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Vaping Caused me Cystic Acne

 
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(@mamam26)

Posted : 01/09/2017 7:17 pm

Hi all.

I simply just want to get my story out.

A bit of a background. I am a 28 year old female. I have had acne since probably 11 or 12. In my teens I had tried everything, antibiotics, creams. I have been on acutane twice, once as a teenager and once when I was about 21 I believe. Both times it worked amazing, but my acne always came back. I never had cystic acne though.

I quit smoking for the first time about 3 years ago from switching to E-cigarettes. It was so easy to quit and I actually enjoyed vaping. At the same time I made some pretty big diet changes as well. I can't remember how quickly my acne got worse but it did. Big time. I started getting cystic acne all on my chin area and some on my forward, and down my neck badly. At the time there weren't many reports online from people claiming theyhad bad breakouts after vaping so I thought it was quit zits or from my diet changes. I vaped for a whole year, so at this point I knew it wasn't quit zits. But eventually I got fed up and started smoking again, and my face went back to the way it usually was. Mild acne, a few breakouts during my menstrual cycle.

So I really wanted to vape again and quit smoking, so I decided to try it again, this time with no other changes in my life. Yet again, I broke out with cystic acne, exact same as the other time. Quit vaping and back to cigarettes I went, and my face went back to normal.

My face had actually cleared up a lot after that, I found some new products that I really enjoyed and worked well for my skin. I smoked cigarettes for just over a year until wanting to quit again.

Just this passed November I decided to give vaping a go again. But this time I was going to cut out the pg (Propylene Glycol) I did that and quit smoking November 20/2016. My face slowly started breaking out again and each day I think it's getting better but then it's gets worse. Painful, itchy cystic acne all over. Before this I was almost completely acne free. But I realized my ejuice still has pg in it. None of the stores around me sell 100% Vg juice. I thought It was cause it said max Vg. But I guess that doesn't mean it has no pg. (?)

I'm worried it may be nicotine. Nicotine can cause acne and I've smoked since I've had acne. Makes me wonder if all these years it's been because of nicotine.

I like to think people are not very judgemental over acne but if anyone sees me without makeup I can see it all over their face, "Is this girl on drugs, or dirty" I'm not a teenager so it's not as accepted for me to have acne. People think acne is ugly or people who wear makeup are not naturally pretty. I wild love to be able to walk my dog, run up to the store, go to my moms for dinner or answer my door without makeup on. Which I have and get the looks. I have been very locked up in my house recently trying too give my face a bit of rehab. Been days without wearing makeup and trying to recover my face but nothing is helping. I have very dry skin with acne. It's extremely hard to treat it. I also have very pale skin and a lot of dark red scarring which makes my whole appearance that much worse. I'm pale with discolouration, dark scars and big bright cystic acne. I look like death.
I know it may sound simple like just quit smoking and vaping. But it is not that easy. I'm going to try and cut back on my nicotine level with the vaping but I'm getting desperate and my skin just keeps getting worse and worse.

I should add, I don't drink any soda or juice. I drink water, tea and one cup of coffee a day.

I just wanted to share share my story and struggles. Maybe someone can relate or has dealt with this as well.





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(@stevejakes)

Posted : 01/31/2017 6:24 am

Hi there I found your post this morning and had to sign up and reply just to say you're not alone. I've read hundreds of reports of people having different sorts of breakouts from vaping but your story is pretty much identical to mine.

I'm a 25 year old male and I quit smoking a year ago and moved on to vaping. I had quite bad acne and rosace in my teens but with metrogel and azaelic acid and some diet changes (mostly avoiding caffeine amd sweet stuff) it started to clear up. I have poor circulation so felt the need to quit smoking. It was all fine to start with but I started getting a few more spots than usual about two months in. Before I knew it my rosacea had flared up and I was getting awful cystic acne all across the t-zone and hundreds of blackheads across my nose. I also found myself regularly getting styes on both eyelids. Sometime one or two a week which left my eyelids sore and swollen.

