The Acne Puzzle Revealed!

[Luke530]

Luke530 stopped responding...

No, I've been around for years come on... why would I stop responding... I'm just busy, and trying to get back "into" the board. Reason I stopped posting a while ago is because the board has been very repetative, and it just stopped being fun. It went from informative to garbage a few years ago...

Plus, there is so much conflicting information and "oversensitive" information regarding supplements, nutrition, etc... that it's nice to get away and clear the mind. Amazingly, I have had better results and many more compliments (it terms of weightlifting and how I look) since then

Many on this board need to relax and not worry so much (sorry, needed to vent)

However, posts like this one give me a chance to maybe learn something new

Anyways,
Where do you get your information (outside of experience)?
I don't take offense to anything you have said.

Do you believe acne is not cause by overproductive oil glands?
I personally, do not believe skin damage or irritation cause "acne" - maybe pimples here and there, but not real acne.

I think that toxins can very well be expelled through the skin - no argument.
to what degree?
what if acne only happens on your face, not anywhere else?
what about testosterone (synthetic) and breakouts? Hormones, natural or synthetic, obviously can trigger acne - how? definately not due to diet.

yes, there are lots of causes, but to what degree is diet one of them?
like I said, people eat like crap, for chronic periods of time, are completely unhealthy, and have great skin.
some people eat very healthy, and break out like no tomorrow.
I have had people tell me - don't eat spicy foods, mustard, horseradish, etc... no grains, etc... well, I still do, and my acne is almost gone. still have some hyperpigmentation toward the back of my jaw line, but my skin looks pretty good compared to 6 months ago - no change in diet.

[Sir Benchalot]

i went to my dermatologist and she said diet has never been proven to have ANY effect on acne

[CY.]

i went to my dermatologist and she said diet has never been proven to have ANY effect on acne

Yes we talked about that in this thread. Your dermatologist is, simply said, misinformed. If you want the details, browse throught the nine or so pages and find the post.

[CY.]

[QUOTE=Luke530](<<<<QUOTE ISN'T WORKING GRRR!

No, I've been around for years come on... why would I stop responding... [/
QUOTE]

I was sneaky and looked at your profile and it showed when you were last seen, and you didn't respond on that day. Thats it

I'm just busy, and trying to get back "into" the board. Reason I stopped posting a while ago is because the board has been very repetative, and it just stopped being fun. It went from informative to garbage a few years ago...

Plus, there is so much conflicting information and "oversensitive" information regarding supplements, nutrition, etc... that it's nice to get away and clear the mind. Amazingly, I have had better results and many more compliments (it terms of weightlifting and how I look) since then

Many on this board need to relax and not worry so much (sorry, needed to vent)

Agreed.
Some of the stuff on this board just gives me a headache. Gotta use your common sense to sift through whats worthwhile.

However, posts like this one give me a chance to maybe learn something new

I hope I can help Perhaps ya can teach me something I didn't know as well.

Anyways,
Where do you get your information (outside of experience)?

As far as outside of experience, everything I learned would have been useless. Experience was the supporting pillar. I tested everything on myself to see if I would find results. I have put together information from hundreds of sites, as well as from a couple of herbal and health books (I'll get the title of those if ya want). Here's a couple websites that I personally like:

www.curezone.com/
Bizarre site. Kinda difficult to understand unless you're into health.

http://www.health911.com/remedies/rem_acne.htm
This site does a good job of summing up a lot of what I've learned.

I don't take offense to anything you have said.

Do you believe acne is not cause by overproductive oil glands?

The problem is deeper than oil glands. What's causing those glands to be overreactive? Most likely, hormones.

I personally, do not believe skin damage or irritation cause "acne" - maybe pimples here and there, but not real acne.

I agree completely. True acne is usually not caused by those factors.

I think that toxins can very well be expelled through the skin - no argument.
to what degree?

It depends. If your body is overloaded with toxins, it's trying to survive. If it cannot get those toxins out, you die. (I'm just explaining this generally here, with a rare case.) If your other organs cannot eliminate those toxins fast enough, the skin will have to make up as much as it can.

