[BronzeSurfer's Diet Regimen]

[BronzeSurfer 0]

Sup guys. My name is Eric, and I have been on and off this site for about a year now. I've had acne in different levels ranging from mild to semi-severe for about 3 years now.

Of course, I despise the stuff, but I also dislike topical medication, so I have been researching through many nutritional alternatives. Recently, i've picked up some old medical books, some specifically on skin disorders and others on general problems or supplemental advice. One thing that caught my attention - older sources are MUCH more informative and precise on acne treatments. I do not know how accurate they are, but I'm giving this stuff a shot.

What I'll be using -

-topical tazorac (cream-based)

-SA wash (neutrogena)

Both strictly for mantainance.

-vitamin A in 8000IU (160% daily value). Vit A is fat soluble and stored in the liver, so it is not a good idea to drastically exceed the daily value dosage.

-vitamin E (water-solubilized). I pop 1-3 a day since any excess will come out in the urine.

-Acidophilus (probiotic). These are the little bacteria that occupy the small intestine. Supplementing with these are supposed to help support proper immune function.

-Zinc (60mg). Zinc and Iron are inversely related. Oversupplement with one, and the bodily concentration of the other will go down. Zinc counteracts DHT production, and is also lost through semen, so this supplement is pretty damn important.

-A vitamin B complex stressing B1 and B6. Personally, i'm not too comfortable with taking B5 in huge dosages, since overdosing in a B vitamin will cause the other B vitamins to decrease.

-I'll try to avoid foods rich in iodine, sodium, and iron. I bodybuild, so I'll be on a high protein diet as well.

Its the start of my junior year in high school and the going will get tough. I promise to update weekly for at least a few months so we can all see whether micronutrients are a significant impact on acne.

-Eric

[Chloe646 0]

looks like you have a good program there...remember to drink LOTS of water and eat your vegetables haha!

[gymrat7676 0]

Vit e is fat soluble so i wouldn't over do it

[BronzeSurfer 0]

Week 1 -

Improvements are definitely showing. A few new ones have appeared (as is expected) but the older marks are fading quickly and there aren't any demeaning outbursts. My skin feels a little tighter after using the neutrogena SA wash. An added bonus is that my hair feels healthy as hell; its not as dry and rigid as when i first got home from hawaii.

I've been watching my diet, but with slight flexibility. Had a little bit of chocolate and spicy food mixed into my normal diet of mild-tasting food for the past few days.

Things are looking good!

-BronzeSurfer

Edit: To gymrat,

Im taking hydrolyzed vitamin E which is not fat-soluble, so there isn't any risk of overdose.

[BronzeSurfer 0]

Week 3 -

Things are looking great! My skin is not peeling at all anymore, and the acne has gone down by at least 50%. No whiteheads and barely any new formations. This feels totally great. I've been going out and having more fun, PLUS i've been working about 3 times harder than my previous year at school. I really encourage you guys to give this combination a try! Feel free to comment.

-Eric

[SweetJade1980 21]

Hey there. Mind sharing what form of zinc and the other supplements you are using?

Thanks =)

[BronzeSurfer 0]

Hey there. Mind sharing what form of zinc and the other supplements you are using?

Thanks =)

Yea I should probably update what I'm doing currently.

-Only an SA wash, whenever needed (1/day max). I stopped the Tazorac (.05%, didn't seem to help much)

-2 60mg Zinc Gluconate

-2 100mg Acidophilus

-2 400IU Vitamin E (water-soluble)

-1 B Complex and Vitamin C

-1 8000IU Vitamin A

They are a variety of brands but I bought them all from a local Walgreens, which has periodic buy one, get one free deals on brands like Nature's Made. I would not recommend any GNC product because they overprice their supplements.

I take all these at the end of each day, around 11pm - 12am with 2 glasses of water. Sometimes I get slight indigestion from the lack of food with the supplements, so it may help to eat some crackers beforehand.

I've never posted any of my methods before because they never provided stable results. I really believe that this combo does magic. Either that or I'm growing out of acne, which I am less sure of. My skin is extremely tolerant at the moment. I love good food, and eating some shellfish, chocolate, nuts, seaweed, turkey, and legumes once in a while has had minimal impact on my progress. The same goes for milk and fruit juice, which I am grateful for. For once, I can set this skin problem aside and focus on life .