You will not "cure" acne most of the time. In many cases its "managed." Its very individual. No one sizes fits all. I wash my face daily at night, shave 3x a week, apply no lotion/cream/product all over and only treat spots with BP/clindamycin. I know which foods to avoid i.e. fruit/vegetable juices, heavy dairy products (cream), oranges, peanut butter. You can do all the "right" things and still have acne break outs. Its a learning process bud.

Also, doing to much too fast isn't going to make it go away any faster. Patience is a virtue. Your body will thank you.

How many eggs are you eating in your diet? It is suggested that no more than 2-3 per week and/or avoid the yoke. Such in takes are great for those trying to build muscle-eggs are a great source of protein and vitamins. But this not a healthy for a "regular" individual.

Increased vitamin E makes you prone to bleeding. Too much magnesium/vitamin C can make you have diarrhea therefore all that you taken in does not get absorbed properly. The thing with vitamin C is that increases the amount of water in the intestinal track which can lead to excess. When things go to the large intestine to be absorbed and "manufactured" for bodily use this excess water will prevent uptake by the body and be excreted as waste.

Magnesium isn't usually needed for supplementation as it is generally obtained in a diet of grains that are fortified whether this be bread or cereal or pastas. To much can lead to respiratory depression and cardiac problems such as an arrhythmia or in serious cases arrest.

You might be washing your face to much. The face has its own oil barrier to keep moisture in. Washing to much can be ridding of this protective barrier causing increased oil production, bacteria proliferation, and acne production.

Diets for acne are generally long term. So are supplements. Meaning this could be for life or atleast until your sebaccious glands and skin turnover rate slow down. This could happen at 40, 50, 60, or even 70. I know of an elderly man who has acne in his 80's. So its long term.

To much vitamin A and washing your face will do that to you. Lemon will not remove your acne scars (it will also dry out your skin unhealthily) not if they are indented. If you have *minor pigmentation it might help. The reason being is the the lemon is acidic causing skin to shed faster and the little amount of vitamin C will cause lightening of the pigmented area. Sun exposure will often reverse this lighting. So its not optimal treatment for scars. Lemon will only aggravate your skin. Ever heard of the skins "acid-mantle". Do some home work and look this up. You need to have this.

Try products made for the skin i.e. a mild AHA exfoliant for mild PIH. Box scars and indents take time... i say again TIME. I dermarolled one scar for 7 months with copper peptides and a retinol and saw minimal at best improvement. Its been two years since August that I got this scar. It has finally started to form back into my face and appear normal. I gave up treating it after that 7 months. So that 17 months i did nothing did about the same. Depends on the scar, mine was moderate.

Personally I think you are inconclusive for leaky gut. You should do some more evidence based research. You should know that if you are losing weight that this is not healthy unless you happen to be obese. Even then no more than 5 maybe 10 lbs a month if you are not physically active (athlete) and trying to build muscle. The body burning that fat making you lose weight contains all the vitamins and toxins that are stored in that fat. This can be pro inflammatory and can be masking your results. Its too hard to tell. Something to keep in mind.

If you have a level head on your shoulders, ambition, drive, and passion towards life and something you enjoy than acne cannot take that away from you if you do not let it. You decide ultimately your fate. Acne will most likely always be there, but do not let it be the barer of bad news. Fight past it towards your goal. This can be as simple as going to the store. People in society- the ones that look towards the inside rather than the out- will recognize a decent person and not judge you for your looks. These people are few in numbers it seems, but they exist. You just have to find them.

I went through nursing school with acne. I go to work with it when it decides to rear its ugly head. But it does not prevent me from doing what I love because i do not let it. You cannot let it do the same. It takes lots of self talk, confidence boosting, talking sessions by myself, and surrounding true, close friends/family, and being "out there" not giving up them opportunities that keep me sane, strong, and not care whats on the outside.. dammit. I'm a nurse! People need me.... this is what I do... People need you. What are you going to do?

I can say no more

Thank you very much for your reply. I hadn't even thought of or knew some of the stuff you brought up. You seem to know a lot about the topic.

I know there is no magic pill or anything to cure acne. However, I have seen my friends and others who have had worse acne than I have more or less completely clear them selves up and remain that way, so I do think it is possible to clear up and this is what I am reaching for. I don't mean i expect to never get a pimple or anything again, I just mean get rid of all existing acne and try to remain clear through a solid diet and supplementation if necessary. I think I just need to find the root cause( maybe my digestive system/liver, I am starting to think) and address it.

So as far as supplements go, are you saying I should give them more time or just dump them? For my diet, I know it is unhealthy to have lost so much weight so quick, especially since I am thin to begin with. I just feel like I am stuck, because I don't want to go back to gluten and dairy again( which will no doubt help me gain weight back) because I fear it will cause breakouts, especially if something is not right with my digestive system. So what do suggest I do?