I'm just guessing now, but if your skin has a limit, when you reach that limit, and the rest of the body is at its limit, you will probably go into a coma or something. However, I really doubt this scenario will happen in real life because if you are that toxic, something else is going to go wrong first.

what if acne only happens on your face, not anywhere else?

Just from personal experience, I have never met someone with true acne that only has it on their face. As for why someone gets acne on their face, back, and chest instead of their whole body I have never been able to find. I have a couple theories:

1. The skin in that area is more sensitive and receptive to dihydrotestosterone and other hormones

2. Something to do with the lymphatic system

what about testosterone (synthetic) and breakouts? Hormones, natural or synthetic, obviously can trigger acne - how? definately not due to diet.

Yes, natural and synthetic hormones can aggrivate acne. In addition to causing our body to produce more oil, hormones also cause other processes to occur or increase that contribute to acne. These include:

1. Increased cellular debris - Both externally and internally, the amount of cellular debris increases. Externally, hormones increase the rate at which our skin replenishes itself. Therefor, more dead skin cells are shed and can block a pore. Internally, excess hormones cause cells to replenish themselves as well, and the old dead cells are discarded and moved to the lymphatic system. However, some of the internal debris is eliminated through the skin, and bacteria flourish on it.

2. Increases the rate at which body and facial hair grows. This may not be a problem for some, however if an insufficient pool of nutrients needed to build the hair is not available, a poorly-formed hair can shed particles as it grows and cause a pimple when combined with the problems described above.

3. When under stress, the body releases hydrocortisone (cortisol), which is an androgenic hormone that affects the skin similarly to dihydrotestosterone.

It is true that in most cases excess hormones are not released by diet, however you can use diet to control them.

Essential fatty acids have the ability to prevent testosterone from changing to dihydrotestosterone. Foods that contain essential fatty acids include: nuts, seeds, fish, and some fruit. Flax seed oil is one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids. If you'd like to learn how EFAs control hormones, I explained somewhere back in the thread.

yes, there are lots of causes, but to what degree is diet one of them?
like I said, people eat like crap, for chronic periods of time, are completely unhealthy, and have great skin.
some people eat very healthy, and break out like no tomorrow.

As it's been said many times in the thread, everyone's different. Some people's bodies have the capability and capacity to handle more crap than others.

You must also address the cause of acne. For example, if someone's allergic to spinach and breaks out from it (just an example, i doubt that spinach is an acne allergen), and they eat spinach as part of a very strict and healthy diet, they will still break out.

Same thing goes for hormones. If a diet is very good, and you don't address hormones, you are not going to see the results you want.

I have had people tell me - don't eat spicy foods, mustard, horseradish, etc... no grains, etc... well, I still do, and my acne is almost gone. still have some hyperpigmentation toward the back of my jaw line, but my skin looks pretty good compared to 6 months ago - no change in diet.

Just wondering, how old are you? If you are leaving puberty, your hormones may be normalizing, and your acne will recede if you have hormone induced acne.

Hope I cleared some stuff up

[trainTilfailure]

lol the best thing for acne, IMO is to just grow out of it naturally. all those acne creams didnt really work for me, so i stopped using it and about 6months it cleared on its own

[CY.]

lol the best thing for acne, IMO is to just grow out of it naturally. all those acne creams didnt really work for me, so i stopped using it and about 6months it cleared on its own

Unfortunately, some people cannot grow out of acne. Remember, acne has many many causes, and they cannot be treated the same way. Acne from some causes (i.e. sometimes hormones) will clear on its own, whereas acne from other causes (i.e. allergies) will not clear until the person takes action.

[CY.]

Update: Jojoba oil seems to work quite well for red spots.

[Luke530]

Just wondering, how old are you? If you are leaving puberty, your hormones may be normalizing, and your acne will recede if you have hormone induced acne.