The spots seemed to be worse around my mouth and predominantly on the side I exhale. After doing some reading I found a lot of other people experiencing similar breakouts so i bought a new vape and switched to 85% vg. I felt good about it and thought the spots were going to dissappear but it didn't seem to make a difference. Ive started smoking again and after three weeks the acne has all but cleared up and the blackheads have gone.

I know exactly what you mean about getting self conscious because of the way you look. I work outside and have to see countless people on a daily basis. I feel like they look at me and make judgments and assumptions about my lifesttle based on the way I look. I get anxious and frustrated about it and that just pushes me to smoke to try and relieve the stress even though I am well aware that it won't help me in the long run.

I do not want to smoke but find it extremely hard to quit. With the vaporizer I found a less detrimental way to satisfy my urge to smoke and it seems so unfair that such a godsend has such a negative effect on me when it seems fine for so many others.

I'm still trying to work out whether it's the flavouring, the vg/pg or the nicotine. I'm considering trying to get some unflavoured juice and vaping it for a while to see if the spots return.

Any help I can give or any advances I make I'll post back here and let you know. Good luck I hope you find something that works for you.

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(@mr-brownstone)

Posted : 02/07/2017 3:53 am

Hi guys.

I've never really thought about it, but my acne does seem to have gotten worse since i started vaping a few years ago. I'm unsure of the pg/vg levels of my current juice (Hangsen Ry4) but will check when I get it of work.

have been cutting gluten and wheat over the last week and I am finding my acne is better.

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(@franciscam)

Posted : 03/01/2017 7:02 pm

I have been having this problem now, too. In the past, I always had painful, itchy cystic acne when vaping, but I thought it was "life as normal" acne for me. Well.

During that time, I also was diagnosed with a milk allergy and I stopped eating any form of dairy whatsoever. My face went from having 20+ cysts on it at a given time to only having 2 or 3. I was really happy! The only acne meds I use are topical Clindamycin/BP and retin-a micro gel 0.1%. Oral Clinda does nothing for me but topical has given me an improvement. I even got to where I have no cysts.

Well, that was during a 6 week period where I'd stopped vaping because it was more convenient to buy generic nicorette at Target and chew that. We also have a new law in Pennsylvania that makes me not want to vape outside at the bus stop while I wait for my son to come home anymore. So the gum was nice to have in situations like that anyway.

Basically, what I'm finding is that max VG e-liquids seem to inflame my cysts. You can try Virgin Vapors organic VG-only e-liquids if they ship to your state or if e-liquid shops in your area carry them (you could always request if they don't). The flavor in them kicks ass. Nicorette does not seem to give me any issues, though. Once you get over the gas bubbles it makes in your tummy to chew all that gum (as in, once your body gets used to it and you don't get that side effect very strong anymore), it's pretty great. I noticed that CVS generic is way more expensive than the Up&Up version, though, so shop around.

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(@johnnyh76)

Posted : 03/03/2017 12:16 am

This may be the first time I've ever been driven to respond to a post like this, but I'm struggling with the same EXACT issue.

I'm 40 and suffer the occasional breakout (that was never too big a deal)...until I quit smoking 4 months ago and started vaping full time. Since then I've had cystic acne breakouts along my chin under my beard. Guess I'm lucky that the beard hides it a bit, but these breakouts are huge.

Last month I saw my dermatologist and didn't mention the vaping as I didn't think it was a culprit. She treated me with shots, lotions and medications and NOTHING helped. So I log on tonight and started to see all these links about vaping and cystic acne. Well damn if that doesn't make perfect sense.

I workout regularly (5-6 times per week), eat extremely clean and drink only water. The only thing that makes sense is the vaping.

Heres the issue; do I quit vaping and go back to smoking? Do I mess with the PG/VG ratio...and play the 'wait and see game'?

Ive tried nicotine gum in the past and nothing works as well as vaping, but suffering with cystic acne just won't cut it for me.

