I don't know about the amount of soy in your recipies and diet habits. Here we find soy only in processed food like biscuits crackers etc so i cook my self almost everything i eat and i solve this. I am not sure that soy breaks me out but i find it in products with other acne triggers and i avoid it anyway. For me the difficult thing is to avoid dairy. What i eat is fish, beans (black eyed, chickpeas,lentils), vegetables, chicken and red meat. I try to follow the mediterranean diet but with modifications because i avoid dairy as hell and try to reduce glycemic index so i have an issue with bread and pasta. But by avoiding dairy and fat and high gi food i have lost weight, i try to eat more but well how many dishes of lentils do i need to replace the calories of pizza and gain weight? More than i can eat obviously..

Maria, I love your signature, with your plans and the universe plans for you! Thank you for that, it was a great way to start my day! So true! And I agree with your eating plan, very close to what I do and I'm thin as well. Try to work some fat in there like coconut oil, I cook and bake with it...and use garbanzo bean flour as well to bake with....I cut the sugar in half of whatever the recipe calls for....that is a good way to get some calories and give your self a treat.

I don't know about the amount of soy in your recipies and diet habits. Here we find soy only in processed food like biscuits crackers etc so i cook my self almost everything i eat and i solve this. I am not sure that soy breaks me out but i find it in products with other acne triggers and i avoid it anyway. For me the difficult thing is to avoid dairy. What i eat is fish, beans (black eyed, chickpeas,lentils), vegetables, chicken and red meat. I try to follow the mediterranean diet but with modifications because i avoid dairy as hell and try to reduce glycemic index so i have an issue with bread and pasta. But by avoiding dairy and fat and high gi food i have lost weight, i try to eat more but well how many dishes of lentils do i need to replace the calories of pizza and gain weight? More than i can eat obviously..

Maria, I love your signature, with your plans and the universe plans for you! Thank you for that, it was a great way to start my day! So true! And I agree with your eating plan, very close to what I do and I'm thin as well. Try to work some fat in there like coconut oil, I cook and bake with it...and use garbanzo bean flour as well to bake with....I cut the sugar in half of whatever the recipe calls for....that is a good way to get some calories and give your self a treat.

I don't know about the amount of soy in your recipies and diet habits. Here we find soy only in processed food like biscuits crackers etc so i cook my self almost everything i eat and i solve this. I am not sure that soy breaks me out but i find it in products with other acne triggers and i avoid it anyway. For me the difficult thing is to avoid dairy. What i eat is fish, beans (black eyed, chickpeas,lentils), vegetables, chicken and red meat. I try to follow the mediterranean diet but with modifications because i avoid dairy as hell and try to reduce glycemic index so i have an issue with bread and pasta. But by avoiding dairy and fat and high gi food i have lost weight, i try to eat more but well how many dishes of lentils do i need to replace the calories of pizza and gain weight? More than i can eat obviously..

I saw it at a website and thought that this is exactly what is happening to me right now! Coconut oil is rare to find here and very expensive.. a website sells 200 grams almost 8 euros. I can't afford that and even if i could i don't want to think what my mother would say. There are some other, cheaper, but as i understand it they are for cosmetic use. The garbanzo bean flour is a great idea! When i want something sweet i replace the entire amount of sugar with stevia that has no calories, i will try it your way because i am so thin and i am sure this is affecting my hormones complicating my treatment as well.

Soy is a huge acne trigger for me due to its effect on hormones. I'm guessing that if I give it up completely I should get clearer, but it's really hard since it's in so many foods. Has anyone had luck ditching soy completely? Or ditching almost all sources of soy at least? If so, what do you eat now??

No soy in an apple. or cabbage. or oats. or Wild salmon. Or chick peas. It's not in real whole food. Except for soy beans of ourselves. You need to avoid the supermarket aisles filled with boxes. For reasons more important than soy or clear skin.

Soy has hardly been a part of my diet so ditching is not an issue.

I avoid soy at all costs. It's not hard to avoid if you're cooking foods from whole ingredients.

I eat bread made from soy and drink soy milk. Skin has been better than ever.

I avoid soy at all costs. It's not hard to avoid if you're cooking foods from whole ingredients.

Thanks! Funny enough I didn't read this until after I came to about the same conclusion last night and bought a crock pot then went to the grocery store to buy whole ingredients today. Actually kind of excited to start cooking more! I did do quite a bit of wandering around the store though. Do you make sure to use non soy-fed meat or do you not worry about that?

I eat bread made from soy and drink soy milk. Skin has been better than ever.

You are lucky! Soy does have an effect on estrogen, so maybe for some people that effect is helpful rather than harmful. Unfortunately for me, it ravages my skin.

