Have you considered talking with your doctor and seeing if you were perhaps fructose intolerant?

I can't understand how acne can work so differently in people?? Most sources say that fruit should be good for acne, or atleast not make it worse. But for you fruits seem to have a completely different affect. How can it be so different between people?

Are you sure that the fruit is causing your acne? I have been eating fruit all the time, listening to suggestions from my friend.

On 4/23/2019 at 10:30 PM, krmpoticlola said:

Have you considered talking with your doctor and seeing if you were perhaps fructose intolerant?

My doctor made it seem as that was impossible. I got blood tests for literally everything else and they were all normal.

19 hours ago, MindfulTiler said:

I can't understand how acne can work so differently in people?? Most sources say that fruit should be good for acne, or atleast not make it worse. But for you fruits seem to have a completely different affect. How can it be so different between people?

Agreed, its the reason why it took me so long to figure out it was fruit, literally years.

18 hours ago, Jojolady said:

Are you sure that the fruit is causing your acne? I have been eating fruit all the time, listening to suggestions from my friend.

I think its sugar in general, natural or refined. When I have high sugar things I seem to notice break outs way more. Although I've tried eating just berries which are low in sugar and they still break me out. No idea aha

Look up foods which cause histamine responses. Most fruit (especially berries), except pears, cause histamine responses in histamine intolerant people. Histamine causes sinusitis, skin problems, gut problems, headaches, etc. Note that histamine intolerance is quite different from food allergies. Tests for food allergies will not pick up histamine intolerance.

Foods high in histamines are most fruits, some vegetables, left over food, especially stews etc. (which is why they taste better the next day, that is the amines), some herbs, all fermented foods, all fish, except if freshly caught and eaten, etc. Check the web for more details. Junk foods are not necessarily high in histamines, while lots of healthy foods are.

Benzoates and salicylates (very high in some fruits) can also cause skin and other problems.

I think that's because of sugar the fruits contain

Update.

I stopped eating fruit completely for around 6 months. My acne has went down about 80%. I am still getting a few big pimples a week on my neck / jawline. I have been sticking to a low glycogen index diet. It is very hard while trying to gain weight.

I also went to a natural path. She recommended going on a high dosage of zinc, probiotic, and vitamin D which I was already doing. I just increased the doses a bit. Still no change.If anyone has any other ideas or things it could be please leave a comment!

Wow your acne really went down 80% with cutting out fruits? Thats insane... Which specific fruits did you stop eating?

I have also read that a low GI diet is the way to go in terms of reducing acne.

Zinc is said to reduce inflammation and hence acne and I've also read about vitamin D having positive effects on reducing acne. In addition to zinc and vitamin D, I am also taking Omega 3 supplements.

However, it is really hard to determine which foods does trigger acne and which dont... It seems that this differs greatly across individuals. I have often or more like always a hard time finding out what exactly causes my breakouts.

8 hours ago, MindfulTiler said:

Wow your acne really went down 80% with cutting out fruits? Thats insane... Which specific fruits did you stop eating?

I have also read that a low GI diet is the way to go in terms of reducing acne.

Zinc is said to reduce inflammation and hence acne and I've also read about vitamin D having positive effects on reducing acne. In addition to zinc and vitamin D, I am also taking Omega 3 supplements.

However, it is really hard to determine which foods does trigger acne and which dont... It seems that this differs greatly across individuals. I have often or more like always a hard time finding out what exactly causes my breakouts.

Yes, I was super surprised as well, it took me so long to figure out because I truly thought that if it was healthy it wouldn't effect my skin. I was eating a lot of bananas and berries. I was having a smoothie everyday with mixed berries and 2 bananas. I cut out bananas but it still was coming, so I ended up just cutting all fruit. I tried adding in an apple everyday, but it started breaking me out as well. It is super frustrating because I love to eat fruit as its healthy. It seems almost all sugars mess me up.