As far as washing my face, will once a day in the shower suffice? I was reading that your face will heal itself if you just let it, and some people left their face alone and they cleared up. If I try this, is this different for everyone, or will my face heal itself naturally if I only wash once a day with water or not at all. I noticed a few years ago, when I was clear, I never put anything on my face.

I agree with you that looks are not everything, and that its whats inside that matters. Il admit that part of the reason I want to clear up so badly is because I want to be able to talk to girls with confidence without worrying about my face. Also, I have missed many opportunities I can never get back because I was embarrassed, and this hurts me. I feel like the odd man out when everyone around me at school is completely clear, but I have acne. It makes me feel like shit.

The biggest reason why I want to succeed in clearing up my acne is bc i want to prove to myself i put my mind to something and achieved it. This stems from my previous failures in baseball and trying to gain weight, in which I tried so hard and put in so much effort for just marginal results at best. I dont want it to be like that for acne. I cant handle another failure.

Again, thank you for your reply. You seem like a genuine person and I wish there were more people in the world like you.

We can't tell you how long it will take to get your acne under control. You may just need to give it more time. You say you've seen improvement, so keep it up. Besides, the diet habits of mostly real whole food is something you should keep up for life for reasons far more important than acne. If you are losing weight, eat more food.

And You may have specific issues that need extra attention. Like intolerances & digestion. How is your digestion? Do you have any discomfort, bloating or such after eating? There are many ways to address digestion from healing foods, lifestyle habits & supplements like enzymes & HCL. Green Gables is a great source for info on that. Hopefully she'll be along, but there are other recent threads in which she's posted good info.

also, diet isn't the only factor you can fix to control acne. Stress, proper sleep & natural as possible circadian sleep/wake, light/dark cycle. Get some D from the sun. But you have to adjust your diet & habits calmly & rationally.

Your post is full of phrases that makes me think that stress is a factor for you. Get a grip. 1) no one else is scrutinizing your skin like you do. They aren't seeing every flaw. and 2) everyone else doesn't have clear skin.

I don't do supplements any more and don't recall upper limits of most. But I think you are fairly ok. Do not take over 50mg Zinc on a daily basis . Are those supplements A or beta carotene? That's not a high dose of C at all, but it should be taken in small amounts throughout the day. your body isn't going to use 1000 mg at once and it won't stay in your body for more than a few hours. A squeeze of lemon or some raw fruit or veg snacks/smoothies is a better way. The laxative affect of magnesium depends on the form i.e. magnesium oxide vs magnesium taurinate. Magnesium is one of the few supplements I take, but I take 133 mg at bedtime or when I have a headache. Even though I consume quite a bit of magnesium sources via daily greens & seeds. It relaxes muscles & blood vessels and aids sleep.

And oh, god. Do not avoid the yolk and eat eggs daily if you wish. That nonsense was debunked at least a decade ago.

Since you have dry skin, try oil cleansing with a quality high linoleic acid containing oil like safflower. Linoleic acid is a major component of normal sebum that performs the many functions sebum is supposed to, Problem prone skin of all sorts including acne have been found to be deficient in linoleic acid. See the linoleic acid thread. And yes, once a day is enough of washing your face. May even be too much.

Also, true scars take years to go away. Hyperpigmentation will be helped by the linoleic acid which retards melanin.

The cholesterol is not needed and easily avoid if you avoid the yoke. Regardless, it is shown that a diet high in eggs leads to the development of coronary artery disease. Now, you may associate that risk with someone older than you, maybe middle age or older that actually exhibits signs of the disease. The truth is fatty streaks build up within the artery walls starting at age 15 and continue silently for years much like high blood pressure. The times symptoms arise is often when you are "too late" or when damage has already been done. Sometimes it can be reversed or minimized, other times it cannot. There is a reason why CAD is the number 1 killer among women.

One must realize they are not invisible to these threats. It has been shown that those who eat eggs on in above average amounts weekly are more prone to cardiac events in the future ranging from angina to a acute MI or stroke. Don't kill the messenger, I am just here to provide that knowledge.

You haven not stated the amount of eggs you eat which we are only left to wonder. Ignore vista in this respect. She maybe self educated more than I in dietary and nutrition in relationship to acne, however, she lacks academically the knowledge and more importantly certification with backed clinical experience to be saying such statements. I mean no disrespect as I do admire her ambition and research. But this is no myth and therefore those that reads these forums today, tomorrow, or next year should empower themselves that is why i urge caution regardless.