Hope I cleared some stuff up

21 - i dunno how much puberty may be left, lol

The acne, yes, real acne, that I had for a good part of 2006 was ONLY on my face. My skin is still healing, slowly, but surely.

My argument, in the beginning, was that diet has little/nothing to do with real acne. Unless someone has a food allergy or bad reaction - carbs/fats/proteins will not cause acne. Maybe other ingredients/chemicals in certain foods can trigger breakouts, or put additional stress on the body for someone who has acne, but there is no way to prove diet is a sole cause in the triggering or cure of acne.

[CY.]

21 - i dunno how much puberty may be left, lol

The acne, yes, real acne, that I had for a good part of 2006 was ONLY on my face. My skin is still healing, slowly, but surely.

Yea, you're probably leaving puberty, and your hormones are beginning to level out. Therefor, you probably had hormone induced acne, and that is over and is now healing.

My argument, in the beginning, was that diet has little/nothing to do with real acne. Unless someone has a food allergy or bad reaction - carbs/fats/proteins will not cause acne. Maybe other ingredients/chemicals in certain foods can trigger breakouts, or put additional stress on the body for someone who has acne, but there is no way to prove diet is a sole cause in the triggering or cure of acne.

Diet is not the sole cause in triggering acne. However, diet can soley cure acne. Diet won't work for everyone, but it should work for most people (and most major causes of acne) if a person follows the nescesary diet.

Carbs, fat and protein are not created equal. Obviouisly there are healthy and unhealthy versions of each (i.e Healthy: Olive oil/Unhealthy: Hydrogenated Cottonseed Oil; Sucrose/Polysaccharides). Again, whether or not the healthy and unhealthy macronutrients affect your acne is dependent on your body. Many people (if not most people) can handle unhealthy food without it leading to acne.

When someone uses a diet based approach to curing acne and it fails to work, usually a) they didn't follow the diet strictly or correctly; or b) they have set up an inappropriate diet for the cause of their acne. (i.e. spinach example in my above post, and the example of hormones).

How else would you like me to prove?

[CY.]

One of my friends bought an e-book called "Acne Cured" or something like that and gave it to me to review.

I was amazed, these people practically copied my brain and published it. Most of the things I have learned and even some of my favourite products are in that book. They did miss out on my favourite herb saw palmetto, but besides that, it had just about everything that can help acne that I know about on a diet based approach. Quite strange.

Now that I think about it, I wish this book had been out a few years ago... it would have saved me hundreds of hours of research.

I'm not sure how much it costs, but if you're on this forum, that info is free here in this thread Give it a try if you want

[ElMariachi]

One of my friends bought an e-book called "Acne Cured" or something like that and gave it to me to review.

I was amazed, these people practically copied my brain and published it. Most of the things I have learned and even some of my favourite products are in that book. They did miss out on my favourite herb saw palmetto, but besides that, it had just about everything that can help acne that I know about on a diet based approach. Quite strange.

Now that I think about it, I wish this book had been out a few years ago... it would have saved me hundreds of hours of research.

I'm not sure how much it costs, but if you're on this forum, that info is free here in this thread Give it a try if you want

A patient once let me look through that. The saw palmetto is definitely in there. Its a variation of a popular acne diet with a combination of other various diets.

[CY.]

A patient once let me look through that. The saw palmetto is definitely in there. Its a variation of a popular acne diet with a combination of other various diets.

Hmm...I'm curious...where can I look through some of these 'popular acne diets?'

[chroniclift]

Heres my experience.

They put me on antibiotics and it cleared up my bad area...my chin and jawline. Got off them, came right back. Went on em, etc etc.

Eventually I wised up, pulled out my allergy sheet from years ago, and found that Im allergic to milk, cheese, eggs, etc.

Ive been avoiding those products for quite a while....and Ive been clear in that area. Once and a while Ill slip, and Ill get a slight breakout. I have to avoid that stuff. Ive been taking mutli's WITHOUT iodine, EFAs and just plain ol watching the diet.

Im a 100% firm believe in diet has correlation to acne.