Right now I am on Vitamin D( 4000 mg), Vitamin K2 (300mg), Tumeric with black pepper, red ginseng, Vitamin b100(3 a day), biotin (10000mcg), two probiotics (55 billion), vitamin E(1000 mg), stinging nettle root, saw palmetto, vitamin c(2000mg), zinc(25mg), Omega 3 ( 2500 EPA/DHA)

Hi Mikey,I am really happy for your achievement! As someone who has taken roacutane more than once I totally understand you.

I have managed to stay 100% acne free and one of the things I quit from my diet is fruit.

I will write a post about all meassures that have helped me to fight acne, but as a summary: low carb diet, no gluten or any type of grain, no dairy, no fruit, no sugar.Also, I changed my contraceptive pill and take omg3 sumplements. Topically I wash my face once per day and use 2.5 benzoil peroxid.

It is been one year now since I started this journey with diet, which I had been sceptical for years. But it really works! And I am still working in knowing my body. Sometimes I play with the idea of introducing back those foods to understand the effects on my body of each one, but I am just too afraid that acne comes back 🙁

Hope it helps somone

Btw sorry for my english, I am from spain 🙂

Hello @Aguacatediet,

Unfortunately for me, as I am 6'4 and 170 lbs, I find eating a low carb diet extremely hard. I am currently trying to gain weight, so that is where the problem lies. I definitely stick to my healthy carbs like chickpea noodles, brown basmati rice and if I have bread make sure its whole wheat. 

Everything you seem to be doing sounds spot on and I am super happy for your results  Thanks for the reply!

Fruit can certainly cause acne if you have an intolerance to the food.

Hi, I don't think the problem is the fruit, but the amount you were consuming to reach 1000 calories in just one smoothie?

I take a large handful of berries, 2 bananas and maybe an orange a day and my skin is the best it's been in a long time (I assume from the anti-oxidants - I upped my veg intake massively too). I think to aim for quality over quantity - berries have the highest antioxidant level so maybe intake those?

Additionally, blending fruit damages the fibre in it, causing the blood sugar spike to be much greater - eating them in their whole form will be fine! (side note: I blend mine though, as wouldn't consume otherwise!)

23 hours ago, Foodforthought said:

Hi, I don't think the problem is the fruit, but the amount you were consuming to reach 1000 calories in just one smoothie?

I take a large handful of berries, 2 bananas and maybe an orange a day and my skin is the best it's been in a long time (I assume from the anti-oxidants - I upped my veg intake massively too). I think to aim for quality over quantity - berries have the highest antioxidant level so maybe intake those?

Additionally, blending fruit damages the fibre in it, causing the blood sugar spike to be much greater - eating them in their whole form will be fine! (side note: I blend mine though, as wouldn't consume otherwise!)

 

That was at its worse. I have tried having just berries and I still break out. I eventually cleared up about 95% and decided to try adding just an apple a day, and unfortunately the breakouts on my jaw line / neck started happening again. As much as I would love to add fruit back into my diet, I cannot :(.

If anyone has any other thoughts / ideas please post below ! Appreciate all of your comments.

Oh no! You must be super sensitive to sugar. What a shame as fruits are so high in antioxidants for fighting oxidation that causes acne; it is the oxidation of the squalene on the skin that starts off the chain reaction. I actually found that with Differin I need to eat something like chocolate to trigger a breakout now; it raised my tolerance for foods massively! I recently started making green soupand it made my skin look amazing! (Bag of frozen broccoli, whole head of kale, load of spinach, onion, garlic, veg stock and a chunk of cheese melted in to make it taste amazing - with so many greens, it mitigates any effect from the mild cheese for me). It tastes like broccoli and stilton soup, myolder spots cleared overnight and my skin hasn't been so glowing in months! Will have it on permanent rotation now. For me greens seem to be the keyto good skin.

I came across this thread again and read it all through. I think this thread actually has quality discussions and advices!

On 4/30/2020 at 10:03 PM, mikey161992 said:

Hello @Aguacatediet,

Unfortunately for me, as I am 6'4 and 170 lbs, I find eating a low carb diet extremely hard. I am currently trying to gain weight, so that is where the problem lies. I definitely stick to my healthy carbs like chickpea noodles, brown basmati rice and if I have bread make sure its whole wheat. 