This is really disheartening. Just plain sucks.
But im thankful that you guys shared your stories to help me connect the dots.

Any updates or suggestions since you've posted? Thoughts?

Thanks and good luck to you guys.

John

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(@busbyred)

Posted : 04/07/2017 2:18 pm

Hi All,

I just registered an account to write in this thread, as soon as I saw this topic I thought WOW that's me all over. 

I suffered acne from the age of 13 up to 20 and then it just stopped... I would still get the odd pimple here or there which was fine...

I'm now 28 and vaping for 1 and a half years now, I haven't touched a cigarette since then. However, I have developed extremely bad skin, pimples etc. I don't drink sugary drinks, or eat chocolate etc. I might eat a mcdonalds once every 2-3 weeks, and have a few pints of Guinness at the weekend. My food in take is always clean. I drink a minimum of 3 litres of water a day..

I got so frustrated with my skin I went to a dermatologist and she asked me in great detail what exactly has changed within the last 1 year or so. I went through every possibility, and there had been no change at all in my diet etc. The only significant change I have in my body is that I now vape regularly every day for the past year or so.

I know this sounds completely bizarre, but I'm at the point of waking up some days and feeling almost depressed when I see my face in the mirror. It makes no sense, this bad skin just started within a month or two of me starting vaping..

Seeing other peoples posts is slightly comforting (I'm not going crazy).

I absolutely do NOT want to go back onto tobacco... But I'm  honestly feeling depressed over my face.. It's a Friday night and I'm in my bedroom, all my friends are out and yet again I had to make an excuse..

Has anybody had luck trying 100% VG? I have heard of some people saying I might have a PG allergy.. I just don't know what to do really.. It is so frustrating to be 28 and back having the same skin I did when I was 15 years old :(

 

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(@mbergeron0707)

Posted : 06/09/2017 1:48 am

I came across this thread & signed up specifically to be able to respond. I can't believe I've finally found others that have had the same exact experience as I've been having. I thought I was going out of my mind!
I started smoking at the age of about 21 or so. I quit a few times through the years only to go right back to it. The last period of time that I actively smoked was for about 7 years but unlike before, I seemingly could not quit. Not with patches, gum, lozenges, nothing worked not even Chantix. (A horrific experience with that but that's for another time) I've personally never dealt with or had to struggle with any type of acne in my life, not even as a teenager.... Good genes I suppose. I've had the occasional pimple or a small breakout here & there from working out & sweating but nothing severe. I finally, with the help of vaping, was able to quit smoking after trying everything with no success. I began vaping about 8 months ago & for the first month or two, it was great!

About a month into vaping I started getting large & deep painful itchy pimples on my back up near my shoulders. I hadn't changed my diet or routine in anyway so I wasn't too sure as to what was causing it. I began using salicylic acid cleansers in the hope that it would help, it didn't. I then went to benzoyl peroxide in conjunction with exfoliating, still no significant changes. At this time, I still hadn't been able to identify what exactly could've been causing it. The cystic acne continued to worsen & has spread all over the entirety of my back, shoulders & now even up upon my neck. I began thinking that it could be the vaping, due to the ingredients, so I slightly began to curve how often I Vaped but it still did nothing. I then purchased juice with lower amounts of PG & within 4-5 days began noticing significant changes & the acne began to slow down a bit. That lasted for about 3 weeks & then the cystic acne came flooding back. Now it's covering my back, shoulders & neck SEVERELY. I wake up every morning with new ones & the old ones have left scarring. I don't know what to do really. I'm not entirely sure I'm ready to quit completely but it's looking like I'm going to have to choose one or the other. I guess it really does prove there is alot that we still don't know about the effects of vaping.

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(@dreamcrazy)

Posted : 07/01/2017 3:55 am

Hi, just made account to reply to this.

