I am twenty years old. I no longer have 'acne', but I still get a handful of bad break outs every week, along with some mild acne on my forehead. It has been enough to give the illusion of really terrible skin because every time I break out, whether i pick at it or not, it always leaves a dark mark behind. This has been going on for years and I considered taking Accutane but my mom won't let me.
After doing some research... I've gathered that Accutane is essentially overdosing your body with some form of Vitamin A for a period of time, enough to change your oil glands. Then I went on to look at the effects of taking just Vitamin A capsules instead of Accutane. Most people who take Vitamin A seem to intentionally megadose on it, hoping to gain the same results as taking Accutane. The side effects seem really unappealing especially since I'm going back to school soon, and I need to have my health up to par to face this tough upcoming semester. So I was wondering if just taking Vitamin A daily within a healthy, reasonable dosage would do any good? I take other supplements including fish oil, vitamin E and C, and zinc. I take the zinc on and off.
Please help??! what's your input???
It won't hurt if, as you say, you don't megadose. You can also eat foods with high Vitamin A content http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/food-sources-of-vitamin-A.php It won't give you the same results as Accutane, but hope is not lost.
Zinc is good. Magnesium is also essential. A-E + K (potassium) are also good. There are Hair Skin and Nails formulas that are pretty great. I use Purvana.
You can also get topical Reitnoids (Vitamin A) OTC that have comparable but less intense/peeling effects as the Rx ones. TriAcneal is one that is pretty strong that I use cyclically (I take breaks so I can surprise my skin with it.) Mychelle makes Remarkable Retinol serum and Vitamin A plus serum, both of which are gentle and effective.