Everything you seem to be doing sounds spot on and I am super happy for your results  Thanks for the reply!

I am in a similar position as you are. Im 23 year old male with moderate acne, I have been on the acne.org regimen for 2,5 years which has kept me 90% clear but have come with huge side effects - redness & dryness. Due to the extreme side effects even after 2,5 years of BP 2,5% usage, I have decided to slowly start moving away from the regimen and start to combat acne through diet. 

I am 6'2 (190cm) and 180 lbs (82kg) with 15% bodyfat and take fitness pretty seriously so I have a really hard time cutting out calorie dense food... 

In order to increase muscle growth or at least maintain I try to hit around 3000 calories a day. I also consume a lot of whole grain brown rice, whole grain rye bread and oatmeal for my carbs. For my proteins and fats I consume chicken, minced meat 10% fat, tuna and sometimes beef. I have quitted eating fruits due to the advice I have gotten from here. I try to eat a lot of vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, zucchini and paprika. I dont consume any diary products. 

9 hours ago, MindfulTiler said:

I came across this thread again and read it all through. I think this thread actually has quality discussions and advices!

I am in asimilar position as you are. Im 23 year old male with moderate acne, I have been on the acne.org regimen for 2,5 years which has kept me 90% clear but have come withhuge side effects - redness & dryness. Due to the extreme side effects even after 2,5 years of BP 2,5% usage, I have decided to slowly start moving away from the regimen and start to combat acne through diet.

I am 6'2 (190cm) and 180lbs (82kg) with 15% bodyfat and take fitness pretty seriously so I have a really hard time cutting out calorie dense food...

In order to increase muscle growth or at least maintain I try to hit around 3000 calories a day. I also consume a lot of whole grain brown rice, whole grain rye bread and oatmeal for my carbs. For my proteins and fats I consume chicken, minced meat 10% fat, tuna and sometimes beef. I have quitted eating fruits due to the advice I have gotten from here. I try to eat a lot of vegetables such as broccoli, carrots,zucchini and paprika. I dont consume any diary products.

It's usually just a few foods that cause issues for people

Don't be fooled by "healthy" things like chickpeas and brown rice

12 hours ago, gutskinaxis said:

It's usually just a few foods that cause issues for people

Don't be fooled by "healthy" things like chickpeas and brown rice

Although I think brown rice is a better option than white rice since it has a lower Glycemic index and Glycemic load. But yes I do agree with you to a certain degree, healthy food isnt always the best in order to combat acne. If we take fruits for example which a lot of people have issues with.

7 hours ago, MindfulTiler said:

Although I think brown rice is a better option than white rice since it has a lower Glycemic index and Glycemic load. But yes I do agree with you to a certain degree, healthy food isnt always the best in order to combat acne. If we take fruits for example which a lot of people have issues with.

Exactly, people can have intolerances to even the "healthiest" foods

Brown rice may be worse for people with acne because it includes the whole grain, therefore has more potential protein triggers

On 5/15/2020 at 8:31 PM, Foodforthought said:

Oh no! You must be super sensitive to sugar. What a shame as fruits are so high in antioxidants for fighting oxidation that causes acne; it is the oxidation of the squalene on the skin that starts off the chain reaction. I actually found that with Differin I need to eat something like chocolate to trigger a breakout now; it raised my tolerance for foods massively! I recently started making green soupand it made my skin look amazing! (Bag of frozen broccoli, whole head of kale, load of spinach, onion, garlic, veg stock and a chunk of cheese melted in to make it taste amazing - with so many greens, it mitigates any effect from the mild cheese for me). It tastes like broccoli and stilton soup, myolder spots cleared overnight and my skin hasn't been so glowing in months! Will have it on permanent rotation now. For me greens seem to be the keyto good skin.

That sounds amazing! I will definitely give it a try tonight. Do you apply the differin to your whole face or just breakouts? I have never had luck with any sort of topical treatment, but always willing to check them out as long as there are no harsh chemicals.

On 5/18/2020 at 6:20 AM, MindfulTiler said:

I came across this thread again and read it all through. I think this thread actually has quality discussions and advices!