I don't know about the amount of soy in your recipies and diet habits. Here we find soy only in processed food like biscuits crackers etc so i cook my self almost everything i eat and i solve this. I am not sure that soy breaks me out but i find it in products with other acne triggers and i avoid it anyway. For me the difficult thing is to avoid dairy. What i eat is fish, beans (black eyed, chickpeas,lentils), vegetables, chicken and red meat. I try to follow the mediterranean diet but with modifications because i avoid dairy as hell and try to reduce glycemic index so i have an issue with bread and pasta. But by avoiding dairy and fat and high gi food i have lost weight, i try to eat more but well how many dishes of lentils do i need to replace the calories of pizza and gain weight? More than i can eat obviously..

Yeah, I think I mentioned this before, but I have the same problem with losing weight when I'm too restrictive about food. Bread and grains are good for maintaining weight and now I can't eat them really. Mediterranean diet is smart. I'll look into some recipes.

Rye and multigrain bread have low gi and are suitable for diabetic people. If seeds or rye don't break you out give them a try.. i eat a slice of rye bread with jam (i made it with fructose) preferably with vegetables to lower the gi even more. As spiro starts to work hopefully we will have less and less break outs due to food.

Rye and multigrain bread have low gi and are suitable for diabetic people. If seeds or rye don't break you out give them a try.. i eat a slice of rye bread with jam (i made it with fructose) preferably with vegetables to lower the gi even more. As spiro starts to work hopefully we will have less and less break outs due to food.

Cool, I'll try that. The tough thing is that I don't know if ALL soy breaks me out, or just larger amounts of soy, like in miso soup, etc. Because soy (or some variation of soy) is in about every bread at the grocery store.

I was diagnosed as allergic to soy (and yeast) about 3 weeks ago. I have read just about every label at the grocery (or that's how it feels) and EVERYTHING has "soy letchin" or "yeast extract". Yes I realize I should make meals from scratch & avoid packaged foods, but I work full time and have 2 teens-- not much time for cooking! For now I am buying less packaged stuff and food labeled organic tends to have fewer ingredients, so I have better luck there for stuff like granola bars or crackers. Otherwise, its basics like chicken& veggies. Good luck!

I experience break outs when I eat soy so I avoid most soy along with gluten and dairy. When I do eat soy, I eat fermented soy - like miso or tempeh. Non-fermented soy (soybeans, tofu, soy-based protein powder, soy flours, etc.) contain phytic acid, which impairs digestion. They are also goiterogens, meaning they impair thyroid function - so they can mess with your metabolism.

Soy is a huge acne trigger for me due to its effect on hormones. I'm guessing that if I give it up completely I should get clearer, but it's really hard since it's in so many foods. Has anyone had luck ditching soy completely? Or ditching almost all sources of soy at least? If so, what do you eat now??

there are tons of food without soy so its really not hard

Soy is a huge acne trigger for me due to its effect on hormones. I'm guessing that if I give it up completely I should get clearer, but it's really hard since it's in so many foods. Has anyone had luck ditching soy completely? Or ditching almost all sources of soy at least? If so, what do you eat now??

there are tons of food without soy so its really not hard

Are you kidding me? Did you read mellieh's post?? Soy is in almost every processed food, but even if you avoid all packaged foods (including cooking ingredients such as broths, flavorings, etc. which can contain also soy) you can still run into it. I've heard it can even be used in the wax that is used to coat fruits that you find in the produce section. People with soy allergies have to go out of their way to avoid soy so saying that it's not hard is a bit of an insult to them.

Plus, "soy-free" is not yet a popular label like "gluten-free," so I can't imagine how you do soy-free at restaurants. Here's more info: http://foodallergies.about.com/od/soyallergies/a/List-Of-Soy-Ingredients-To-Avoid-When-Following-A-Soy-Free-Diet.htm

While people with soy allergies no doubt must exclude these ingredients from their diets, my question is whether people with soy sensitivities had to do the same to clear their acne, or whether cutting the majority of soy (the obvious stuff) was enough to avoid the breakouts. I realize that I need to do my own self research by eliminating more foods, especially processed/packaged stuff (which I've definitely been doing) but I also wanted to hear other's experiences. Thanks to those that have chimed in!

I experience break outs when I eat soy so I avoid most soy along with gluten and dairy. When I do eat soy, I eat fermented soy - like miso or tempeh. Non-fermented soy (soybeans, tofu, soy-based protein powder, soy flours, etc.) contain phytic acid, which impairs digestion. They are also goiterogens, meaning they impair thyroid function - so they can mess with your metabolism.

Interesting. I've noticed that I get breakouts after eating sushi and Japanese food. That would all be fermented soy though, wouldn't it?

I experience break outs when I eat soy so I avoid most soy along with gluten and dairy. When I do eat soy, I eat fermented soy - like miso or tempeh. Non-fermented soy (soybeans, tofu, soy-based protein powder, soy flours, etc.) contain phytic acid, which impairs digestion. They are also goiterogens, meaning they impair thyroid function - so they can mess with your metabolism.