So im 11 months cigarette free after 18 years smoking (im 30). Never had issues with acne as a teenager or even in my 20s. About a month after quitting and vaping CONSTANTLY, i started getting massive cysts on my chin, a huge one on my cheek which got so close to my eye I was worried i would lose it. Dont want to write a novel but nothing has changed in my life except the vape. Im 2 months into doxycycline, no change in fact i still have little ones pop up everywhere. They have gone hard and look like they are permanent. Went back to dermo yesterday and hes put me on accutane. Really nervous about starting this, hes put me on the lower dose at 10mg rather than 20mg i think maybe because my weight (50kg) or because I was nervous about starting this. I already knew what it was when he suggested it from my previous research. I told him i am a constant vaper and my mum is convinced its the vape. He didn't think it was the vape and said its becoming more and more common for people my age to experience outbreaks like this. My diet, exercise routine hasnt changed.. the only thing thats changed in my life is giving up smoking, and starting the vaping. Its been an absolute nightmare to the point i stayed home for a week just to give my face a break , but also because it was so bad and just too embarrasing to go out. Saturday night and im home because of it (not a hard partier, but normally would have a friend over on the weekends)

Im not being very thorough here, creams im using is azclear, crystacide, and normal nivea lotion. It makes me look so dirty and unclean when I am actualy boreline OCD. Just posting in here to add me to the list of getting severe and i mean severe acne /cysts from vaping. First i though tit was a staph infection, but these are so isolated to the chin mainlythat ive been told this is not staph. Drinking so much water incase its dehydration, i dont know but it sucks!! Cigarettes are disgusting to me now I can't even have one, and I can't afford it either. I was a chain smoker and never ever planned on quitting and was estatic when this vaping worked. I vape mainly watermelon and menthol. Ive just gone down from 12mg to 3. Face is scarred. Just gutted.

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(@vaper)

Posted : 08/03/2017 8:09 am

Hi , I joined this forum just to get it out there how I don't really suffer from acne but did start to do so after vaping but managed to solve it. For the first couple of months it did not affect my skin, then I started getting really bad spots on my face. I first tried cutting out the PG, so got some 90vg/10pg liquid. This didn't solve my skin issues but another side effect of vaping was insomnia and restless legs at night which that stopped. So I really was on the verge of giving up and by chance my tank kept coming off and spilling the ejuice. I got a new one and hey presto my spots virtually stopped after a day or so and have stayed virtually clear since. Basically I think that it may just be the coil not heating to the right temperature or some other damage (I did wash it out with water at one point). Anyway problem sorted, get a new tank and see if it makes a difference. Hope this helps.

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(@randydicarlo)

Posted : 08/08/2017 5:32 pm

I have put a lot of thought into this as well.. have had mild acne since I was around 13 but ever since I got into vaping a few years back my acne has gotten way out of hand.. I have tried retin-a , prescription medication, BP, vitamins,changing diet,hitting the gym 5 times a week,cut out soda and dairy,you name it... retin-a helped but as soon as I stopped using it , my acne came back with vengeance..... considering putting down the vape for a week and see if my skin gets any better... sucks because like was said previously, I do not want to go back to smoking cigarettes.. stuck in between a rock and a hard place...

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(@livelyrr)

Posted : 09/10/2017 9:40 am

I also registered just to post in this thread. Vaping has caused me SOOO many skin issues, at first cystic acne (from which I have one permanent scar) then just plain bad-looking skin. Quitting vaping (even if I start smoking regular cigs) results in me getting a nice rosey complexion, sometimes in 24 hours or less. 2-3 Days of hardcore vaping and my face looks pale and just unhealthy, with ugly tiny little red veins, JUST LIKE the faces of basically all people you will find on youtube when you type something like "vape reviews" or whatever. Red specks, pale complexion, just awful. I think nicotine combined with glycols just plugs up those tiny blood vessels and they fill with disgusting dead unoxygenated blood. Smoking definitely doesn't do the same to such an effect, maybe because it's easy to be satisfied with only a few cigs a day, whereas vaping you can do constantly and reach daily nicotine intakes of 50+ milligrams and also many milliliters of glycerine or PG. That's a LOT.