I am in asimilar position as you are. Im 23 year old male with moderate acne, I have been on the acne.org regimen for 2,5 years which has kept me 90% clear but have come withhuge side effects - redness & dryness. Due to the extreme side effects even after 2,5 years of BP 2,5% usage, I have decided to slowly start moving away from the regimen and start to combat acne through diet.

I am 6'2 (190cm) and 180lbs (82kg) with 15% bodyfat and take fitness pretty seriously so I have a really hard time cutting out calorie dense food...

In order to increase muscle growth or at least maintain I try to hit around 3000 calories a day. I also consume a lot of whole grain brown rice, whole grain rye bread and oatmeal for my carbs. For my proteins and fats I consume chicken, minced meat 10% fat, tuna and sometimes beef. I have quitted eating fruits due to the advice I have gotten from here. I try to eat a lot of vegetables such as broccoli, carrots,zucchini and paprika. I dont consume any diary products.

The struggle is real my man, trying to gain while prone to acne is legit depressing aha. Just gotta keep testing different things out and find whats right for your body. For me meat dosent break me out at all, but I follow a 95% plant based diet so thats another bump in the road.

A little average breakdown of what I eat in a day while trying to stay acne free and healthy is:

Breakfast- Breakfast Sandwich

- Whole wheat english muffin cut in half

- Garlic hummus

-Tomato slice on each half with cut up avacado

-Franks hot sauce

- 1-2 eggs on top of each half of the english muffin

Lunch- Burrito Bowl

-Half cup of brown basmati rice (LOW GI)

- Fried onionand pepper chopped

- Spoon full of refried beans along with two spoon fulls of black beans

- 1-2 tbs of garlic hummus mixed in

-corn, carrot slices, full avocado, tomatoes sliced

- franks sauce and salsa, topped with lettuce, then mixed all together.

Supper- Chickpea noodle pasta

- Boiled chickpea noodles with half a onion and full pepper

-low sugar Spag sauce over top

- One piece of wholewheat bread with garlic salt

Nighttime Snack- Quinoa bowl

-Half a cup of quinoa cooked with 1 tbs coconut oil

- Cashew milk added after cooked

-2 tbs hemp hearts and chia seeds added after cooked

-1 tbs almond butter

- A couple strawberries for taste (Strawberries are super low in sugar compared to other fruits)

- Dash of Cinnamon

Equals out to be around 3200 calories or so, you can portion differently if you need more or less. Hope that helps!

Again like stated above, the healthiest foods can be the worst for certain peoples skin!

Gaining on an acne free diet is definitely hard, you'll most likely have to eat repetitively

Meat is definitely safe

Fish is probably safe

White rice is usually not too bad for people

Sweet potatoes are usually safe

Olive oil

A lot of times dairy is not as bad as people think, but depends on the person

17 hours ago, gutskinaxis said:

Gaining on an acne free diet is definitely hard, you'll most likely have to eat repetitively

Meat is definitely safe

Fish is probably safe

White rice is usually not too bad for people

Sweet potatoes are usually safe

Olive oil

A lot of times dairy is not as bad as people think, but depends on the person

 

 

According to your research, which vegetables are the best? And do you also recommend to completely cut out fruits? And what is your take on coffee?

Thanks!

The thing to remember is that all of these foods are person specific, so it will vary.

For me, sweet potatoes and asparagus don't really cause issues. Broccoli is probably okay too for me. I'm sure there are others but I haven't tested yet

I don't think you need to completely cut out fruits, just determine which ones are safe for you. Citrus fruits cause issues for some people but not really for me. Bananas and strawberries I suspect cause breakouts for me for some reason.

Coffee doesn't seem to be too harmful since most of the harmful proteins and molecules are filtered away

Okay thanks again for your reply! Do you use some kind of method when you try to identify food intolerances? For instance, if you want to determine if bananas are safe or not do you first cut themout from your diet for a few weeks and them add them to your diet for a few weeks? I can't really find any other method to make significant conclusions if a specific food is okay or not. I'd like to hear your approach.