[esquire415]

Interesting thread, i'm just confused by big words like "problemental" and "infectionous". Maybe I need to brush up on my English because I'm not the goodest...sorry, the bestest, with the language. I should of...I mean, should have paid attention more to my English teacher.

Anyway, isn't Fish Oil better than Flax seed oil for EFA? I've read that the omega-3 fatty acids found in flax (ALA) are not the same as those in fish (EPA and DHA). It is harder for your body to get the Omega 3 out of the ALA fatty acids. How much one has to take for acne? I only take one softgel a day as a supplement which gives me 300mg EPA and 200mg DHA. I get the Trader Darwin's brand by Trader Joe's which is of highest quality and the cheapest yet it's molecularly distilled. The following brands have high Omega 3 content also:

http://www.vitacost.com/NSI-Mega-EFA-Omega-3-EPA-DHA
http://www.vitacost.com/Carlson-Super-Omega-3-Fish-Oils
http://www.vitacost.com/Twinlab-Mega-Twin-EPA-Fish-Oil

I'm not sure if the "Acne Cured" ebook was the same one that I downloaded for free one time, thanks to someone who posted a PDF link to it. That was a long book and I accidentally printed it in our office in dbl space so it was 2 inches thick! Good thing everyone has already gone home.

Anyway, it spoke of detoxification, diet/eating habits, taking supplements such as olive leaf extract, antioxidants like acai berry, minerals like zinc, and even the ZenMed Derma Cleanse pills.

[CY.]

Interesting thread, i'm just confused by big words like "problemental" and "infectionous". Maybe I need to brush up on my English because I'm not the goodest...sorry, the bestest, with the language. I should of...I mean, should have paid attention more to my English teacher.

Unfortunately, some people are less careful with their language basics than others.

Anyway, isn't Fish Oil better than Flax seed oil for EFA? I've read that the omega-3 fatty acids found in flax (ALA) are not the same as those in fish (EPA and DHA). It is harder for your body to get the Omega 3 out of the ALA fatty acids.

Yes thats true, I covered it back on one of the other pages in this massive thread. The EPA and DHA fatty acids in fish oil are more beneficial to fighting acne than ALA fatty acids. However, some ALA fatty acids (about one tenth of them I believe) are converted to EPA and DHA for use in the body. Also, ALAs have their own benefits to fighting acne. Because I'm vegetarian, I take flax oil, and I must take a lot more of it to get the same effect as fish oil. Thanks for bringing up this point.

How much one has to take for acne? I only take one softgel a day as a supplement which gives me 300mg EPA and 200mg DHA. I get the Trader Darwin's brand by Trader Joe's which is of highest quality and the cheapest yet it's molecularly distilled.

From personal experience, I take 3-5 tablespoons of flaxseed oil per day. Thats 42-70 1000mg capsules of flaxseed oil, which is quite a bit. I buy unencapsulated liquid because it's much cheaper.

If one were to take an essential fatty acid blend, or fish oil, they would probably not need as much as I take.

I'm not sure if the "Acne Cured" ebook was the same one that I downloaded for free one time, thanks to someone who posted a PDF link to it. That was a long book and I accidentally printed it in our office in dbl space so it was 2 inches thick! Good thing everyone has already gone home.

Anyway, it spoke of detoxification, diet/eating habits, taking supplements such as olive leaf extract, antioxidants like acai berry, minerals like zinc, and even the ZenMed Derma Cleanse pills.

The book my friend gave me to review was pretty brief and concise, totaling to only several pages. I don't remember it containing some of the goodies you mention, such as olive leaf extract (one of my all-time favorite herbal extracts. Just had to throw that in), acai, and the Derma Cleanse pills. He also had to pay for it, so I doubt it's the same book.

[CY.]

Heres my experience.

They put me on antibiotics and it cleared up my bad area...my chin and jawline. Got off them, came right back. Went on em, etc etc.

Eventually I wised up, pulled out my allergy sheet from years ago, and found that Im allergic to milk, cheese, eggs, etc.

