing a difference in the oil on my face? I've been on Pan Acid since the 6th which is about a week now and Ive broken out pretty bad and the oil is still there. Some days it seems somewhat less but idk.
Any advice anyone?
What brand are you on out of curiousity? I found that brands can make a difference. Country life worked for me, but vitamin shoppe brand did not work with the pantothenic acid. Now I'm taking Vitamin shoppe brand pantethine which IS working. I guess the brand isn't all bad. Worrisome though that it is so complicated.
What can you conclude if your oil production is still extreme even with 900mg of pantethine??Is there anything else I can try?
One brand of pantothenic acid worked for me (country life-time release) and one brand of pantothenic acid did not work for me (vitamin shoppe brand). But I am taking Vitamin shoppe brand pantethine which is working. I would have bought a different brand since I had no luck with the vitamin shoppe brand pantothenic acid, but it was the only one I could find after I read that pantethine is a better option than pantothenic acid. And it's working. I will probably try another brand soon, because I feel as though the quality is maybe not as good as it could be.
The other thing that has helped my skin is the Paleo diet.
I think there is a connection with celiac disease/wheat allergies, acne, and the paleo diet. Everything that you could do to help celiac disease including going on the paleo diet, I believe helps acne.
Btw, anyone have any suggestions on how long i should start seeing a difference in the oil on my face? I've been on Pan Acid since the 6th which is about a week now and Ive broken out pretty bad and the oil is still there. Some days it seems somewhat less but idk.
Any advice anyone?
What brand are you on out of curiousity? I found that brands can make a difference. Country life worked for me, but vitamin shoppe brand did not work with the pantothenic acid. Now I'm taking Vitamin shoppe brand pantethine which IS working. I guess the brand isn't all bad. Worrisome though that it is so complicated.
Im using GNC brand Pantothenic. I just started week 2, breaking out still a little, i think I am starting to see a difference with the oil production. Im going to give it another week, 10 days to wait and see. I may just change brand if need be. Any advice on how long i should start seeing a significant difference?
how much pantethine are you guys using per day?
I'm on 900 mg of pantethine and 900 mg of pantothenic acid because it came that way with the brand I found. It's working very well, but I'm going to bump my dose up to 1500 mg of each. When I had been on accutane, my skin was completely dry and I loved that. To find a supplement that works this well though is extraordinary. ZPeople have commented on how amazing my skin looks. I wonder if I can find a dose that will get rid of the oil completely. I'm honestly being greedy because it's already amazing at 900 mg.
how much pantethine are you guys using per day?
I'm on 900 mg of pantethine and 900 mg of pantothenic acid because it came that way with the brand I found. It's working very well, but I'm going to bump my dose up to 1500 mg of each. When I had been on accutane, my skin was completely dry and I loved that. To find a supplement that works this well though is extraordinary. ZPeople have commented on how amazing my skin looks. I wonder if I can find a dose that will get rid of the oil completely. I'm honestly being greedy because it's already amazing at 900 mg.
May I ask what brand you are speaking about?
The brand doesn't matter.
Supplements are not regulated by the FDA so different companies don't always put the dosage they claim. They also formulate them differently which can change their effectiveness. Aside from that, it's been my personal experience that one brand was extremely effective and another completely ineffective. I think it's important to mention this, because I've seen people write on here that the Pantothenic acid they are taking is not showing results. I also should mention that the brand that was effective for me was a time-release formula which may have had something to do with it. The ineffective brand was in capsule form. I've switched to pantethine though anyways, and it's working well.