Interesting. I've noticed that I get breakouts after eating sushi and Japanese food. That would all be fermented soy though, wouldn't it?

It depends. Miso and soy sauce are fermented, but soy wrappers and tofu of any kind is not fermented. Soy sauce contains wheat if you are sensitive to wheat. (Ask for Tamari; it's wheat-free.)

I experience break outs when I eat soy so I avoid most soy along with gluten and dairy. When I do eat soy, I eat fermented soy - like miso or tempeh. Non-fermented soy (soybeans, tofu, soy-based protein powder, soy flours, etc.) contain phytic acid, which impairs digestion. They are also goiterogens, meaning they impair thyroid function - so they can mess with your metabolism.

Interesting. I've noticed that I get breakouts after eating sushi and Japanese food. That would all be fermented soy though, wouldn't it?

Well japanese food made in restaurants may use soybean oil in alot of different things, which is not fermented. Also alot of japanese food is heavy on white rice and they even add sugar. Also they may be using fish that is not wild which is inflammatory because of its high levels of Arachidonic Acid.

I personally breakout from soy in the form of soy protein isolate, soybean oil, tofu, etc. I have done periods where I eleminitated it completley but found that it wasn't the only culprit in my acne. Eliminating it definitely helps but I'm still pursuing other solutions. I still use soy sauce which I don't think is a problem. Soy is found in mayonaiise, salad dressings, crisco, margarine, baked goods, fried food, "vegetable" oils, most restaurant food, etcc...

Soy is a huge acne trigger for me due to its effect on hormones. I'm guessing that if I give it up completely I should get clearer, but it's really hard since it's in so many foods. Has anyone had luck ditching soy completely? Or ditching almost all sources of soy at least? If so, what do you eat now??

i don't do soy...in any form.

i find it easy to avoid soy since i make it a priority to prepare my own foods.

i eat greens + veggies, various types of wild fish, pasture-raised eggs, ghee, coconut oil, olive oil, sweet potatoes, plantains, pseudo grains, and fruit.

Update - I went about a week and a half completely soy free, dairy free, etc. (basically only ate meat, almonds, veggies and fruit) and I got almost 100% clear! BUT I was starving cause all I found it hard to eat enough. I lost about 5 pounds, which is no good since I™m already technically underweight.

So I backed off a little bit - I™ve been cooking a lot in my crock pot, being really careful about anything that comes from a can (I do not use pre-made soup mixes or anything with preservatives, I only use Kitchen Basics stock as it has really clean ingredients). I™m also not eating anything packaged like chips, etc. But I am eating dairy, which seems to be okay for me in small amounts. And I do eat the occasional meal out, and when I do, I don™t worry about the ingredients, except to avoid anything with obvious soy and anything deep fried.

My skin isn™t quite as good as it was when I was eating 100% clean, but my new diet has made a world of difference! I am on Spiro 50mg/day so that™s definitely helping, but I dropped the dietary restrictions for 4 days and started breaking out again, so I know this diet change is making a difference. The best part is that I™m not losing weight and don™t feel like I™m depriving myself, so it is absolutely sustainable!!

To anyone who is thinking of changing their eating habits for the sake of their skin - please try it! It takes a while to figure out what works for you, but it™s totally worth it in the end.

Thanks again to everyone who chimed in on this thread.

Update - I went about a week and a half completely soy free, dairy free, etc. (basically only ate meat, almonds, veggies and fruit) and I got almost 100% clear! BUT I was starving cause all I found it hard to eat enough. I lost about 5 pounds, which is no good since I™m already technically underweight.

So I backed off a little bit - I™ve been cooking a lot in my crock pot, being really careful about anything that comes from a can (I do not use pre-made soup mixes or anything with preservatives, I only use Kitchen Basics stock as it has really clean ingredients). I™m also not eating anything packaged like chips, etc. But I am eating dairy, which seems to be okay for me in small amounts. And I do eat the occasional meal out, and when I do, I don™t worry about the ingredients, except to avoid anything with obvious soy and anything deep fried.

My skin isn™t quite as good as it was when I was eating 100% clean, but my new diet has made a world of difference! I am on Spiro 50mg/day so that™s definitely helping, but I dropped the dietary restrictions for 4 days and started breaking out again, so I know this diet change is making a difference. The best part is that I™m not losing weight and don™t feel like I™m depriving myself, so it is absolutely sustainable!!

To anyone who is thinking of changing their eating habits for the sake of their skin - please try it! It takes a while to figure out what works for you, but it™s totally worth it in the end.

Thanks again to everyone who chimed in on this thread.

Did you have active acne before you went on the diet? And was there just no new acne once you started the diet?