Other side effects of vaping for me: Brain fog, fatigue, general "wired" feeling, bad voice(weak) and social anxiety. Decreased sexual function also.

I dare you to find me a hardcore vaper on youtube who's skin looks good. They don't exist. They are all ugly, old people with weird bumps on their faces, wearing wife beaters, even their hair looks bad. Or girls with a ton of makeup, but still visibly bad complexion. Not acne, but just bad complexion. I bet their skin will improve many times in only a week if they stopped sucking on their amazingly healthy vape box or even if they got back to regular cigarettes.

If you experience skin issues from vaping, NO DOUBT it's the vaping. Don't fool yourself into thinking it's your diet, you need to drink more water, or cut out the PG, the flavors or anything else. As soon as the idea that it's the vaping that's making your skin worse pops up, you are probably right and will have to stop vaping or accept having bad skin.

Here are popular, but 100% wrong opinions you will receive on e-cig forums if you claim vaping is causing you any side effect (including acne):

1) Oooh, you are just dehydrated! Vaping dehydrates you! Drink a gazillion gallons of water and you'll be fine. Guess what, it doesn't. There's no way it would, because vapor cannot remove significant amounts of water from your body. You get dry throat, which makes you more thirsty, so in fact you're more likely to over-hydrate when vaping to soothe your drying throat, then the reverse.

2) You are clearly just allergic to PG! Just switch your juices around or get a new one, there must be something wrong with the juice you are currently smoking if you are experiencing any health issues. Well, guess what, inhaling something you are allergic to won't cause you a zit in 2 days or give you weird symptoms an hour later, it will make your throat close up and you'll die. I have tried like 30 different juices, all of them made my skin bad and gave me brain fog. And yes, even 100% VG and even unflavored juice.

3) How dare you blame vaping! We all know it's great for you. In fact, you must be a person paid by the tobacco industry to spread misinformation, since you are claiming something that's clearly amazing for your health is causing you bad symptoms. Any health issue you experience with vaping is actually a SIDE EFFECT OF QUITTING SMOKING! Yea, that's right - that headache and dizziness you develop every time you pickup up your amazingly healthy vape pen is actually caused from withdrawal from cigarettes. And the acne? Well, guess what - we, vapers, even have a term to justify why our bad skin is not caused by the vape, so that we can keep vaping that sweet healthy fog. It's called QUIT ZITS. So just vape on without any worries. You have tightness in your chest? Guess what, this means that your lungs are HEALING. Not only is it not a side effect of your healthy e-cig, it's actually a sign that your health is IMPROVING! PLEASE...

I'm so done with vaping...It has caused me nothing but bad side effects. To give a bit of background, I smoked about 5-10 cigs a day. Some days a pack, many days zero. Got into vaping 2 years go to completely eliminate the cigarettes. But the many side effects it gives me, combined with it's extremely high addictive-ness, plus the weird vaping communities that are so convinced(defensively so) that it's harmless have really made me hate it and I'm DONE with it.

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(@alberto1986)

Posted : 09/23/2017 8:07 pm

Hi all-

Seems like we are all creating accounts to reply to this thread and I am glad I am not the only one !
Im a 30 yr old male, quit cigarettes 3 years ago after being a 1-pack-a-day smoker for 10 years ( I know- yuck ) and that is when I picked up the lovely habit of vaping, which made giving up cigarettes so easy, the first 3 months my skin looked its BEST, so clear and flawless with nothing to worry about, and then guess what ?

1st yearI started getting red cheeks all the time, I would flush like crazy followed by tiny little breakouts on my cheeks and forehead. Spoke to the guy at the vape shop and advised me to try 100% VG which I did and it made the breakouts even worse along my hairline. Switched back to my NAKED juice 70vg/30pg and it seemed to help but my skin was getting worse and worse by the day. Went to the dermo and he px me antibiotics for 3 months which helped to get the redness out; however the pimples persisted and seemed to be getting bigger . 2nd round of antibiotics and I developed cystic acne which I had never experienced before. Dermo put me on topical metro gel, retain-a, but it made it that much worse.