Ive been avoiding those products for quite a while....and Ive been clear in that area. Once and a while Ill slip, and Ill get a slight breakout. I have to avoid that stuff. Ive been taking mutli's WITHOUT iodine, EFAs and just plain ol watching the diet.

Im a 100% firm believe in diet has correlation to acne.

Thanks for sharing this!

[b-rizzle]

I haven't Spent the time to read all the responses, but really, all this is untrue. WE Are TEENS. Our Hormones are the only thing that leads to acne. And the only cure= accutane. Which doesnt have anyside affects unless you are already messed up.

[CY.]

I haven't Spent the time to read all the responses, but really, all this is untrue. WE Are TEENS. Our Hormones are the only thing that leads to acne. And the only cure= accutane. Which doesnt have anyside affects unless you are already messed up.

Exactly, we are teens. Because of this, you must address acne and diet for a teenager.

You should have read the rest of the thread, we covered diet and hormones extensively.

[Sanj-]

I haven't Spent the time to read all the responses, but really, all this is untrue. WE Are TEENS. Our Hormones are the only thing that leads to acne. And the only cure= accutane. Which doesnt have anyside affects unless you are already messed up.

accutane isnt always a "CURE", a lot of peoples acne comes back even worst when their off of it.

[GJONES3334]

This is a little off topic but please help me, How can I get rid of the bags under my eyes, I've had them for years and sleep has nothing to do with it.

[CY.]

This is a little off topic but please help me, How can I get rid of the bags under my eyes, I've had them for years and sleep has nothing to do with it.

Could you please give me a complete sample of your diet? It will help me quickly determine a cause.

[GJONES3334]

Could you please give me a complete sample of your diet? It will help me quickly determine a cause.

3-4 bottles of water and like 3 ham sandwiches with wheat bread and canned tuna. sometimes i drink a lot of juice

[GJONES3334]

its like that almost everyday, are you there

[CY.]

3-4 bottles of water and like 3 ham sandwiches with wheat bread and canned tuna. sometimes i drink a lot of juice

More water certainly wouldn't hurt.

Juice is good, in moderation. It is healthy, but it is still high in sugar, and sugar makes the baggy eye situation worse.

If that's all you eat, then it's no wonder you have baggy eyes. You need much more fresh food in your diet becasue from what you showed me, all your food is pretty much cooked. Add some salads, fresh and dried fruits, and nuts. Also, avoid heavy meats like pork and beef

I shouldn't have to say that smoking/alcohol is a big contributor. Caffine also contributes to baggy eyes.

Your diet already looks clean, so I shouldn't have to tell you to avoid the junk (fast food, refined oils, sucrose).


Now that we've covered diet, let's move on to some more specific stuff.

In many cases of chronic baggy eyes (this is a funny sounding disorder), bad digestion is the main cause. I suggest you wipe your digestive system clean with a detox.

In this case, a simple detox kit is all that's nescesarry. Stop by target and pick up a 'Whole Body Cleanse' detox kit. I also like Zand's detox kit, but I can only find that online. These are safe and should really help. Just make sure you are drinking your water!

After the detox, there are a number of things to get your digestive system working well:

1. Digestive Enzyme Supplement - Taken before a meal once or twice a day, this supplement will add digestive enzymes to your body, which will not only aid digestion, but your body can break down the enzymes and use them for other purposes, and that will also beneifit baggy eyes.

2. Herb: Milk Thistle - Milk thistle is a powerful herb that has many purposes, but it specifically boosts the liver. By doing so, it assists and improves all body processes, and improves digestion. Both the detox kits I listed have milk thistle as part of the regimen, so you should wait a week after completing the detox before starting milk thistle. Milk thistle is an herb that requires cycling. This means that you will have to take a break from the herb and stop taking it for a period. I recommend 2 weeks on and 1 week off, or 5 days on and 3 days off, depending on what you want to do. Other herbs that benefit the liver will help as well. Examples are garlic, ginger, tumeric, rosemary, basil, schizandra, and lycium.

