hi everyone,
i just wanted to add a few comments about my personal story with acne. i've had low to moderate acne since i was 12, however due to psychological reasons i would pick at my pimples consistently and turn them into inflamed boils that took weeks or months to heal. i was depressed because of my skin and even wanted to die on account of it. i hated myself for being unable to keep my hands away and for being so vain in caring about my face so much. the pimples that seemed to bother me most were those little ones that are not noticeable to others, but i could feel them under my skin. until i managed to get them out i was not at peace. i would get them out any way i could - if my fingers weren't supple enough, i'd use a needle, tweezers, a knife. then i'd have an ugly real pimple, but eventually, i'd be able to squeeze whatever white thing was in there, leaving just a wound. this made me feel better - knowing that it was "empty".
this was my life until i turned 26. at this time i started having massive bloating and very painful stomach aches when i ate certain things. i'd been eating a mostly "natural" vegetarian diet since i was 17, which consisted primarily of fresh veggies and fruits, and too a much lesser extent legumes, rice and bread. according to blood health markers i was healthy in every way, including my iron. but at 26 i started having these stomach issues and after some time i associated them with intake of gluten. for example, dark bread didn't give problems, nor did pasta when it was al dente. but pasta that soaked in the sauce overnight or pastries made from refined flour gave me a lot of stomach bloating and pain. i was feeling quite fed up with this pain, and just decided to stop everything. this meant no intake of gluten and wheat products. somehow, although i'm generally very undisciplined i maintained this diet. around month 3 i noticed an improvement in my skin. i hadn't stopped touching it, but i stopped getting new internal pimples (those kind that you feel but don't see).
since then, i've done several things. i've gone to a great esthetician who removed the internal pimples i had already. i'd done this before but it never really helped me, as the same day of the appointment i could already feel other pimples. however, since this visit to the esthetician 5 months ago, i've been more or less pimple free! and i've stopped attacking my skin!!!! i mean... i was a compulsive picker. it was an obsessive disorder that i could not control. i associate getting off gluten with the cessation of my acne and the improvement of my mood!
(in the photo i posted i'm not wearing make-up, but the lighting is a bit dark so you can't see my scars so much, however i also managed to reduce them since this summer by doing several rounds of spongilla (бадга in russian), a freshwater sponge that grows in lakes in ukraine, commonly used there for treating pigmentation. besides i apply squalene oil daily to my skin, or weleda baby face cream when i need more moisture).
p.s. at the same time as removing gluten (& wheat, rye, barley, oats etc) from my diet, i also avoided (though not entirely) corn and soy as these are other potential triggers. when i go to mexico next month i will add corn to my diet and see the reaction... till then i've just felt no need to complicate things 
things that i have found DO NOT give me acne are cheese and chocolate! although i do have a tiny breakout when i eat nutella, i wouldn't call it acne because it's the kind of 'pimples' that have nothing inside and go away the next day, more like a skin irritation that a little child might get on her face.
of course, this kind of diet means that cooking/preparing your own food is necessary... perhaps lucky because i enjoy cooking more than restaurants :}
i felt very hopeless and disgusting for many years. since i started eating gluten/wheat free i've felt so much better. even the stresses of my exams and thesis were not overwhelming to me!
so if you can relate, consider a gluten/wheat free diet.
best to you....
hi everyone,
i just wanted to add a few comments about my personal story with acne. i've had low to moderate acne since i was 12, however due to psychological reasons i would pick at my pimples consistently and turn them into inflamed boils that took weeks or months to heal. i was depressed because of my skin and even wanted to die on account of it. i hated myself for being unable to keep my hands away and for being so vain in caring about my face so much. the pimples that seemed to bother me most were those little ones that are not noticeable to others, but i could feel them under my skin. until i managed to get them out i was not at peace. i would get them out any way i could - if my fingers weren't supple enough, i'd use a needle, tweezers, a knife. then i'd have an ugly real pimple, but eventually, i'd be able to squeeze whatever white thing was in there, leaving just a wound. this made me feel better - knowing that it was "empty".
