Hey. So I want to start a topic where people say what has, and hasn't worked for them, or things you really know after experimenting break you out. Some of you will know me, I started on the natural road about 3 years ago but have been completely serious for about 2 years now. My severe acne was cleared within months, but I have never been completely acne free. I still get breakouts around my mouth/jaw.
I've been looking more into probiotics, candida supplements again.. different enzymes.. but Id really like to get to the bottom, although I think that may be impossible. A strict healthy diet is absolutely great for your overall health and skin, but as far as curing acne it won't, it will just help it a lot. We have hormone problems that obviously science has not been able to figure out with acne prone people, but really you can be the healthiest person in the world, and if your acne prone its not going to matter, you will still get breakouts. The good thing is that breakouts dont NEARLY effect me at all as they used to. Had some experiences over the summer and met some really awesome people who changed my view on skin problems. Because in the end stress is the biggest killer of all, and I know a lot of you are very stressed.
There has to come to a point where you literally accept having not perfect skin. You cannot allow it to hinder your entire existence. It's hard. I know. Really hard. But it has to be done. Literally do not give a fuck about breaking out lol, it will help you 100x more then stressing and being bummed about it ever will. I know its cliche but your sand is always running.. you will die one day and hopefully not be like wow I really let a skin problem effect me that much? And seriously people don't care about skin problems as much as you think, YOU CARE more then anyone else. You have to rid those negative thoughts and emotions and be confident, your personality/mood is a lot louder then any breakout.
Next I want to discuss diet. This can seriously be dangerous. I went through an obsession and I read threads on here and see sooo many going down that terrible path. For all you males out there, stop with the raw vegan shit. Your weight will wither away and your health as well.. from what I have learned its literally as bad as just starving yourself if you have weight problems. You need to eat. Organic rice, beans, eggs, lean meats, get back to being a normal sized man. I have gained back about 30 lbs since I got off raw vegan and I finally feel freakin normal again. I am 6ft and at one point was down to 140. Im at 170 now and feel like a completely different person. Always keep your overall health mental and physical number one priority over getting rid of your acne. That can be a dangerous road that just leads to a depressing lifestyle. Don't lie to yourself saying its great, because you know its not lol.
As far as supplements I have tried all under the sun, and the best in the end are Zinc and B5. B5 is I believe essential for acne prone, I take 1000mg a day, haven't had any side effects of hair loss or anything either. I have tried GTF chromium in the past too which really seemed to help so Im looking into that again. Probiotics always broke me out so Im on the fence about trying those again. Digestive enzymes have always been great, dont know how but they seem to get rid of breakouts very fast, if you ever get cysts them seem to be the all powerful cyst killer too.
As far as washing skin, I still believe less is more. I shave with an electric, and wipe my entire face with distilled water/acv. Best thing I have tried for scars/red marks is rubbing a potato on them, seriously works. Aloe from plant works just as well but is sloppy, potato and then better yet after rub a cucumber on there for double effect.
Change your pillow case too! You have no idea the kind of gunk that builds up on pillow cases. I change mine at least once a week. But yeah Im still trying to figure out these random breakouts I get around my mouth.. so if anyone has any additional advice thatd be cool. Peace 
But yeah Im still trying to figure out these random breakouts I get around my mouth.. so if anyone has any additional advice thatd be cool. Peace
Not eating dairy, non-fruit sugar, and grains and taking L-glutamine, a few sources of probiotics, and spirulina virtually cleared me. I'm also focusing on nutritional sources of vitamin C and zinc for faster healing of existing spots (it really does work). Of course, routine exercise, water intake, and good sleep are always important.
The icing on the cake that has completely stopped breakouts has been not drinking water within 45 minutes to 1 hour of eating. Like you, I get seemingly random breakouts adjacent to my lip and below the corners of my mouth, but since I started separating my food intake from beverage intake, I've been totally clear. I drink a LOT of water, and I think I was diluting my gastric juices by consuming several cups every time I ate.
Hey bud, yeah I haven't had dairy in years or non-sugar fruit, still eat good organic versions of brown rice, basmati, rose etc. I took glutamine for like a year and stopped just recently.. and which probiotics are ya taking? I tried spirulina some time back and it broke me out insanely. And yeah not drinking before or after meals is good Ive been doin that for years now too.
