Spironolactone

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Spironolactone is a type of oral medication called an anti-androgen that is sometimes prescribed to females. Androgens are male hormones that are present...

Spironolactone is a type of oral medication called an anti-androgen that is sometimes prescribed to females. Androgens are male hormones that are present in both males and females that lead to more acne, and spironolactone helps reduce androgens.

It is usually taken once or twice a day, around the same time(s), preferably with a meal.

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melisaperone

October 18, 2012

Pros:

clears skin
less oily
does not dry
inexpensive

Cons:

need dr.'s order to be prescribed
blood tests every few months

This is a great product for anyone suffering from hormonal acne. I have been using Spironolactone for about 3 months now and my face is about 80% cleared up. I occasionally get a pimple here and there due lack of sleep or poor diet but I am very pleased with the results so far. Will continue to use until my prescription runs out. I am a bit hesitant taking pills but I am hoping that this will be a very short term solution at attacking my acne.

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facepro17

October 12, 2012

Pros:

Clear-er skin
Less oily!

Cons:

Frequent urination
Increased skin sensitivity

I'm 22, and have tried almost everything, including Accutane when I was 16 (AWFUL side effects including bringing forth allergies, dry skin, sensitive skin, depression), which cleared my skin until about age 20-21, but was NOT worth the side effects. My skin began breaking out into painful cysts and blackheads, but was too sensitive to use any other products on (other than a very sensitive Avene moisturizer - Thanks, Accutane!). I began researching for a product comparable to Accutane, without the nasty side effects. Spiro was the first and only medication that seemed remotely comparable, so I approached my doctor to try it. I've been using it for 3 or so months now, although the initial breakouts were rough, I now have amazing skin. Within 3 weeks, my skin went from extremely oily to dry (good thing!). I understood the increase of urinary frequency, as Spironolactone IS a diuretic, specifically used for lowering blood pressure. My blood pressure has been unaffected as well, which was a concern of mine. I'm infatuated with this medication, and would absolutely recommend it to anyone suffering with acne.

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Deanna

October 12, 2012

Pros:

Clears skin
Less oily
Eliminates cystic acne

Cons:

Period every two weeks
weight gain
tender breasts
emotional

The bottom line is despite the side effects, this medicine works. Do not give up hope if your acne is hormonal. It took a few months of working my way up to the highest dose of 200 mg. I take 100 mg at lunch and 100mg at dinner. I did not experience a true clearing, and almost stopped the pills I was so frustrated, until I upped my dosage to 200 mg. But, that's when I began having a 7 day period every two weeks and gaining weight despite not changing my eating habits. I put on about 10 pounds, my boobs got about two sizes bigger. However, my skin is amazing so I hired a trainer and am working hard to get that ten pounds off. I would recommend this to someone despite the side effects. I do notice if I miss a dose, which recently happened when I ran out of the presciption for a day, that I get a small breakout or one or two pimples.

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Jamie

October 11, 2012

Pros:

-Less acne after 2 months
-Less oil

Cons:

-HORRIBLE HEARTBURN. Just from the pill itself. Am I the only one that this has happened to???
-Acne slowly came back
-NOT a cure.

Spiro did help when I became desperate for clear skin but I was just taking it for remission. Once it started slowly but surely coming back I decided to do a second round of Accutane. I believe Accutane is going to give me the result that I am looking for.

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Ppolano5

October 7, 2012

Pros:

Cheap

Cons:

Didn't work for me
Horrible initial breakouts

I can't explain how sad I am to write this review, because 7 months ago I had high hopes that this medicine would cure my acne (which I believe is hormonal). I am a 30 year old female and have had acne since puberty. I have been going to dermatologists since I was a teenager and have been on almost every internal medicine for acne aside from accutane, and tons of prescription topical creams. Antibiotics work for a few months, then the acne comes back. When I found out about Spiro, I was hopeful this would be my miracle drug. The first few months were beyond hard. My initial breakouts were emotionally crippling. I read these reviews on an almost daily basis to encourage me to stick with it, but it was HARD. After 7 months of no regular improvement, I stopped taking the drug. I was taking 50mg twice a day. My next step is to visit an endocrinologist so they can determine if this really is hormonal acne or hopefully some kind of vitamin deficiency. As great as dermatologists are, they are not certain what the cause of your acne is and I really want to know the root of my issues. I've been reading The Clear Skin Diet by Alan Logan and do believe that changing my diet will help things, but there's no way I can cut out all dairy and sugar. My big hope is that the endocrinologist can confirm I have a vitamin or mineral deficiency (like zinc) and I can fix my issue that way. I honestly don't know what else to do :(

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TJ2017

March 16, 2016

Your experience sounds much like mine. I took Spiro for 7 months with NO improvement. My Derm prescribed me this just by looking at me. Never tested my hormone level or listened to any of my concerns. After doing much research I have decided to try Zinc (it's only been 3 days since I started so I can't judge its effectiveness or lack there of). I think I may be Zince defiant because I also suffer from hair loss, do not eat much seafood & have white spots on my nails. Of cours I'm not a doctor so I don't know for sure but I will try Zinc for awhile & see how it goes.