2nd year- switched dermo quit antibiotics and started getting IPL laser (Intensive Pulsating Light) therapy which was $200 a session, did 5 sessions and it helped tremendously but then the cysts would come back after a month. Dermo put me on Obagi skin care regimen and it irritated my skin, making it red, thin and raw. Started obsessing with the issue and started buying skincare online after reading good user reviews but nothing helped.

3rd year- Went vegan ( still vegan ) made a drastic lifestyle change, yet I continued to vape and my skin kept progressively getting worse. I was of course blaming the breakouts on stress at this point since it had been almost 3 years and my acne wouldn't GO AWAY. You can imagine how frustrating it was especially when you avoid looking at your own reflection, it was an all time low for me. I stopped socializing with people, avoided going out and if I had to talk to people I couldnt look at them in the face because I knew they were counting my zits instead of talking to me.
Everyone asked me " what is going on with your face ?" or " You used to have such good skin what happened?" it really messed with my self esteem so I shut myself down, tired of trying ALMOST everything with minimal results I thought there was no hope.

It has been 3 years, thousands of dollars spent on meds, topical treatments, lasers, creams , and let me tell you it hasn't been easy going total vegan over night to try and help my skin. 2 weeks ago after reading THIS same thread I thought to myself- stop being in DENIAL and just give up the vape. I was already doing 3mg nicotine anyway so I got a bottle of 0mg nicotine and started vaping that for a few days and now I have completely stopped vaping. It has been 8 days with 0 vape and in just a week I have noticed HUGE improvement, no new cysts, and redness is going down, also the oil production in my skin seems to be more balanced. Not sure if it was the juice, nicotine or my coil, but I am so happy with the results I am seeing! I am hopeful it was the vape causing all my skin problems, because what else? When I started vaping was when my skin problems began, and escalated. I will update you guys in a couple of weeks as I continue to heal my skin.

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(@randydicarlo)

Posted : 09/25/2017 5:29 pm

I posted in this forum before I started Dan's regimen.. put down the vape and unfortunately started smoking cigarettes again... started Dan's regimen and have seen a huge improvement in my skinover the last month.... Hard to say wether quitting vaping had a part to play in that which leaves me in between a rock and a hard place.. been vaping again the past 2 weeks or so and trying to cut out the cigarettes again... So I will update wether or not new acne forms and if it does, im going to cut the vape out once again and try nicotine patches

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(@cerebralvapegirl)

Posted : 09/29/2017 8:39 pm

I started vaping 8 months ago, after completing a super successful round of acne treatment (to the point where my boyfriend was heavily complementing me), thinking it was my way of quitting smoking for good. Sure as rain, my acne came back after 1-2 months, small at first, then more strongly in the form of painful cystic acne, especially around my ears and jawline.

I quit vaping a few days ago after seeing the OP and my acne has already started going down in ferocity/intensity, in addition to performing at-home glycolic peels for 3 weeks now/another round of DIY acne treatment. Will hang in there and post updates in 2-3 weeks.

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(@mrxf30)

Posted : 10/14/2017 4:29 pm

As Mr. Brownstone above posted I too experience the same effects that gluten has on my acne when vaping.About 4-5 years ago I went gluten free because within 3 hours of eating gluten my face would go from dry and smooth to greased over and sticky but once I stopped eating/drinking gluten my face/neck/back became grease (sebum) free and I could actually touch my face with my hands without fear of waking up the next day with cyst in the same place.Now over the past few years I have been vaping to try and quit smoking and I am getting oily skin again from certain juices.I thought it could be gluten in the juice but I tried an all organic/gluten free juice and it did the same thing so now I am trying to rule out the PG by trying a 90VG/10PG mix to see if it is any better.If that doesn't work I will start looking for a 100% VG juice to try and if that doesn't work then I will rock back and fourth in a corner somewhere pulling my hair out.I too hope it is not the Nic and can't understand how it could be when I can smoke cigarettes without the same oily results and they seem to have more Nic in them then the e-juice.

