Zinc

In my opinion, I think the conflicting results are due to those who doesn't have much relief from acne not taking note of certain things when taking zinc supplements for acne treatments. I have written and summaries all the things possible that you need to take note for zinc acne treatment. Zinc is a promising treatment for acne. Don't because of the following points as stated below, you conclude that it doesn't work for you. [link removed]

I had severe acne and had used all topical and oral medications except Accutane. I started taking 50 mg of zinc gluconate along with a Centrum multi-vitamin everyday for the past 6 weeks...and I don't get cysts anymore. I use a mild glyerine cleanser and that's it - all BP and SA products make me break out more!! I have only mild acne now so I'm very excited about that!

After reading so many positive reviews, I was hoping zinc would help. I religiously took 30 mg of zinc every morning along with my multivitiman that contains 15 mg of zinc. After two months, I have seen no improvement. My skin has become much drier. I use to just apply moisturizer in the a.m., but I've had to use it in the p.m. as well and skin is still dry and flaky. I've stopped taking the extra zinc and am just continuing with my multivitamin.

Helen, Make sure that the B-complex that you are taking DOES NOT contain Kelp:it contains massive amounts of iodine, which has been known to be a skin irritant. Lots of b-supplements use Kelp as a form of B; it causes severe acne in many people (even in people who do not usually get it). Hint: look in the fine print on the bottom of the bottle. If your b-complex contains this, this may be why the zinc is not working. Of course, this doesn't mean that you should completely avoid iodine (you need it), but too much can be a disaster. If you find that you have been unknowingly taking Kelp, stop taking it; find your source of b's elsewhere, give it a few weeks then see if the zinc works better. Also, dairy can be high in iodine too, though to a lesser extent. You might also want to look into eating organic meats/poultry (if you eat meat); most commercial meat/poultry/dairy has added hormones which can also cause hormonal acne, especially in women. Good luck :)

Skin became less oily but be careful about taking too much, I took 100mg all at once for lunch, a big lunch not too filling though, half an hour later i think i threw up half my lunch because of the zinc. Other than that one occasion zinc has been quite helpful

Just wanted to let everyone know that if you take too much zinc oxide (over 50mg), it interferes with copper absorption. seriously, go look it up if you dont believe. Thats why some products carry extra copper. But Zinc Monomethionine does not interfere with copper absorption, and i saw it to be about 4-5$ in vitamin shoppe. it was called optizinc. and to those taking over 150mg of zinc a day, i hope it isnt zinc oxide cause you might get sick in the long run. take care