I've had acne for many years from being about 8 years old (I'm now 41) and have tried everything from over the counter topical treatments, to prescribed creams, contraceptive pills, roaccutane, Proactive, herbal pills etc but I still continued to get breakouts and sore, dry skin. The cycle was always the same, I would get greasy pustules that would be inflamed and sore - when these would pop (or I would squeeze them - because really however hard to try to avoid this, sometimes it's the only relief), my skin would really dry, red and flaky, to the point where nothing would hydrate it.
To cut a long story short, I was also having lots of other health problems, one of which was bloating and stomach/bowel issues. Being fed up with that, I decided to pay to have some intolerance testing done. Expecting the results to show I had a problem with wheat, I was surprised that it came back with an intolerance to milk (and eggs to a lesser degree). I decided to cut out milk, yoghurts (which I was eating to be healthy!), ice cream and cheese. I noticed an almost immediate effect on my stomach problems but an added side bonus was that after a month or two my skin cleared up too! The pustules stopped developing and then hence the dry , flaky skin also stopped.
I played around with my diet after that and have found I am ok to drink Lactofree milk and use butter - probably because I only use a small amount of these - and I can eat a little bit of cheese without it causing stomach or skin problems. Ice cream and cream cause immediate problems with my stomach and skin and yoghurts too if I eat them more than once or twice a week.
So basically I try in the main to stay away from dairy as much as possible and just have the odd bit of milk or butter every day. My skin is much improved - I still get the occasional breakout when I'm run down but it's not chronic or constant, so I can cope. I still occasionally eat ice cream or cream (because I'm rubbish with willpower), but I always suffer afterwards, so it's really not worth it.
So, sorry for the long protracted post but I just wanted to say that despite doctors not necessarily backing going dairy free, it really does work for some in reducing acne. If you're worried about bone health, just take calcium and vitamin D supplements - I also recommend iron if you have dry skin. And for moisturiser, I now just use 100% nautral cocounut oil - the stuff you can buy from the supermarket for cooking is fine.
This might not work for all acne types but if you've not tried it yet, give it a go - it's cheaper and less painful than other treatments if nothing else! Probably allow a couple of months to see the full effect.
Good luck
good for you! I have had nothing short of miraculous results by eliminating dairy COMPLETELY from my diet. I am now 61 years old and have been plagued with acne most of my entire adult life. I went on Accutane when I was in my 30's. it helped a great deal, but did not prevent acne from returning some time later. my acne was extremely damaging to my skin and of course self-esteem/confidence. if someone ( a DOCTOR perhaps?) had said "look, it may not work, but try eliminating dairy from your life for a couple weeks, and see if it makes a difference" I would have had a very different life experience, to say the least.
last year I was starting to pay particular attention to my health, and my acne was something I wanted to try to tackle. I mean, for god's sake, 60 years old and still breaking out!!! I went to a dermatologist, who prescribed a couple topical items (clindamycin and benzoyl peroxide soap) and sent me on my way. frustrating because I already new these things would not work, esp for my cystic lesions which were the most unsightly and damaging in terms of scars.
in spring of last year I somehow came across the dairy-free diet (I 'm pretty sure here on acne.org) as a possible relief from acne, and I decided to give it a try. I immediately purged all dairy and dairy-related products from my fridge and made a commitment to check every label on groceries to make sure they had no dairy of any kind (whey, butter, buttermilk, milk, etc.). I mean I love milk, ice cream, butter, pizza, etc. but I hated my acne more. I was absolutely rigorous. it turns out the hormones that are in cows milk increase the production of fat in the skin thus causing a buildup that the body can not keep up with. these are natural hormones that cows produce for their young, NOT added hormones.
I noticed the difference almost immediately. I was having NO new breakouts and the ones that were already in progress progressed no further. the overall texture of my skin was smoother everywhere, not just in acne prone areas. the most significant thing was that my cystic lesions which were more or less chronic bumps beneath the skin surface around my ears and especially on my back, began to disappear. I didn't have a single new zit after I eliminated acne. AMAZING.
there have been a few occasions when I've given in to dairy, around the holidays for example, and have paid the price with an occasional zit, but really by comparison it acne is no longer a health concern of mine. now if only I could do something with the scars...
I just wanted to share this to give some hope to others, if at all possible.
ssl! -r.
@alligatorukReading your story, I'm pretty sure you and I have had the same exact skin haha! I'm 22, and have struggled with acne most of my life. Recently it's gotten a lot worse, I got cysts almost every day for the past few months. I did test lactose intolerant a few years ago, but it's only recently that I thought it might be the cause of my acne. I've been slowly weaning off of milk and cheese (my two highest dairy contributors).
I'm having SUCH a hard time staying away from dairy when I go out to eat, or when I snack though-- did you also cut out chocolate, and anything with cream in it? I'm not sure if I need to go that drastic, I have awful willpower haha so I've been trying to avoid it.