3. Essential Fatty Acids - you seem to eat a lot of tuna, so you should be getting enough EFAs for baggy eyes, although you may consider taking a flaxseed oil supplement.

4. Aloe Vera - can be taken both internally and applied topically. Internally, aloe vera boosts the digestive system. We all know of aloe vera's topical power. It is an extrodinary skin healer. A very very small amount of aloe vera gel (you can buy this at CVS) can be applied to the lower eyelid. The vapors sting a little bit, so you might want to keep your eyes closed for a few minutes.

5. A well-known solution to baggy eyes is to apply moist tea-bags to the eyes for 10-15 mins a day. A warm moist washcloth works as well, but you don't get the benefits of the phytochemicals in the tea. Green tea works well with this method.

Give this stuff a try and I hope this helps!

[GJONES3334]

More water certainly wouldn't hurt.

Juice is good, in moderation. It is healthy, but it is still high in sugar, and sugar makes the baggy eye situation worse.

If that's all you eat, then it's no wonder you have baggy eyes. You need much more fresh food in your diet becasue from what you showed me, all your food is pretty much cooked. Add some salads, fresh and dried fruits, and nuts. Also, avoid heavy meats like pork and beef

I shouldn't have to say that smoking/alcohol is a big contributor. Caffine also contributes to baggy eyes.

Your diet already looks clean, so I shouldn't have to tell you to avoid the junk (fast food, refined oils, sucrose).


Now that we've covered diet, let's move on to some more specific stuff.

In many cases of chronic baggy eyes (this is a funny sounding disorder), bad digestion is the main cause. I suggest you wipe your digestive system clean with a detox.

In this case, a simple detox kit is all that's nescesarry. Stop by target and pick up a 'Whole Body Cleanse' detox kit. I also like Zand's detox kit, but I can only find that online. These are safe and should really help. Just make sure you are drinking your water!

After the detox, there are a number of things to get your digestive system working well:

1. Digestive Enzyme Supplement - Taken before a meal once or twice a day, this supplement will add digestive enzymes to your body, which will not only aid digestion, but your body can break down the enzymes and use them for other purposes, and that will also beneifit baggy eyes.

2. Herb: Milk Thistle - Milk thistle is a powerful herb that has many purposes, but it specifically boosts the liver. By doing so, it assists and improves all body processes, and improves digestion. Both the detox kits I listed have milk thistle as part of the regimen, so you should wait a week after completing the detox before starting milk thistle. Milk thistle is an herb that requires cycling. This means that you will have to take a break from the herb and stop taking it for a period. I recommend 2 weeks on and 1 week off, or 5 days on and 3 days off, depending on what you want to do. Other herbs that benefit the liver will help as well. Examples are garlic, ginger, tumeric, rosemary, basil, schizandra, and lycium.

3. Essential Fatty Acids - you seem to eat a lot of tuna, so you should be getting enough EFAs for baggy eyes, although you may consider taking a flaxseed oil supplement.

4. Aloe Vera - can be taken both internally and applied topically. Internally, aloe vera boosts the digestive system. We all know of aloe vera's topical power. It is an extrodinary skin healer. A very very small amount of aloe vera gel (you can buy this at CVS) can be applied to the lower eyelid. The vapors sting a little bit, so you might want to keep your eyes closed for a few minutes.

5. A well-known solution to baggy eyes is to apply moist tea-bags to the eyes for 10-15 mins a day. A warm moist washcloth works as well, but you don't get the benefits of the phytochemicals in the tea. Green tea works well with this method.

Give this stuff a try and I hope this helps!

thank you, whats a good digestive enzyme supplement

[CY.]

I use 'NOW brand Plant Enzymes.'

[CY.]

UPDATE:
I bought Wallgreens brand Glycolic Acid AHA lotion (8%/70%). Combined with Jojoba Oil to heal and moisturize the skin, red marks seem to be fading fast.

