Severe Acne Caused by Stevia?

kelsiehoagland

About a week after I started using Stevia, my acne became out of control. I had horrendous cystic type acne on my forehead and chin and it wouldn't stop. I thought it was my birth control, so I switched to Yaz because it's supposed to help with acne and it didn't do much at all. Recently I looked back on when the acne started and noticed it started right after I switched to stevia from agave/honey. I quit using stevia a couple days ago and my acne is FINALLY clearing up (it started mid June).

Has anyone else had this problem with stevia??

I'm actually pretty sad because I loved the flavor that stevia has and, of course, the lack of calories =P

mursey

I have cystic acne and actually just came back from the dermatologist today. She has never ever mentioned stevia. I will tell you that I have done tons of research on adult cystic acne and it's my opinion that it has absolutely nothing to do with diet, especially since I have had it when I was a vegetarian, and now when I'm totally opposite and eat organic low carb foods including organic no-hormone meat. Nothing topical has ever worked, nor diet. Cystic acne can be hormonal. It's very stubborn, and I do get times when it's bad and when it is not so bad. I've done Accutane and now I'm trying spironolactone. Good luck to you, I doubt it's stevia.

I did hear that honey is good for skin, didn't help me enough but maybe for you it's the honey that was helping? I mean, I doubt it but I don't know everything so .. .

kelsiehoagland

I have cystic acne and actually just came back from the dermatologist today. She has never ever mentioned stevia. I will tell you that I have done tons of research on adult cystic acne and it's my opinion that it has absolutely nothing to do with diet, especially since I have had it when I was a vegetarian, and now when I'm totally opposite and eat organic low carb foods including organic no-hormone meat. Nothing topical has ever worked, nor diet. Cystic acne can be hormonal. It's very stubborn, and I do get times when it's bad and when it is not so bad. I've done Accutane and now I'm trying spironolactone. Good luck to you, I doubt it's stevia.

I did hear that honey is good for skin, didn't help me enough but maybe for you it's the honey that was helping? I mean, I doubt it but I don't know everything so .. .

I haven't switched back to honey, I'm just not using any sweetener at all. Maybe it worked for keeping my skin clear to begin with. I know that there's nothing else in my diet that's causing acne like this. When I was 15 I was, what I like to call, a junk food vegan. I lived off of ramen, chips, soda, crap, garbage, etc. and now I eat very healthy and my skin has gotten ****ty. My lady doctor said that she doesn't think it's hormonal because BC isn't helping. Oi vey.

dls06

I was always told it was hormonal.

mursey

Birth control pills didn't help me either. But acne on the chin, jawline, or mouth is an indicator of hormonal acne, although the forehead is not. Some people (like a good friend of mine and myself) have very stubborn cystic acne. Birth control pills help some acne but not really stubborn acne. I have tried several brands and none of them worked for me. My sister has it too and we don't eat the same stuff. She got it after being pregnant, so that was hormonal, I have it without being pregnant, I'm just "lucky" .. ha ha.

Sometimes that stuff just flares up and you can't figure out why. Stress, hormones, genetics, who knows? By seeing my sister's acne I am sold that it's genetic, at least in part.

kelsiehoagland

Birth control pills didn't help me either. But acne on the chin, jawline, or mouth is an indicator of hormonal acne, although the forehead is not. Some people (like a good friend of mine and myself) have very stubborn cystic acne. Birth control pills help some acne but not really stubborn acne. I have tried several brands and none of them worked for me. My sister has it too and we don't eat the same stuff. She got it after being pregnant, so that was hormonal, I have it without being pregnant, I'm just "lucky" .. ha ha.

Sometimes that stuff just flares up and you can't figure out why. Stress, hormones, genetics, who knows? By seeing my sister's acne I am sold that it's genetic, at least in part.

That's all really interesting. Maybe the breakout is just over because summer's mostly over and it's just a coincidence that it's calming down after I quit using stevia. I just found it odd that it got SO bad right after I started using stevia. It was very mild on my chin and I only had a couple cystic ones on my chin. I had 10 or more on my forehead at all times. So bad that they gave me migraines. Right now I have one cystic zit on my forehead, a whitehead and some black heads on my forehead as well and like 3 normal whiteheads on my chin. I used to have the most beautiful skin

kelsiehoagland

And I also have a little patch of acne right on the side of my lip. Just ugly little whiteheads and I think there's like 5 of them. Is that a sign of hormonal acne?
Before the cystic acne started, I had bumps on my forehead. Just flesh colored tiny bumps all over and for the longest time. I wonder if the breakout was just because whatever nastiness was in those bumps was surfacing.
MAN, this is a really sexy conversation. I don't know much about acne (obviously, and my insurance won't let me see a dermatologist anymore), so thanks a lot for helping me

alisahanes

I know its been a couple years since you posted this, but OMG. I started using stevia in the raw about 10 days ago in my coffee and my cystic acne is OUT OF CONTROL. I was trying to figure out what I was doing differently that would cause this horrendous breakout; everyday one or two. And the only thing Ive introduced is the stevia. Im cutting out of my diet as of today. Thanks for this post.