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TJ2017

March 16, 2016

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Verified Customer18768

September 30, 2012

Pros:

One Pill a day
Clears cystic acne after a couple weeks
No real side effects

Cons:

If I forget a pill or two I break out

Ive had very stubborn acne for several years. I have used birth control in the past which helped considerably. But that isnt an option right now. So my dermo gave me this. I did notice a dry mouth at first but not much now. After a couple of weeks it clearly skin very well. Sometimes I may have one or two pimples but thats it. But if I forget to take a pill my face breaks out! Thats the only downside Ive had.

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beautypro1

September 26, 2012

Pros:

-works well for cystic acne
-less oily face and hair
-clears pretty quickly

Cons:

-extreme hair fall

I am 20 years old and have had somewhat severe acne since I was 13 or 14, it consistently got worse and I started trying topical treatments like Proactiv, epiduo, differin, and little face washes from the drug store. Nothing worked well so I decided to try a dermatologist. I tried birth control but didn't see much of a difference after a few months, then I tried antibiotics which seemed to work for about a month and then just stopped working. I researched like crazy and read reviews and doctor websites about Spiro and thought it would be perfect. I have been on Spiro for about 7 months and within the first month my face and hair was less oily (which I loved!), I lost a bit of water weight (but it does balance out later so you don't actually lose weight), and my face was already getting better. By month 4 there was an extreme difference! But now at the 7th month I am still getting little pimples frequently, although my cystic acne is basically extinct! I didn't get an extreme initial breakout that a lot of people said happens. A weird side effect I had was not getting my period for about 5 months, it came back but it was pretty weird. I LOVE that this medication has made my face and hair less oily, it's nice to not worry about re-applying powder to make my face not look greasy halfway through my day. But I have noticed that while I have been on this medication, I have had significantly more hair fall. They say it's normal to lose about 100 strands a day but I must be losing about 400 or so a day. My shower is clogged every day and my hair seems a bit thinner. I have heard Spiro is supposed to make hair grow but that definitely isn't the case with me. I will be talking to a doctor soon to see if I can fix that but still take the Spiro. Bottom line, this works different for different people, but I would recommend this medication to anyone who has tried lots of acne products with no luck.

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carereviewer39

September 25, 2012

Pros:

-No breakouts almost immediately upon starting the drug
-Skin looked almost completely flawless
-Very safe drug in that it has been on the market for many years

Cons:

-Broke out into hives due to an allergic reaction :(

So, I had read tons of great reviews raving about this drug and asked my dermatologist to put me on it. Almost as soon as I started it - I was in love with it. My face looked fantastic and I didn't have a single breakout. I was on the drug though for a little over a week when I had an allergic reaction and broke out into severe hives. I'm pretty upset. The one thing that I have finally found that really, really works for cystic acne and has almost no side effects to taking it and I can't because I'm allergic. I talked with a pharmacist today and he said there is nothing else out on the market like it, so I'm pretty much back to square one. I take perfect care of my skin, I wash my sheets and towels regularly, I keep my hair out of my face, I've been on birth control for 6 years, I've changed my diet and eating habits, I take vitamins and supplements, I exercise regularly and still battle cystic, hormonal acne. I was really happy to have found spironolactone, since I knew that there was nothing I could do on the outside to change how my face looked and it was just an internal issue. If I wasn't allergic to this medication, I would have stayed on it for as long as possible. PLEASE- If you have acne, try this drug! It seems to have worked wonders for tons of other other, but for me I just can't stay on it due to allergies (just my luck). I've turned to chemical peels now and recently just had a Vi Peel done for the first time to help with acne scarring and pigmentation. Did not hurt one bit and actually was not bad at all! I am going for another one in a few weeks and I am hoping that 3-4 more Vi Peels and regular facials will keep my skin in check. If anyone else had an allergic reaction to Spironolactone, but knows of something else I could take that would help - please let me know. I have struggled with acne for over 12 years and it's reached the point where it just brings me down no matter how hard I try not to let it.

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erin246

September 23, 2012

Pros:

Cheap, small pill easy to take
can be on it long term.

Cons:

broke me out in places Ive never broke out before

I had a very stupid dermatologist that anything I asked about she would tell me its ok to go on. Thats how I ended up trying spiro. I started with 25 mgs for 2 weeks then 50 for two weeks then finally 75 for about a week. I didnt seen any improvements and I didnt see improvements in my oily skin either so I decided to stop. BIG MISTAKE. A week after, which just so happened to be right around my period, I broke out like I never broke out before my period ever, I broke out on my neck and chin and upper lip( my chin and upper lip are places I never ever broke out before especially my upper lip area.) It's been a little past a month since I stopped and I'm still getting breakouts on my chin especially around my period. I'm not totally against this drug if you have a dermatologist that knows what they are doing and if you stick with it. I recommend that if you go off of it to slowly do it and not do it cold turkey.

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LaLa

September 12, 2012

Pros:

Slowly but surely my cystic acne is starting to clear up.

Cons:

Weight gain ... considerable amount!

I wrote my first post a few months ago. I am now on 75mg (50mg in the morning & 25mg at night) a day. I'm in my fourth month since starting spiro. I still get cystic pimples, but much less now. They still stick around for about a week though. I've been really patient, but the initial breakout is horrible! Things are improving though. A new side effect I've noticed since my dose was increased is weight gain! I read that some women have had this happen, but for the most part, from what I've read, women have lost weight while on spiro. I've also read that taking a BCP while on spiro may help prevent the wt. gain by keeping hormones more regulated ... Anyone with more info about this?! Would greatly appreciate it! Thanks. Will post again soon =)

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