this was my life until i turned 26. at this time i started having massive bloating and very painful stomach aches when i ate certain things. i'd been eating a mostly "natural" vegetarian diet since i was 17, which consisted primarily of fresh veggies and fruits, and too a much lesser extent legumes, rice and bread. according to blood health markers i was healthy in every way, including my iron. but at 26 i started having these stomach issues and after some time i associated them with intake of gluten. for example, dark bread didn't give problems, nor did pasta when it was al dente. but pasta that soaked in the sauce overnight or pastries made from refined flour gave me a lot of stomach bloating and pain. i was feeling quite fed up with this pain, and just decided to stop everything. this meant no intake of gluten and wheat products. somehow, although i'm generally very undisciplined i maintained this diet. around month 3 i noticed an improvement in my skin. i hadn't stopped touching it, but i stopped getting new internal pimples (those kind that you feel but don't see).
since then, i've done several things. i've gone to a great esthetician who removed the internal pimples i had already. i'd done this before but it never really helped me, as the same day of the appointment i could already feel other pimples. however, since this visit to the esthetician 5 months ago, i've been more or less pimple free! and i've stopped attacking my skin!!!! i mean... i was a compulsive picker. it was an obsessive disorder that i could not control. i associate getting off gluten with the cessation of my acne and the improvement of my mood!
(in the photo i posted i'm not wearing make-up, but the lighting is a bit dark so you can't see my scars so much, however i also managed to reduce them since this summer by doing several rounds of spongilla (бадга in russian), a freshwater sponge that grows in lakes in ukraine, commonly used there for treating pigmentation. besides i apply squalene oil daily to my skin, or weleda baby face cream when i need more moisture).
p.s. at the same time as removing gluten (& wheat, rye, barley, oats etc) from my diet, i also avoided (though not entirely) corn and soy as these are other potential triggers. when i go to mexico next month i will add corn to my diet and see the reaction... till then i've just felt no need to complicate things
things that i have found DO NOT give me acne are cheese and chocolate! although i do have a tiny breakout when i eat nutella, i wouldn't call it acne because it's the kind of 'pimples' that have nothing inside and go away the next day, more like a skin irritation that a little child might get on her face.
of course, this kind of diet means that cooking/preparing your own food is necessary... perhaps lucky because i enjoy cooking more than restaurants :}
i felt very hopeless and disgusting for many years. since i started eating gluten/wheat free i've felt so much better. even the stresses of my exams and thesis were not overwhelming to me!
so if you can relate, consider a gluten/wheat free diet.
best to you....
Thats great. I am happy you got clear.
A lot of people are cutting gluten, not just for acne but for general health as well.
I think a lot of people can struggle when they realise how many foods gluten is in, quite shocking actually.
Keep up the great work.
Hi there all, I just registered just to reply to this post and hope it helps other ppl too.
In March 2010, I got quite ill.....it knocked me out for a while and got ill 3 times again that year (quite badly).
The previous 18 months, I was on a protein diet (stopped 3mths before I got ill)....not sure why I stopped but at that at that time, I looked and felt the best I have ever been (even scarring was much less noticeable.)...so why??
Once i stopped the protein diet, I started having an overactive bladder again... (I've had this problem nearly all my life, but seems to come and go. Doctors said I was making it up.)
This seems to be the cause of my breakouts, right up to now being 35yrs old. This is not normal.
So tried to find out what was wrong. Started a vegetarian diet. (which is amazing for the mind!)... but around 6wks in, had major breakouts again (coinciding with severe frequent urination....the worst I have ever had!) Why??
I knew that this was the cause of my breakout (I believe cos my body was dehydrating and my skin was getting very dry) but could not pin point to what was triggering it.
Anyway....this past month has been just a blessing.
What I could narrow it down to were Beers & Pasta. As a vegetarian, you eat more pasta & breads. What do beer, pastas & breads have in common?? Gluten.
Google: Gluten & Urination.....Bingo!
So have been on a Gluten free diet this past month, and my face has cleared and frequent urination urges have stopped too.
I reckon this has been my problem since I was a teenager with really bad breakouts.
So basically wanted to let young people know to try this diet and see how you go. (also stop drinking milk & cheese.)
On another note, I've lost a bit of muscle thru being vegetarian this past 5mths, but I can tell you all that I have never been more at peace in life and actually have more energy. (All this without any meditation or much exercise.)
But being Gluten Free brought that to another level, and my mind has never been clearer and focused. I had cloudy mind for so long, and that is a major obstacle for ppl who want to be successful.
If going thru 20yrs of this to help a load of ppl with my experience, then that's God's plan and I accept.