Chrisia2

Alisahanes, I am with you! I started using stevia in the raw and got acne. And I ate very clean diet avoiding diary, sugar in any form, wheat and gluten, and caffeine. As soon as I stopped using stevia, my acne disappeared in a few days!

fruttibiscotti

I have seen many articles on Truvia and Stevia In The Raw causing problems, as well as the companies who make them falsely advertising them as sugar free products when they actually contain more sugar than stevia. This results in high blood sugar in diabetics and problems with skin, etc. Here's an example article:

http://owndoc.com/stevia/truvia-making-people-sick-but-real-stevia-still-illegal/

ldrosophila

what type of stevia were you using? Wonder if it has some phytoestrogens in it?

cascass_fitnessbabe

OH MY GOSH! So I am all about fitness & eating a really clean diet, I don't rarely eat meat and don't eat dairy. I have recently been so confused as to why I have been breaking out so much.... I'm talking horrible and always on my jawline which I had never had happen before, especially because it was cystic acne which I also had never had before. It's 100 percent from the stevia, I'm so mad do not consume STEVIA !!

meliad

WOW!! I am so glad I found this. I started drink stevia before Christmas and also broke out really bad. I thought it was stress and the extra cookies and rich foods I was eating. I also changed my face cleanser. I have been under acne attack ever since. I changed my diet and cleansing routine back to normal but not the stevia.

RedRoseElis

I believe that some acne is caused by food. In my case, if I eat sugary foods, I break out. If I eat veggies and fruit, especially watermelon and sweet potatoes, my skin clears up. I use to be a 'junk food' vegan too, and my acne was bad back then. But now that I am a 'healthy' vegan and eat veggies and fruit, my acne is way better. I think everybody is different and you should listen to your body. Stevia may have been the cause of your acne, because even though it has no calories it can still spike up your sugar levels, which can cause acne. Just my opinion At least it's clearing up!

SulfatetheNen

The same thing happened to me after using Stevia for about a week! I suddenly starting breaking out and getting more blackheads than I ever had in my life. When I thought about anything I had been doing differently, I realized that it all started when I started using Stevia. I'm not going to use it anymore and I'm hoping that my skin will clear up soon.

chevonne84

I am SO glad someone posted about Stevia causing acne. Last year I started using it in my coffee instead of sweeteners. I started breaking out for months on end with terrible cystic acne! I went to a dermatologist who prescribed all kinds of meds. Instead of taking them I stopped the stevia. It took 4 weeks for my face to fully clear up from 6 months of terrible cystic acne.
Two weeks ago I started having protein shakes. All of a sudden I noticed tiny pimpled in my problems areas. Today I looked at the label to find that one of the last ingrediants on the list is Stevia! I can't believe it stopping immediately!

Mack5001

For me, my cystic acne is 100% caused by diet. Consuming Stevia, Pepsi (not Coke), certain coffees (Starbucks), tea, and milk chocolate always results in a cystic acne bump the following day. It is like clockwork and never fails to happen. And if I don't consume any of these items, my face never breaks out with cystic acne.

I'm actually pretty sad too about Stevia causing me this issue. Like the original poster, I love the flavor of it when I am looking for a zero calorie sweetener.

If left along a cystic acne bump will linger on my face for months. I have found that massive doses of L-Lysine (2,000 mg every four hours) will kill it within a day or two. My mother can keep her bumps at bay by taking 500 mg of L-Lysine daily. Sadly, I have read that L-Lysine will work for only about 1/2 the people with cystic acne.

Before I found out about L-Lysine, my Dermatologists gave me BenzaClin. As soon as I felt the first inkling of a cystic acne bump, if I put a large gob on it that night for three or four nights, I could kill it. However, if I waited a day or so to start this regiment, the bump will be around much much longer. Killing the bump in its infancy seems to be the trick with BenzaClin. However, if one got away from me, I could always go to the Dermatologists and get a shot of Cortisone in the cystic acne bump (as long as it's not around the eyes) and it would die within a day or so.

crystalewhite

Insulin spikes make me break out. Took 20+ years and a few dermotologists and lots of at home trials to figure it out. I don't use stevia so I'm not sure how much that really makes your blood sugar spike.