For those wanting the easiest way to test out the Gluten thing would be to go to the grocery store and buy a weeks worth of Lean Cuisine's that say Gluten Free on the box and live off of those for 1 week then see how your skin feels after that.Also be careful of what you drink and make sure that is labeled Gluten Free as well or the week of frozen entrees will be for nothing.Breakfast choice would be some cereal that is labeled Gluten Free as well.Main point is if it doesn't say Gluten Free then don't consume it and you will know within a week or a couple days if it is part of the problem.

Good Luck everyone and I will try to remember to post what I find out about the PG in the next couple of weeks.

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(@marianacab)

Posted : 12/20/2017 11:14 am

hola! vapeo hace 2 anos aprox. y ahi aparecio el acne. ningun tratamiento dermatologico dio resultado. al leer este foro pense en la relacion del vapeo y acne. hace una sem deje el vaping.
alguien que de lo haya dejado vio mejoria ??

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(@mr-brownstone)

Posted : 02/07/2018 6:33 am

Has anyone had any success in using VG only juice?
My skin had really flared up again recently and I'm going back down next vaping/acne rabbit hole.

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(@tellmemore)

Posted : 02/20/2018 12:03 pm

I am very curious has anyone in this thread who stopped vaping seen a difference? Was it the cause? I too have been battling a random no one cause describe folliculitus and would love to know what results everyone had or if it is totally not related.

BTW I have never had outbreaks in my life so this is new to me. Been going for about 6 months now. Been vaping almost 2 years. 30/70 mix pg/vg
low wattage vaper.
Etc etc,

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(@vaper)

Posted : 03/04/2018 10:04 am

Just an update. Yes , definately vaping causing the problem. I now change the coil on my vape every 7 days. Pretty much eliminated the problem.Coils are only a pound each, so not too expensive.

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(@tellmemore)

Posted : 03/04/2018 1:03 pm

2 hours ago, vaper said:

Just an update. Yes , definately vaping causing the problem. I now change the coil on my vape every 7 days. Pretty much eliminated the problem.Coils are only a pound each, so not too expensive.

I am curious why you are attributing it to the coil. How long did you keep coils in your vape what device did you use?

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(@sami2704)

Posted : 03/28/2018 11:53 am

I've never posted on a forum like this before but needed to share my story to help others make informed decisions about introducing significant changes to their lifestyle like vaping.

I started vaping in January 2017. Always had cystic acne, basically caused by ingesting dairy, although I thought I had it under control for 2 years in 2015 - 16 and my skin was as clear as it's ever been. At first it was subtle - I kept on attributing cystic breakouts in early 2017 (the kinds of which I didn't have in years, since I binged on dairy) to paranoia about consuming dairy accidentally. This went on for months and months and I was constantly stressed out about it, thinking my skin was fucked and that it was morphing in all sorts of strange and contorted ways. I noticed a noticeable lump on the left side of my face in photos probably caused by me putting a lot of pressure to clean a huge cyst- this has led to pretty intense feels of self-loathing and serious body image issues and even self-harm form trying to reduce the size and change the texture of the skin (seriously don't do this).

In any case I stopped vaping a month ago - I feel like I am slowly getting my face back. The damage from this round of cystic acne has certainly left it's mark but i'm just glad to have figured out what the fuck was going so horribly wrong. Not only did I vape so much more frequently than smoking, but I put all sorts of strange things in my body, like 18mg and 12mg of nicotine .