Vitamin C dosage should be taken in smaller doses throughout the day as stated. However your dose does exceed RDA by 8-10x's. It can cause diarrhea as one of the side effects like i mentioned. Depends on the person.

Sadly I was in your same boat when I was 20, now I'm 24 going on 25 with very persistent mild acne, previously severe acne.

Supplements, radical diet changes, similar to what you've tried, although my ban list was gluten, soy, eggs, dairy, nuts (almonds ok), any form of a blood sugar spike.

Now imagine a max 3 days per year for cheat meals; that's how strict I was. Now I've laxed b/c it makes little difference (ban list still in place, just extreme moderation). Need a social life.

Can't imagine a supplement I didn't try for a prolonged period of time.

Really hope you have better results than I did.

Diet and supplements, without a doubt, reduce acne drastically. Can it "cure" it?

I no longer think it'll cure me in this lifetime. The dmg was done long time ago.

Edit. As for not losing weight without getting more acne, my secret is tons of fat - grass-fed meats preferred, chicken, avocados, almond butter. Funny thing, eating this ppl think you'll get fat, actually you'll get ripped if you put in some gym time.

I thought maybe you were referring to the more recent studies about choline & intestinal bacteria, but I see you are still spouting the cholesterol myth.

About eggs & cholesterol: See this article http://www.huffingtonpost.com/adam-bornstein/eggs-heart-disease_b_3185418.html. It's not a great article, but it's packed with links to studies that debunk the myth,just not in a way I can easily copy & paste.

I was going to write a bunch more stuff about cholesterol, but MarksDailyApple explains it all pretty well, with plenty of references. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/cholesterol/#axzz2nHdAZo48 & http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-straight-dope-on-cholesterol-10-things-you-need-to-know-part-1/#axzz2nHdAZo48 (be sure to read the second part)

Cholesterol, is the spackle your body uses to repair damage to arteries. That damage is caused by sugars, Homocysteine, & C-Reactive proteins (inflammatory agents). That's what you want to avoid. Eat an anti-inflammatory diet high in real, whole plant foods, low in refined carbs and low in hydrogenated & added polyunsaturated oils. Also, avoid chronic stress, poor sleep habits, sedentary lifestyle but also prolonged intense physical activity.

In addition to it's repair work, cholesterol is a vital component in the membrane of every single cell in your body, is the precursor to all of your hormones, to seratonin & is fuel for your brain. Middle-aged & older people nowadays are given drugs to stop their body from making this essential substance, then drugs to boost the hormones they aren't making anymore and other drugs to deal with the other ailments caused by the first drug which blocks the pathways involved not just in making cholesterol but many other vital substances. CoenzymeQ10 for example. Which leads to joint & other pains which leads to more drugs. And the inhibited seratonin leads to depression and anti-dpression drugs.

Also, consider all these so-called Paradoxes like the French Paradox (high fat diet) & the Japanese Paradox (high salt intake) in which a population consumes a great deal of the foods that our doctors tell us cause disease, and yet that population has low incidences of that disease. Meanwhile, they've told Americans to avoid all these real, whole nutrient dense foods for decades and our disease rates increase, despite all the drugs we are loaded up on that are supposed to prevent those diseases.

Why? Because our doctors are determined to focus on the wrong things & propose the wrong solutions. Seems to be the American way, not just with medicine.

Ignore vista in this respect. She maybe self educated more than I in dietary and nutrition in relationship to acne, however, she lacks academically the knowledge and more importantly certification with backed clinical experience to be saying such statements.

I lack indoctrination in false premises. And no, I have not studied medicine academically or otherwise. I study health & wellness. If there were good places around to study health & wellness academically, I might consider doing so. I also consider studying architecture but don't want to be indoctrinated in sheetrock, curtain walls & sealing people up inside of buildings requiring mechanical means to provide adequate air. I'd much rather read up on natural building & good passive design on my own.

EDITED

I attempted to send your 3 articles that refute your claim. You "cannot receive any new messages".

I had a nice write up, but i feel this sums it up better:

You are not in position to give advice, specifically medical, regarding the subject matter because you lack the clinical knowledge and training and frankly are wrong, not because the evidence is wrong (although my evidence proves it as is another reason I am intervening on another one of your posts), but because you are not able to assess this person, his health status, history, his genetic predisposition; you lack this information to make a call and are frankly not even qualified to do so (and do doubt someone who is..even worse). You can provide the information, but not lead or guide as you have-to which i encourage you to refrain from or think about before doing, especially in this case. Like someone said earlier, lots of people in this area of the forums like to play doctor. At times its harmless and actually informative, but its all fun and games until someone gets hurt. Certainly I cannot encourage this man to eatting eggs as he wishes unknowing to the harm he is potentially doing. Or to anyone else who reads these boards which is often overlooked by many.