Also, dairy and soy products also make my cystic acne flare up. I switched to almond milk after drinking soy for years and I had a huge drop off in those huge painful, cystic jawline breakouts. I don't remember the last time I had one.

This is great for me because I HATE getting cortisone shots in those.

kimkimcoleman

Just have to share b/c I have recently found something that works for me so maybe it can help someone else. I am 35, have had acne for over 20 years. Tried everything, diet, accutane, retin a...everything. But I ordered a cream from Ebay or Amazon called Skinoren cream from other countries (but made by Bayer in Italy). It works for me, no side effects except for a little stinging at first when you first start using it. Off topic maybe but worth a try for about $20.

DaniDay

I felt like I needed to post here (even though this thread is almost 2 years old) because I'm reading it in 2016, and after all the research I've been doing online for my acne, I think it would be helpful to post a bit of what I've found for the next reader that comes along.

1) Acne comes in various forms and from various causes, some is hormonal, some is from your body lacking something it needs, some is due to your body having a slight (I'm gonna call it) allergy to something - i.e. Something you eat, drink, or use topically. So therefore, no solution is "one-size-fits-all".

2) Acne (other than the topical caused ones) is definitely related to your diet (especially hormonal ones). Saying it isn't is like saying the fruit from a plant isn't related to the seed because it's not a full grown plant yet.

The stuff you ingest (both orally and sometimes topically) plays a vital role in maintaining your bodies systems. That includes hormone production.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and explain all the details and such - my hand would fall off before I could write all that - but what I will say is, I have acne. I know that I could go the dermatologist route and probably have clear skin in a month (done that before) but I've also realized that when I went that route, I was masking the problem not solving it and I was masking it with something that might cause other, more serious problems. The proof for me was when I stopped the dermatologist route, my acne was far worse than when I started. I realized by masking it, I was allowing it to grow without fixing it.

Now, I'm watching my diet, taking supplements to fulfill nutrients I can't get otherwise, using a simple and natural skin care routine, and currently researching herbs and nutrition as related to balancing my hormones. Let me tell you, I started this with horrible acne all over my face, now its far less. Mainly my chin/mouth area all the time and a couple spots on my cheeks and forehead around that time of the month.

I've seen steady improvement as I've worked to find what my body needs on a deeper level, not just a topical one.

I know the natural route isn't for everyone, I fully admit its a ton of work (hours of reading and researching and planning and tweeking my lifestyle), and it takes quite a long time for results, but I also know that I would rather suffer from the skin issues a bit longer and actually heal my body than play guinea pig for another dermatologist.

Anyway, just figured I should share a bit so that those stumbling upon this thread might have another perspective to consider.

Koniann5

Stevia gives me cystic acne. I am 100% sure. I stop using it completely for month's and am fine. When I try adding Stevia to my diet I have cystic acne the next day. It''s usually under my chin.

Whitezombiegirl

dls06 wrote: »

I was always told it was hormonal.

Stevia can have a hormonal effect.

vladv

I know this is an old post but I thought I'd share my brief experience. I am on day 15 on my keto diet and 5 days ago, I started incorporating stevia into my diet to sweeten my coffee and lemon juice and today I am noticing acne all over my forehead. So just a heads up to all those thinking about using stevia.

CorneliusPhoton

vladv wrote: »

I know this is an old post but I thought I'd share my brief experience. I am on day 15 on my keto diet and 5 days ago, I started incorporating stevia into my diet to sweeten my coffee and lemon juice and today I am noticing acne all over my forehead. So just a heads up to all those thinking about using stevia.

Going keto is also a fairly significant dietary change for most people. Probably a lot more significant than using a packet of stevia or two. What have you incorporated into your diet as your source of fat? Have you never had acne on our forehead before? Any other new habits? Exercise?

psuLemon

CorneliusPhoton wrote: »

vladv wrote: »

I know this is an old post but I thought I'd share my brief experience. I am on day 15 on my keto diet and 5 days ago, I started incorporating stevia into my diet to sweeten my coffee and lemon juice and today I am noticing acne all over my forehead. So just a heads up to all those thinking about using stevia.

Going keto is also a fairly significant dietary change for most people. Probably a lot more significant than using a packet of stevia or two. What have you incorporated into your diet as your source of fat? Have you never had acne on our forehead before? Any other new habits? Exercise?

It should also be noted that it takes acne 1-2 weeks to develop. So it's more likely the sweeping change in the diet, than stevia.

stantonsanchez

Switched to Zevia (stevia sweetened cola) a few weeks ago and I had the same issue. Painful Acne on my forehead and chin. As soon as I stopped, it started clearing up.

stantonsanchez

I quit drinking Zevia, and my skin cleared up. Maybe not for all, but for some stevia is terrible for the skin.