Topical Isotretinoin

[squanch]

While I have the majority of my acne/skin issues under control by now, my skin still isn't exactly where I want it to be during the winter and when I'm drinking larger amounts of milk daily. It's pretty good without the milk, but I'm still trying to bulk up and need the extra liquid calories.
What do you guys think about the safety of topical isotretinoin? While I definitely wouldn't take it orally, it seems to be relatively safe as a topical treatment (and works great). Isotretinoin is occurring naturally in the body in small quantities and there does not seem to be a significant systemic absorption when applied topically:
Negligible systemic absorption of topical isotretinoin cream: implications for teratogenicity. - PubMed - NCBI
(they used ridiculously large amounts in that study)

Thoughts?

 

[marteagal]

Hi Skally, here is a very similar thread: Isotretinoin (accutane)
Hope, it helps.
I would prefer using retinyl palmitate, retinyl acetate, or retinol !

 

[Such_Saturation]

It's still gonna kill your sebum cells, is it not?

 

[squanch]

Hi Skally, here is a very similar thread: Isotretinoin (accutane)
Hope, it helps.
I would prefer using retinyl palmitate, retinyl acetate, or retinol !

Thanks for that.
I might try topical retinyl palmitate first

It's still gonna kill your sebum cells, is it not?

As far as I know there is no permanent change whatsoever since the dose in topical isotretinoin is so much lower than what you would use in oral therapy

 

[Such_Saturation]

Thanks for that.
I might try topical retinyl palmitate first


As far as I know there is no permanent change whatsoever since the dose in topical isotretinoin is so much lower than what you would use in oral therapy

But the local concentration?

 

[tobieagle]

Put a watery solution of taurine, aspirin and caffeine into a spray bottle.
Spray on your skin.
Best topical I have tried so far. Probably good for the scalp too.

 

[Diokine]

I cannot stress enough that you should stay far away from isotretinoin. I used to have very bad cystic acne, and also hidradenitis suppurativa. Look up follicular occlusion triad. I took a 6 month course of fairly high dose isotretinoin and it completely WRECKED me for years. It precipitated pretty severe OCD and gut problems. I honestly think it set me back probably 5 years as far as health and fitness go.

I have very few skin problems now. Of course vitamin A supplementation was key, but moreso overall metabolic support (especially thyroid.) You may want to severely reduce nightshades, they were a source of problems for me.

I know the article says that topical isotretinoin is not absorbed very well systemically, but I am sufficiently frightened of it to fully recommend you stay the hell away.

 

[Ulla]

Put a watery solution of taurine, aspirin and caffeine into a spray bottle.
Spray on your skin.
Best topical I have tried so far. Probably good for the scalp too.

Sorry if already answered somewhere else but I wonder the ratios/quantities of that diy spray? :)

 

[squanch]

But the local concentration?

For some reason, it does not have the same extreme drying effect on your skin like oral isotretinoin does. I would honestly be suprised if there was any permanent damage to the sebaceous glands, if you won't even have a huge effect on them while still using it topically.

Put a watery solution of taurine, aspirin and caffeine into a spray bottle.
Spray on your skin.
Best topical I have tried so far. Probably good for the scalp too.

Thanks, I've not tried that yet

I cannot stress enough that you should stay far away from isotretinoin. I used to have very bad cystic acne, and also hidradenitis suppurativa. Look up follicular occlusion triad. I took a 6 month course of fairly high dose isotretinoin and it completely WRECKED me for years. It precipitated pretty severe OCD and gut problems. I honestly think it set me back probably 5 years as far as health and fitness go.

I have very few skin problems now. Of course vitamin A supplementation was key, but moreso overall metabolic support (especially thyroid.) You may want to severely reduce nightshades, they were a source of problems for me.

I know the article says that topical isotretinoin is not absorbed very well systemically, but I am sufficiently frightened of it to fully recommend you stay the hell away.

I definitely do agree with you on the dangers of oral isotretinoin. I used it for a very short while and at a very low dose, which thankfully didn't do any permanent damage. I sitll felt extremely depressed and suicidal while using it, not a fun experience.
I was just hoping that topical isotretinoin would be a safer alternative, since I've never felt any negative side effects from it at all and it works great. Haven't used it in about 2 years though, I'm a bit more careful now than I was back then.

My skin is actually perfectly fine (with daily liver and oysters) if I get enough sun and don't drink any milk. Both is not possible at the moment though unfortunately.