Hey bud, yeah I haven't had dairy in years or non-sugar fruit, still eat good organic versions of brown rice, basmati, rose etc. I took glutamine for like a year and stopped just recently.. and which probiotics are ya taking? I tried spirulina some time back and it broke me out insanely. And yeah not drinking before or after meals is good Ive been doin that for years now too.
I drink retail dairy kefir and rotate through supplements, along with enjoying the occasional kombucha. I'm hoping to start doing water kefir soon, because it sounds great.
I'm going to disagree with Bearishly on the not drinking while eating thing. I did that religiously for weeks, not drinking any liquids within two hours of eating, and I was eating healthier than I ever have in my life. No dairy, no refined sugar, no grains, etc. It did NOTHING for me. I'm sure it does work for some people if sluggish digestion is your problem. I do still 100% avoid refined sugar and gluten, but I have reintroduced some (good quality) dairy (no milk but cheese, sour cream, and full fat organic yogurt) and haven't noticed worsening breakouts from that either.
The things that I think are making the biggest difference for me out of everything I've been trying for the last several months:
-Folic Acid
-JUICING. I start every day with a glass, usually consisting of spinach and/or kale, apple, celery and cucumber. I can't recommend this enough, not only for your skin, but for your overall health. There are studies that suggest that vegetable juicing effectively prevents/fights cancer and other disease. Do your research, though. You can't mix fruits with vegetables. There are differing opinions, but most experts seem to say that apples are a neutral fruit, so they can be juiced with veggies. I tend to rely on a variety of vegetables plus one apple, and it's always delicious.
-Apple Cider Vinegar. I do drink it occasionally, but I think it makes the biggest difference being applied topically.
-Blackstrap Molasses. I'm mostly taking this for anemia. Not sure if it's helping my skin necessarily, but it is something I'm doing regularly enough that it could be a factor.
Ha funny you say that I have been researching juicers the last couple of days and about to pull the trigger on the $99 one on amazon, has a ton of great reviews. I used to do green smoothies all the time but never have done juicing. Id like to start off my day with a mix that will stabilize blood sugar throughout the day, which i believe effects my skin a lot along with the whole hormones thing.. cucumber, celery, parsley, beet, carrot, cilantro and ginger. That might just keep me completely clear, thatd be pretty cool lol.. but yeah i can keep updating on here how the juicing is going with me too..
ACV on the skin is great. Its funny because I used to use it all the time, but usually straight, and I would notice a worsen in redness, and after a while stopped it.. then a couple months ago was reading some other forum and people were saying to make sure to dilute it, one of those less is more things, well Ive been using is diluted and its working so much better then straight. I even dilute it pretty good now too like 75% water 25% ACV seems to be perfect for my skin.
For all you males out there, stop with the raw vegan shit. Your weight will wither away and your health as well.. from what I have learned its literally as bad as just starving yourself if you have weight problems. You need to eat.
Lately i've been eating only raw foods, and it's the best i've felt in my entire life. One thing to note...it isn't vegan. I eat raw fish, raw grass fed beef, and organic raw free range eggs. Along with that i drink green smoothies loaded with nutrient dense fruits and vegetables. I also consume plenty of healthy fats in the form of virgin coconut oil and avocado.
The raw food diet doesn't have to be a starvation diet. Only if you make it one.
Just making sure people are aware that the raw option doesn't mean vegan. My meals are still primarily fruits/vegetables, with a side of meat/fish/raw eggs. Proportion wise. I'm still making sure i get my daily caloric intake needed to maintain body weight while doing this
Interesting. While I was raw I was always still eating at least 3500 calories, a lot of the time close to 5000 and never gaining a single pound. I would eat a ton of fat through oils, nuts, seeds, avocados, etc. still never gained weight. Very interesting your eating the raw meat and fish, I looked into that myself but decided it wasn't worth the risk of catching something.
What is your height and weight? How much have you lost/gained/stayed the same since raw? How long have you been raw?
I'm not very concerned about catching anything myself. But this is because i make sure to support quality foods like grass fed, free roaming cattle. Also i feel like my immune system could handle anything thrown at it. People are scared to death of salmonella, yet there's a one in 30,000 chance you're going to get an egg with it. And those odds are greatly lessened by only consuming raw organic eggs from free roaming chickens.
I've only been raw for a couple months. Height 5 10', weight 140. I have never been able to gain weight unless it was times when i was eating like complete ass. And that was long ago. My weight has always been around 140. During my worst eating habits, i weighed 150. And that was probably 6 years ago.
