Adult Acne. What The Hell Is Wrong With People Like Me?

[Tenacity]

Thanks for the replies. This will help me a lot and I really appreciate it

No problem. I'm happy to answer questions. It's an awful condition and I'm glad I've finally found something that works.

 

[Orion]

15 mussels 3x weekly
30g beef liver 3x weekly
85g well cooked mushrooms 1x weekly
325mg aspirin 1x weekly

Skim milk: 10 cups
Fresh oranges: 1kg
Orange juice: 1.5L
Dates: 5
Milk chocolate: 200g
Coconut oil: 3 tsp
Instant coffee: 3 tsp
Salt: 5 dashes

I am seeing great results with this approach too, been doing this for close to 4months now, I used cooked fruit instead of oranges, small pieces of chocolate every other day. I also use about 20g gelatin per day.
Total daily fat intake equals about 5g, PUFA less then 1g, and I use small amounts of coconut oil before bedtime. I supplement with A/K topically and Tocovit with food. Depleting PUFA stores seems to be very helpful for me.

@Tenacity are you trying to keep fat intake low?

 

[Tenacity]

I am seeing great results with this approach too, been doing this for close to 4months now, I used cooked fruit instead of oranges, small pieces of chocolate every other day. I also use about 20g gelatin per day.
Total daily fat intake equals about 5g, PUFA less then 1g, and I use small amounts of coconut oil before bedtime. I supplement with A/K topically and Tocovit with food. Depleting PUFA stores seems to be very helpful for me.

@Tenacity are you trying to keep fat intake low?

Keeping fat low isn't a concern of mine, I don't see it improving my life in any way. I eat around 60-70g a day, enough to feel satisfied both emotionally and hormonally.

What benefits have you seen from doing low fat? I tried once but I was *ahem* lacking in the libido department, so I stopped.

 

[EIRE24]

Keeping fat low isn't a concern of mine, I don't see it improving my life in any way. I eat around 60-70g a day, enough to feel satisfied both emotionally and hormonally.

What benefits have you seen from doing low fat? I tried once but I was *ahem* lacking in the libido department, so I stopped.

I agree with what you say here. I get terrible dry skin from too low fat

 

[Orion]

Keeping fat low isn't a concern of mine, I don't see it improving my life in any way. I eat around 60-70g a day, enough to feel satisfied both emotionally and hormonally.

What benefits have you seen from doing low fat? I tried once but I was *ahem* lacking in the libido department, so I stopped.

I am seeing improved skin quality, dandruff, waking temps, pulse, sleep, libido, mood, body composition. I do believe I have issues with large amounts of stored PUFA though, so that could be were the benefits are coming from, quicken the changeover along with all the other RP ideas.

 

[bohogirl]

Ugh, the feeling on my face, like I can feel my acne.

I need some sun badly. The gloomy days here are so depresssing!! Plus I could use the vitamin D!

My skin is still a bit dry in some areas. I had four oysters yesterday, liver yesterday, and liver today.


I emailed Ray. He said D supplement and calcium would help, thyroid supplement, eat carrots/mushrooms/bamboo and suggested progesterone cream.

 

[EIRE24]

Ugh, the feeling on my face, like I can feel my acne.

I need some sun badly. The gloomy days here are so depresssing!! Plus I could use the vitamin D!

My skin is still a bit dry in some areas. I had four oysters yesterday, liver yesterday, and liver today.


I emailed Ray. He said D supplement and calcium would help, thyroid supplement, eat carrots/mushrooms/bamboo and suggested progesterone cream.

Told me all the same things. I have not began taking a D supplement but I will soon to see if it helps. I'm thinking the vitamin A actually makes my acne worse and that vitamin D will make it better. Not sure i'd dabble in progesterone cream as I have no clue what it does, personally.

 

[bohogirl]

Told me all the same things. I have not began taking a D supplement but I will soon to see if it helps. I'm thinking the vitamin A actually makes my acne worse and that vitamin D will make it better. Not sure i'd dabble in progesterone cream as I have no clue what it does, personally.

Have you tried eating liver instead of taking a supplement?

 

[Progesterone]

I use NOW brand liposomal unscented progesterone cream, 1 pump every night on my face, and it has basically cured my acne.

I'm 29yrs old and have had acne for years and it's gone now (been using it for 5 months).

Also noticing it a more youthful look to face, better skin quality.

 

[bohogirl]

I use NOW brand liposomal unscented progesterone cream, 1 pump every night on my face, and it has basically cured my acne.

I'm 29yrs old and have had acne for years and it's gone now (been using it for 5 months).

Also noticing it a more youthful look to face, better skin quality.

Did it work right away? Any initial breakout? What kind of acne did you have?

 

[Progesterone]

Did it work right away? Any initial breakout? What kind of acne did you have?

Hi bohogirl,

Keep in mind I did not initially use this to cure acne, I was using it to treat hairloss and reduce androgens more naturally.

It pretty much worked right away, I would say after a few weeks everything was cleared up, maybe a month tops.

Not sure on the kind of acne, but it wasn't pretty. Not super painful cystic acne (although I did get that too from time to time), more so the regular type acne I suppose.

I'd also like to add that my diet over the last 5 months has been interesting to say the least. From super bad to great, to meh, to great... and diet has had zero effect on making it better or worse (since using the cream). Seems like the cream is the key for sure.

 

[EIRE24]

Have you tried eating liver instead of taking a supplement?

Yes actually I dont supplement A that much its liver I eat mostly and it makes zero difference to my dry skin and acne. I get a weird mask of dead skin that develops and turns my skin a brownish colour it isnt nice. They say vitamin A helps for dry skin but I never understood this as they say vitamin A makes the subaceous glands dry up? Kind of contradicts itself

 

[EIRE24]

I use NOW brand liposomal unscented progesterone cream, 1 pump every night on my face, and it has basically cured my acne.