 

[tobieagle]

I have no idea how much is necessary but I just use 1g aspririn,1g taurine, 1g caffeine disolved in 300 ml warm water and it works.
It's probably stronger than needed.

 

[Ulla]

Hm. What do you think that I would use a coffee instead of 1 mg caffeine and warm water?
thanks for quick reply :)

 

[tobieagle]

I spray it on my skin and let it absorb.
You could do it with coffee, but it's nasty.

 

[EIRE24]

While I have the majority of my acne/skin issues under control by now, my skin still isn't exactly where I want it to be during the winter and when I'm drinking larger amounts of milk daily. It's pretty good without the milk, but I'm still trying to bulk up and need the extra liquid calories.
What do you guys think about the safety of topical isotretinoin? While I definitely wouldn't take it orally, it seems to be relatively safe as a topical treatment (and works great). Isotretinoin is occurring naturally in the body in small quantities and there does not seem to be a significant systemic absorption when applied topically:
Negligible systemic absorption of topical isotretinoin cream: implications for teratogenicity. - PubMed - NCBI
(they used ridiculously large amounts in that study)

Thoughts?

What did you do to get the acne under control? I'm suffering with acne at the moment and it's really affecting my life!

 

[squanch]

What did you do to get the acne under control? I'm suffering with acne at the moment and it's really affecting my life!

1-2 oysters and a small piece of liver (turkey, duck, lamb... I try to rotate it, some animals have a lot of copper, others are relatively high in iron) every day + adequate sunshine and sleep. Lamb meat (I use cuts with the bone still in it) also seems to help, I assume because of the high zinc content.
I supplement b6 (p5p), magnesium bicarb, k2 and ndt.
Also avoiding certain foods (for me personally: milk, chocolate, citrus fruit, alcohol).

I ordered some vit a and vit e to see if it will allow me to keep on drinking milk without my skin getting worse.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

Also avoiding certain foods (for me personally: milk, chocolate, citrus fruit, alcohol).

Bummer...all of the Peat Staples

I took two rounds of Accutane, one in high school and one during my first year at university....triggered horrific depression, major OCD and anxiety. Years later, I developed multiple severe gut issues....just wondering if the isotretinoin could have played a role despite taking it so many years earlier?

 

[lindsay]

Have you tried eating cheese instead of drinking milk? It has good amounts of K2 in it, as well as vitamin A and calcium. And of course, saturated fat :) I didn't tolerate milk so well, so I stopped drinking it and focused on cheese (and cream in my coffee). That being said, I've never had acne and rarely get a zit, but I had bad eczema when I was younger - occasionally it comes back on my upper arms, but it went away recently. Keeping the gut clean is a huge part of skin care, I think. I don't know how you feel about herbs/essential oils, but my sister in law said that Frankincense oil worked really well on her breakouts. It's a natural antiseptic, so that makes sense. I used it once with a little witch hazel and it made my skin feel amazing. But it's pricey.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

Frankincense oil worked really well on her breakouts

AGREED!!! Frankincense is WONDERFUL. I've used it on huge subterranean zits, the kind that will surely leave a scar, dabbing it on full strength just before bed. It is powerfully anti-inflammatory, all it takes is a couple of nights and the huge cysts go down on their own leaving no mark. I've used one drop on a coated tongue too, to kill nasty mouth microbes....definitely gut bugs contribute to skin issues.

 

[squanch]

Have you tried eating cheese instead of drinking milk?

I have and it's awesome. Feeling great when I replace all milk with cheese and no skin issues.
It's just that I started weight lifting again and need about 4000kcal per day at the moment because I'm trying to gain weight. I don't have the appetite to eat that much unfortunately, 1 litre of milk per day really helps me here with the liquid calories.
I'm planning on dropping the milk again as soon as I'm at my desired weight and switching over to all cheese again. I was just hoping for some temporary fix until then that isn't to harmful.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I started weight lifting again and need about 4000kcal per day at the moment because I'm trying to gain weight. I don't have the appetite to eat that much unfortunately, 1 litre of milk per day really helps me here with the liquid calories.

What about ice cream? A pint is easy to squeeze in and is nearly 1000 calories.

 

[squanch]

What about ice cream? A pint is easy to squeeze in and is nearly 1000 calories.

I would be a bit worried about the fat though. I'm already at almost 50% calories coming from fat, not sure if throwing in a pint of ice cream would be a great idea