Were you wanting to gain weight? In the form of fat or muscle? Seems like a stupid question, but seriously. I'm a strong believer in the idea that the healthier you eat the more efficiently your body can burn the calories, as well as utilize nutrients. I think it'd be harder to gain fat weight if you're eating a pure diet such as a raw food/gluten free diet.
Everything is functioning so much better internally, that in order to gain the weight, i feel very strongly that it'd have to be through muscle. Now...i suppose you could eat a jar of coconut oil a day and see gains in fat weight.
Your thoughts?
Yeah your exactly where I was at. I thought that was all gravy but got to a point of f this shit lol, I can't stand being a small guy. I was a muscular guy in high school and wanted to get back to that. Ive gained back the weight and feel completely different, way more confident, energetic, sharp, and at ease. Feel like a man again lol. Way better with the ladies too haha. I've read a bunch of things on how so many raw people end up with some serious health problems too, health problems, decaying teeth, hair loss, shortened life spans. And yes Ive read both sides of the argument, I do believe there is a lot of good in raw. But in this day and age being a male and completely raw in my full opinion is wrong. You will more then likely phase out if as well. Good luck to ya though bro as long as your happy and feelin good that's all that matters, just don't lie to yourself.
For sure. You and no one else will get any pressure from me to go back to or begin a raw food diet. Why do something you don't believe in?
I've said this before in other discussions, that i think most people who end up with health issues while going raw, or even vegan, don't know what they're doing. And this isn't aimed at you. They read about some new diet, don't research everything you need to incorporate into the diet, and end up starving themselves.
Many others straight up don't like it, and are convinced it will kill you. Then you look at a 70 year old woman who's eaten raw almost her entire life, and who looks like she's 50, and say...'wow. i think i'll try what you're trying' And then you look at others who heal themselves of cancer through raw foods.
Dr. Max Gerson healed thousands of patients in the 30's who were sent home to die by the medical industry, telling them there was nothing more they could do for them. And his treatments focused on supplying the body with only raw, organic vegetable/fruit juices (as well as whole form and flax seed oil), liver flushes, and coffee enemas. And there's quite a few personal cancer reversal testimonials you can find on youtube describing their solution to cancer through raw food. Unfortunately, most cancer patients aren't made aware that it's even an option, as all non-AMA practices are illegal in the U.S. I could go on and on about that issue...
I'm a firm believer in seeing results as opposed to reading a study, which may or may not have been altered to fit the needs of the people conducting said study. Not all results are great when discussing raw food or veganism, but again, i'm convinced most people who try it don't know what they're doing
Interesting. While I was raw I was always still eating at least 3500 calories, a lot of the time close to 5000 and never gaining a single pound. I would eat a ton of fat through oils, nuts, seeds, avocados, etc. still never gained weight. Very interesting your eating the raw meat and fish, I looked into that myself but decided it wasn't worth the risk of catching something.
What is your height and weight? How much have you lost/gained/stayed the same since raw? How long have you been raw?
If your carb intake was low then that is likely why. The body processes good fats and protein very well, if that was your primary energy source most of it would be used up.
Also have to take into account how active you are and body type.
You are likely to be within the Ectomorph and Mezomorph body types. Basically don't store much fat and naturally slim.
My body type is endomorph. I can put on muscle fairly quickly but i also store fat very easily
Cool another score for juicing haha, I used to make my own kefir out of raw organic goat milk I got from a farm, used to drink a lot too about a quart a day. Didn't really help my skin much but allowed me to gain weight.
Back to you guys, yeah my carb intake was low but I don't see how you could have a high carb intake while raw. Even eating pounds and pounds of fruits and veggies your going to have minimal carbs. Unless you eat a lot of bananas which I was. Seemed everything would just burn right through, yes Im naturally a very low fat person, I have muscle but always been about 10% or less body fat, while raw and still working out and doing martial arts I was probably like 6% lol.
And to fatal goose Ive read those same articles, it is great stuff, Im glad people can heal their serious health problems through raw. Again whatever works lol. Ya your right though people definitely don't do enough research, I used to spend hours researching so much about diets and nutrition, so I was well informed going into raw, knew how to do it but the weight loss was just too much for me. I could literally eat over 5000k in top organic raw foods everyday and never gain weight.