I'm 29yrs old and have had acne for years and it's gone now (been using it for 5 months).

Also noticing it a more youthful look to face, better skin quality.

What are the mechanisms behind this working do you think?

 

[Progesterone]

What are the mechanisms behind this working do you think?

Well the obvious, I assume, would be reduced local androgens and possibly systemically as well.. (i.e progesterone being chief inhibitor of 5-ar).

As far as another mechanism, I'm not quite sure.

I don't even wash my face often at all. I will sort of pre-wash it with water only before applying the progesterone cream...

 

[EIRE24]

Well the obvious, I assume, would be reduced local androgens and possibly systemically as well.. (i.e progesterone being chief inhibitor of 5-ar).

As far as another mechanism, I'm not quite sure.

I don't even wash my face often at all. I will sort of pre-wash it with water only before applying the progesterone cream...

That explanation is a bit over my head, i'm sorry but you are saying that androgens drop but I thought it was estrogen which caused the acne?

I think not washing your face that often is wise. The face should naturally be left to its own devises as the oils it produces are anti bacterial and moisturise the face naturally.

 

[Progesterone]

That explanation is a bit over my head, i'm sorry but you are saying that androgens drop but I thought it was estrogen which caused the acne?

I think not washing your face that often is wise. The face should naturally be left to its own devises as the oils it produces are anti bacterial and moisturise the face naturally.

Estrogen is not an androgen.

Progesterone reduces estrogen as well.

Clin Endocrinol (Oxf), 1980 Nov, 13(5):409-12, "Leydig cell tumour of the testis with gynaecomastia and elevated oestrogen, progesterone and prolactin levels: case report"

Plast Reconstr Surg, 2000 Oct, 106(5):1011-3, "Estrogen and progesterone receptors in gynecomastia"

 

[EIRE24]

Yes I knew it was not an androgen but I thought androgens would help acne, obviously I thought wrong.

 

[bohogirl]

I want to try progesterone and also thyroid again. A bit hesitant though.

Can progesterone cream give you acne?

I'm wondering if anyone has a clue as to why thyroid meds would cause painful acne before my period. I started taking Naturethroid in November. I stopped taking it November 20-25th, can't exactly remember when, I can count the pills I have left to know for sure. I got my period November 25th and didn't experience any before period painful breakouts. The next month, I got my period on December 23rd, and a bit before then is when I got painful cystic huge acne that left bigger than normal scars. I never experienced before period acne nor has my cystic acne ever been painful/sore. Only food triggers.

So I don't know if the actual medicine caused my acne or me abruptly stopping?

A lot of posts on the internet state that Synthroid/Levothyroxine gave people acne.

I'm not too knowledgeable about hormones, still learning.

 

[bohogirl]

Ok, I think I'm done with the doxy. I just refilled my prescription but for the last two days I've had panic/anxiety during the night. Tonight is worse in that I can't sleep, feeling hot, heart beating fast at times, and just weird altogether. Every time I fall asleep I wake up but in a panic. I don't believe antibiotics to be harmless anymore.

I'm going to lay offf of it tomorrow and see if I feel better.

 

[Amazoniac]

http://heraldopenaccess.us/fulltext...Therapy/Oxidative-Stress-in-Acne-Vulgaris.pdf

"Components of sebum, particularly squalene, exhibit enhanced comedogenicity when oxidized [19]. Squalene, which is specific to human sebum, protects skin surface from lipid peroxidation. Squalene is highly sensitive to oxidation. Both squalene and its oxidized products are at much higher levels in acne patients than in healthy individuals [20-23]. Benefit of the synergistic value of oral vitamins A and E to decrease lipid peroxidation in acne is observed [24]. Based on this observation, it has been suggested that inflammation in acne is a secondary event following lipid peroxidation [24]."

"Higher levels of squalene peroxides, products of squalene peroxidation and reduced vitamin E are noted in the sebum of acne patients [45]. Squalene peroxides reduce the important skin antioxidant GSH [46], have comedogenic properties, and initiate an inflammation cascade [7]. This cascade begins with exposure of peroxidated squalene to keratinocyte cells, stimulating inflammatory cytokine production and upregulation of lipoxygenase [47]. The synthesis of inflammatory chemoattractant leukotriene B4 increases as lipoxygenase increases, resulting in recruiting neutrophils to generate more ROS. Inhibition of this process will improve acne [48]."

"Vitamins A and C are typical small molecules, which reduce ROS through a direct reaction. Earlier studies have shown that vitamins A and C are beneficial [17]. A recent study used a topical application of green tea against acne [51]. Green tea is a well-studied mixture of natural antioxidants and is widely used one to scavenge ROS. The study shows that applying green tea lotion twice a day reduced total lesion count by 58% after 6 weeks. A similar study [52] shows that it was more effective than zinc sulfate topical in reduction of acne lesions after weeks. It may be noted that the mechanism of therapeutic action of green tea may not be attributed to its antioxidant function only. Anti-inflammatory ability, anti-microbial activity against P acnes and a potential to reduce sebum production through inhibition of 5-α-reductase may also be important contributing factors."

"Only a few studies show the therapeutic value of oral zinc against acne. One of the studies shows that zinc gluconate reduce total inflammatory lesion count by 57% after two months of treatment [53]. In another study, an oral combination of nicotinamide which support antioxidant pathway, zinc, copper and folic acid taken daily for eight weeks appears to be effective against acne [54]."

"Lactoferrin, a whey milk protein after removing precipitated casein, has been shown to have an antioxidant effect and have a prominent activity against inflammation in vitro and systemic effects on various inflammatory diseases."

Angels that might be interested: @DaveFoster @PakPik