[f1erce]

I've been fighting acne since 15 years old... I started with topical's such as Proactive and other BP/SA based products.

Over the years I have added things and removed things from my regimen to perfect MY skin.

1) Strict diet. I cut all forms of dairy out of my diet for many weeks to test if it affected my skin, only to notice MORE than skin benefits, including less mucus (easier breathing) and generally feeling better. I also cut out gluten from my diet (breads, pastas, etc.) I purchase gluten-free pasta from Whole Foods which contains 100% organic brown rice. I do not have a craving for bread anymore, but I did buy Ezekiel bread (organic sprouted grains) when I craved. Organic ezekiel raisin bread + cinnamin + almond butter = tastey, acne-safe treat for me. The only time I feel left out is at restaurants when they bust out the bread and butter before the meal. Ouch. Basically, I'm eating like a lactose-intolerant celiac diseased man. Bahaha, you get used to it and start loving the foods you eat. (I'd put my money where my mouth is when I say I could make you a bowl of oats with a collaboration of assorted fruits and little special ingredients that would be TASTIER than anything on a Domino's menu).

2) E-F-MOTHERF*CKING-A's. Do I have to mention these? I take 6g/day from softgels. I might switch to the oil&spoon method soon.

2) Vitamin-A (Beta-carotene form). I used to juice carrots and make one tall glass of carrot juice a day, which GREATLY helped my acne, but my palms started changing color (also known as Carotenemia)... now, my beta-carotene intake consists of sweet potatoes and occasional carrots. Anything orange is generally good, guys... DON'T GO EATING PUMPKIN PIES THOUGH :P

3) Vitamin B-5. I started with the 10g/day megadose and slowly moved down. I take about 3g a day still because I buy 600g for $18 so its no big deal to pay for. I might cut it out entirely.

4) Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), which is an organic sulfur compound belonging to a class of chemicals known as sulfones. It occurs naturally in some primitive plants and is present in small amounts in many foods and beverages. It's mostly taken for joint pain (which has proven AWESOME for me in the past, greatly reduced soreness in my joints when doing Rippetoe's starter program and squatting who-knows-how-many times ) I take ~3-5g/day in powder form and even if I wasn't acne-prone I'd still take it.

5) I currently take 2 caps of Sesamin a day as well, which has anti-inflammatory properties. After recent research of these I might cut it out from my regimen.

6) A happy, busy, fulfilling, sociable lifestyle. Did you know smiling (even in front of your computer, by yourself) for 30 second actually makes you happier? A chemical reaction actually takes place. Download some Bill Hicks, Chris Rock, Dave Attel, Dane Cook, George Carlin, and kick it back man! Don't let acne **** up your self-esteem, it's a ditch thats hard to come out of because theres a negative chain reaction with stress and depression.

One thing that REALLY helped me was to remove TV from my life and replace it with self-improvement reading. Learn something new every week. Here are some things that I have learned so far JUST from replacing my TV time:

Mnemonics. (read up on this, helped my grades in school tenfold)
Skateboarding. (I landed a heelflip bahaha)
Basic guitar.
Neuro-linguistic programming.
Cold-reading and palm-reading.
Storytelling. People will LOVE you if you pick this skill up. For a good example of a master story-teller, watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgYhLIThTvk.
Social dynamics and pick-up arts. (I get 3-4 girls phone numbers every time I go out clubbing)
and currently I'm studying lucid dreaming.. I'm really excited about this one.

Woah woah glad I caught myself... this post went from acne tips to my fascinations with my self-improvement journey. Sorry for rambling, I get carried away with this kind of ****.

I never really go back to acne-related threads anymore because not many people are open minded to the internal aspects of it.. but because you guys managed to bust out 9 well-read pages, I thought id take the time to share.

-Ryan

[creampuff18]

Dieting does not help acne in a 17 year old boy such as myself

ITS CAUSED BY HORMONESSSSSSSS

[Mr. Wacko]

So I have high testosterone? ...So if I masterbate more will that mean my acne will slowly diminish? (serious)