Basically, STOP VAPING for a couple of weeks and see if your skin clear up - mine did absolutely within a week feel like . When I was vaping intensely, it seemed like my face was always burning, red and raw. I even developed a perception that one side of my face was caving in and had scaly skin - i've definitely done some damage to the side of my face through trying to manage these cysts and rubbed my skin when I shouldn't but hopefully CBT can help me manage those kinds of thoughts (I think if i tried cosmetic help it would [mess] me up psychologically worse)

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(@moonwolf)

Posted : 04/01/2018 2:46 pm

Just wanting to add that vaping was definitely one of the major causes of acne for me, and I hope all of the comments on this thread help someone reading this.

I do believe some people may purely be sensitive to PG (or another ingredient in e-liquid, or a material used in the tank). In which case, the acne would disappear as soon as you change that / stop vaping, even if you make no other changes.

However, my theory is also thate-liquid may be like any other stimulant in that it impacts hormones.

I say this because my skin cleared around 50% just through dietary changes.
Then around 80% by also cutting down on vaping.
Then 100% by also walking a couple of miles a day, most days.

This is why I suspect it's hormonal. Clean eating regulates hormones. Light exercise such as walking and yoga regulates hormones. Stimulants like caffeine and nicotine have been found to impact hormones.

So, if you vape and you are struggling with your skin, try quitting for a week or two as others have suggested, or cutting down. Particularly if you never struggled with acne before vaping. On the other hand, if you experienced acne even before you vaped, try cutting down/quitting, coupled with dietary changes and walking/yoga, because this may balance your hormones and clear your skin.

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(@alexaslave)

Posted : 04/02/2018 3:45 am

Wow, I have never posted on any sites before but thanks to all for the comments regarding vaping. I am a 48 year old male in the UK and have had bouts of moderate acne before but it all cleared up totally with a 3 month course of Tetralysal (not everyone's cup of tea but it worked wonders for me) I gave up smoking on July 4th last year and switched to vaping and haven't touched a cigarette since and enjoyed vaping. I actually have a picture of me and my girlfriend on July 4th in Antigua where we both looked radiant and healthy and my face was as clear as a whistle.
Gradually over the next month or 2,, I started getting really painful and itchy cystic acne mainly within my facial stubble area but as NEVER before, on my forehead and eyebrow area. I tried everything from rain dancing to oral and topical medicine but over the following 6 months it was getting worse and worse to where I had to take a regular pain killer 3 times a day to ease my facial pain and itching. After 6 months of trying everything, I finally booked a dermotologist appointment which I have in 2 weeks time but after detoxing of any medicines for the last 2 weeks and stopping vaping all together, guess what, my face is clearing up. Gone are the pain killers and I can actually touch my face without whimpering. In my search during the last 6 months for the cause, I had come across study's that possibly link vaping to increased acne and it was only once I looked back to my July 4th picture of us glowing in the Carribean that I realised that this was the starting point of my troubles. I didn't want this to be the case as trying every other remedy was far easier than quitting the habit but now I have proved the link, the vape pipe is out of the window for good (and cigarettes too)
I'm still going to see my determotologist in 2 weeks time to get everything checked out and I'll update any information he may have.
Thanks for the post MamaM26 and to everyone else, don't worry about trying to find an alternative liquid, just give it up altogether, you'll feel so much better about yourself that the increased self confidence will I'm sure aid in a faster recovery.

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(@alexaslave)

Posted : 04/02/2018 6:29 am

On 2/20/2018 at 5:03 PM, Tellmemore said:

I am very curious has anyone in this thread who stopped vaping seen a difference? Was it the cause? I too have been battling a random no one cause describe folliculitus and would love to know what results everyone had or if it is totally not related.

BTW I have never had outbreaks in my life so this is new to me. Been going for about 6 months now. Been vaping almost 2 years. 30/70 mix pg/vg
low wattage vaper.
Etc etc,

Stopping vaping worked for me. Very quick results and now I feel better from my health and self confidence

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(@catalino)

Posted : 08/17/2018 6:21 pm

I second that. The first day after I stopped vaping was amazing...health wise. Never really thought something designed to potentially save lives could be slowly ruining it as well. Skin is clearing up and just overall health much better! God bless and keep faith...it works miracles!!!

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