Thank you.

I encourage you to seek a degree in this field since you have so much time and energy for it that is if you can find somewhere good, up to your standards. Its not the degree that actually matters its the knowledge that does and what you decide to do with it. Helps when you can keep an open, bias free mind. "Indoctrination in false premises" -hah, have we met? Society..

EDITED

I attempted to send your 3 articles that refute your claim. You "cannot receive any new messages".

I had a nice write up, but i feel this sums it up better:

You are not in position to give advice, specifically medical, regarding the subject matter because you lack the clinical knowledge and training and frankly are wrong, not because the evidence is wrong (although my evidence proves it as is another reason I am intervening on another one of your posts), but because you are not able to assess this person, his health status, history, his genetic predisposition; you lack this information to make a call and are frankly not even qualified to do so (and do doubt someone who is..even worse). You can provide the information, but not lead or guide as you have-to which i encourage you to refrain from or think about before doing, especially in this case. Like someone said earlier, lots of people in this area of the forums like to play doctor. At times its harmless and actually informative, but its all fun and games until someone gets hurt. Certainly I cannot encourage this man to eatting eggs as he wishes unknowing to the harm he is potentially doing. Or to anyone else who reads these boards which is often overlooked by many.

Thank you.

I encourage you to seek a degree in this field since you have so much time and energy for it that is if you can find somewhere good, up to your standards. Its not the degree that actually matters its the knowledge that does and what you decide to do with it. Helps when you can keep an open, bias free mind. "Indoctrination in false premises" -hah, have we met? Society..

This is a community acne board. Not a discussion of medical professionals.

My severe, cystic acne--that went on for over a decade and well into adulthood--was cleared by a drug that I have to be prescribed off-label and most derms refuse to prescribe. There are lots of stories like that on this board, so naturally "professional medical" advice isn't what most people are seeking.

If someone wants the advice of a "professional", there are plenty they can see in the real world.

I don't really care about this discussion or the opinions in it, but please refrain from attacking a forum member that you believe is not as "qualified" as you. If you are truly confident in your own qualifications, then you do not need to prove them by putting other people down.

You are free to join a practice and charge people for your "qualified" advice. Pissing contests on an acne internet forum are downright stupid and a waste of everbody's time.

Ok, about eating eggs everyday: that really depends on the person and their tolerance levels. I was adviced by acupuncturists to eat eggs daily to help with anemia, and they told me it shouldn't impact cholesterol. I chose not to eat eggs every day for other reasons, not cholesterol in particular.

Also, anyone who asks advice on this forum is obviously not interested in conventional, standardized medical "treatments." They can choose to either take the advice given or not take it, it's up to them.

This forum helped me find missing pieces to my acne & wellness puzzle. it's not meant to be an all-inclusive resource, but if people are smart enough, they cross-reference the information given here with their own research and/or ask those mythical creatures called ethical doctors for advice.

Ok, about eating eggs everyday: that really depends on the person and their tolerance levels. I was adviced by acupuncturists to eat eggs daily to help with anemia, and they told me it shouldn't impact cholesterol. I chose not to eat eggs every day for other reasons, not cholesterol in particular.

Also, anyone who asks advice on this forum is obviously not interested in conventional, standardized medical "treatments." They can choose to either take the advice given or not take it, it's up to them.

This forum helped me find missing pieces to my acne & wellness puzzle. it's not meant to be an all-inclusive resource, but if people are smart enough, they cross-reference the information given here with their own research and/or ask those mythical creatures called ethical doctors for advice.

Yes. And We are here because conventional medicine has failed Us. As it is failing the majority of our population who just gets sicker and sicker from chronic health conditions that used to be rare and are perfectly preventable and reversable. But not with drugs. All the average doctor knows is drugs. They have this vague idea that a good diet & exercise is good, but what people really need are drugs.

There are many conventionally trained medical professionals, researchers & doctors, that resist the indoctrination and do more research that will tell you the same things I've have been saying. That's where I get the information from. I'm not pulling it out of my ass. But they are not the average doctor. And most of us only have access to average, mediocre doctors. In which case, you better do your own research on any diagnosis rather than blindly take the drugs they want to give you.

(Those researchers I mention tend to be from European, Asian, and Australian Universities & hospitals, btw. Less indoctinated in wrong paradigms. Again, let me bring up the social led paradoxes in which whole populations eat diets high in substances that our doctors say cause disease, yet those populations o not suffer from those diseases. Yet our population, filled with people consuming substitutes for the healthy foods they were told to avoid, just get sicker.

The OP needs something to eat, so let's reroute the conversation back to the original question.

Sweet potatoes helped me gain weight, I think they could help you as well.