I would love to spend 5% of what I am spending now.... anyways my current regimen is like :

water + dove soap unscented to wash/rinse whole body and face

have oily, very sensitive that it can get blotchy red if aggrivated with too many fragrances, or way too thick.... I've tried with oil and oil-free products... tried the coconut oil for a little while but that was beginning to grease up everything around me, clothes, sheets, cell phone...

 

Oils work really well for some, but can be too heavy for other skin types. And the lightest oil i've found (in texture) is rose hip seed oil. Super thin, fast absorbing, and very mild.

I also used to use dove soap, years back when i was washing my face with soaps. I've since then cut out washing with soaps, and simply let water run over it for a very short period in the shower. And short showers are the way to go, especially if you live in areas where they fluoridate/chlorinate the water. Not to mention the various other contaminates in the water. Also i shower every other day. People have it in their heads that cleanliness means showering twice a day, and washing your face two to three times per day. My skin is in the best shape it's ever been thanks to my not stripping it of it's natural oils.

I never get that tight, red, itchy feeling you can get after washing with soaps. And if this is something that happens to you after you shower, then it's a good sign that you are irritating your skin. We really don't need these products, and the best things to wash/tone with are found right in nature. There are so many herbal washes/toners that you can make right from home using things from the grocery store. And your skin will appreciate these much more than any harsh cleansers

1) those cleansers don't keep you clear. In fact removing your acid mantle all the time hampers skin function.

2) better diet and lifestyle. They eat more real food. Walk everywhere, etc.

The food is better quality overseas. I grew up in Ukraine and still go back and visit from time to time. When you eat a tomato there or even a piece of bread or milk or anything, the taste difference in unbelievable! Granted my family has it own garden and cow, and that's where most of the food comes from. So everything is as fresh as it could get. They don't have the money for fertilizers and pesticides and neither does the goverment so the soil, animals are not as polluted. And it's amazing because you can literally taste the difference!

I remember at around the age of 19 I went to Ukraine for the summer and my face was probably at its worst. I was so desperate for an answer that I went to a dermatologist in Ukraine. He said he has never even seen anything as bad as my face!

Thanks for the detailed replies and comments! I appreciate it!

I can only agree on all the points you've all echoed regarding the quality of food - smaller portions, fresher, expires sooner... less additives.

Would dropping the dove soap and reverting to water be the best? Interesting points regarding the acid mantle - I had to search a little about it, and it seems that probably everything I've ever done was destroying/disrupting it and then on top of it, not allowing time for the skin to re-balance, which could take weeks from what I hear... I'm not sure about every 24 hours...

Is there a correlation between hot showers that also cause this? I have a little keratosis pilaris on my thighs and buttocks and upper arms... I'm not sure if that is also correlated with disrupted acid mantle and then hyperkeratizination...

I purchased one of those chlorine reducing shower heads but that really hasn't shown to improve anything... and limited to my apartment only. If I travel, those types of options are pretty limited and yet I still break out everywhere.

While I was still abroad though, I was breaking out and had pretty blotchy skin.... I had of course brought my American face products with me... I think I eat a pretty non-processed, diet - but I do drink a ton of coffee,,, almost like 8-10 cups a day... not sure if that has a factor, I've tried*** giving it up for a day and unfortunately my body is so hooked/needs it function that trying to break down that habit has been unsuccessful.

Do you know how guys and gals cleanse and if they use moisturizers abroad? What are common or popular brands if so, that are also available here in the United States? I can't recall anything from the top of my head... and I tried googling some things, but that really yielded marketing pages for products I've never heard of ever...

Cola, caffeine alcohol stresses out the liver. Try cutting them out and see how it goes.

Think about it... Usually all the natural products with amazing ingredients come from Europe. Where the fruit and the farming is excellent and a lot of Europeans own farms. And America is where all of the fast food is.

So besides the food - what are the natural or common European household products or staples? I wouldn't think of it being that costly or exotic to one region... plus not so many people in the Eastern parts, Russia, India are splurging $20-30++++

I can think of Nivea from Germany, but they initially had started with the blue tin nivea creme (apparently similar to the la mar cream) with less preservatives (apparently)... there use to be big hyper for people to buy that version versus the Mexican/US variants.

I don't think it has anything to do with being from Europe, personally. The fact is, most people don't really have acne. Most Americans don't either. I can't think of anyone I know here who has acne anywhere near as severe as what I've dealt with in my life, and 99% of those people I know who have clear skin eat fast food, drink soda, and pretty much do whatever they want.

I think most people just have decent skin, and when we travel we tend to look around and be like everyone is so beautiful! It must be their culture! But really we're just seeing the same thing we see in America. Think about it. Say 60% of people have clear skin (I just made that up as an example) and you met 50 different Europeans while traveling. Just statistically, most of them would have clear skin. That's just how it is.

People always say it's an American problem, but the other acne-covered people are apparently hiding inside their homes because I rarely see them when I go out. Only once in a great while. September was the last time I remember actually looking at another girl and thinking "wow, her skin is actually as bad as mine."

Yeah, I see your point... and it's hard to debate (not trying to anyways lol). You did bring up one the largest mysteries of people (including classmates/friends) who live literally on fast food, white flour-based goods, sugary desserts, and frozen foods and have nearly perfect (acne free I mean) skin... I see this at least around college campus and I'm just literally like wtf I'd be surprised if the genetic pool was that spread out/good and lucky!

At the same time, products in the past that are still marketed (like neutrogena in the orange container 2% salycilic acid) continue to be the devil in disguise

Higher saturated fat intake. Less fear-mongering.

I would agree that there is something inherently fucked up about America. It's like the stress level is 100 times higher here than it is in other countries. At least the other countries I've visited, which include a lot of South Asia and Canada. It may not manifest as acne for most people, but people are less healthy here, acne or not.

That's where I believe genetics take place.

Not to mention, that the severity of your acne drops after puberty, atleast for many.

We shouldn't blame our genetics really. Think of it as a benefiical gene that displays our internal function.

Unlike the typical americans who aren't even aware of what they are eating, we are at a better level of understanding meaning we may not even suffer from common diseases like most people later at age.

As far as I know there are enough acne sufferers in Russia and Central Asia. I have lived most of my life in both regions. Treatments offered are very similar to those, for example, offered in UK. Up until the age of 12 I ate organic home grown food (we had big and proper russian county house 'dacha') with lots of vegetables, fruits and herbs grown by my korean grandmother (it did not stop me from developing acne). Some of my relatives had acne too regardless of good diet. But I did get my type 1 diabetes when I went to study in US and was exposed to a different types of food altogether. For the first time in my life I was eating readymade foods from supermarket, it was different and it was bad. haha In Russia cosmetology clinics usually put you on antibiotics together with medicated morning/evening lotion routine called "baltushka". This baltushka had a mixture of herbs and something else(not so herbal!) which after application leaves white powder on your face and stings for hours. It did not cure you but kept some of light acne in control. Microcoagulation was very popular. In late 90s laser therapy became available. In my highschool (when in Russia) out of 27 people in my class 6 had severe acne. And that was 1997.