Diet, exercise and acne!

I also have struggled with acne... and I still do, I am 43. I find the best that works for me is using slightly hot water and 'steaming' open my pores of my face twice daily and cleaning with Dr Bronner's Tea Tree Oil soap (dilute!) Also I drink kombucha tea every day- it helps my energy, improves my immunity to colds, flu etc, improves my skin and acne and makes it so if I am sleep deprived- I can still function well. My 5 yr old drinks it also and when he does he does not bring colds or flu home with him from school.
Best of luck.

You might consider spironolactone (an oral medication). It's made a *huge* difference for my wife who has PCOS. It takes a long time to build up to full force, you won't see full results until over a year. Ask your endocrinologist (best) or dermatologist.

My skin was the first place I noticed any difference once
I started my new diet of healthier foods and more water.
My skin wasn't awful to begin with but any redness or little
bumps went away within a week!

I have struggled with acne. All thru middle school and high school my skin was clear and smooth. Then all of a sudden I got adult acne when I was about 22. I had tried every treatment under the sun and nothing ever seemed to work. Even harsh Rx medications that made my skin burn.

Then when I started getting healthy and changed my eating habits my skin cleared up right away. I never thought that what you ate really affected your skin either. I used to be addicted to sugar. I ate something sweet everyday. Candy, cookies, brownies, etc. Once I told myself that I could only have those things as a treat and only ate them like once a week or even less, my skin was smooth and clear again. Now, if I go on a sugar binge, you betcha my skin will be all broken out the next day.

Hope this helps. good luck.

Are you using any prescription topical treatment now? You say that it's under control for the most part, so a mild retinol treatment may be enough. Accutane is really a last resort and probably not appropriate unless you're dealing with serious nodular acne (particularly in light of the side effects).

I had horrible nodular acne from the time I was 13 and nothing helped even a bit; my whole face was visibly swollen and I couldn't even touch my hand to my face without serious pain. I finally took Accutane for five months when I was 19 and haven't had a single problem since, but I did have some bad side effects that required careful monitoring at the time (notably, my cholesterol and triglycerides were literally off the charts). Worth it in my case, but I still think it's a last resort.

my skin is looking so much better now, no acne at all.. well a pimple here or there every once in a while, not like before.
I dont even use make up now, just eyeliner and mascara and im done!...

I have a salicylate intollerance and I notice that when I eat certain foods (mostly tomato sauce) I will break out afterward. I don't just break out on my face though, I break out everywhere. So food can affect your skin condition.

I have had acne problems since puberty. I did oral treatments, topical treatments, and even did a stint with Accutane back in the day. I still have acne problems but they have gotten better as I drink more water and I am eating food with more vitamins. I have fewer flare ups and the ones I do have are not as bad as they once were and they clear up faster than before.

I know adult acne sucks but do give the diet change a chance...it may not clear you up completely but I have found it helps.

I was symptomatic for PCOS, and my drs (both obgyn and dermatologist) suggested I pair birth control with spironolactone. I agree... this changed my life! No more big jawline breakouts! I actually get compliments on my skin now which is incredible. I've been on this for about 2 years now, and she suggested I stay on it a 3rd year. She also stressed thats its a safe and relatively mild medication (NOT ACCUTANE!)

However, I do drink a lot of water and use very gentle products on my face. I'd really would suggest seeing a dermatologist... mine also suggests staying away from sugars and "white" foods like white bread since this somehow triggers the hormones to create more testosterone (I believe, could be wrong...) which is in turn creating acne!

I have had acne since...well forever! I don't remember life without it! I am 26 years old now. I will tell you that when I stick to eating clean and healthy and stay hydrated...my skin looks amazing. I have already accepted that I will always get the monthly zits that come when Mother Nature visits. When I eat like crap - my skin is dull, acne prone and ridiculously splotchy.

Also, I have found that when I stick to my Olay skincare regimen it helps keeping my skin looking good. -- I do a face wash...which ever one I prefer that day....the toner and then the day/night creme.

You could try going on birth control--I started at 18 and that cleared my skin up so well. I recently went off of it and thought that my acne would come back, and it did slightly, but it's doing okay now. Not perfect, but manageable. I feel comfortable going out of the house without any makeup on like 70% of the time.
I think that my change in diet, exercise and water intake has helped significantly.
Also, I noticed that once I started treating my skin gently, it healed and calmed down SO much.
I used to use between 2.5-5% BP, all over my face, and I would exfoliate the *kitten* out of it. I think that just aggravated it, increased redness and dryness, leading to more breakouts!
Now, I was with Cetaphil facial cleanser and apply a lotion with retinol in it (Neutrogena Anti-Aging Night Cream, though I use it both day and night), and exfoliate once or twice a week with baking soda. Also, I occasionally use Biore strips.
If there was one product/ingredient I would recommend, it's RETINOL. That Neutrogena lotion is honestly the best moisturizer I have ever used. Retinol is a derivative of Vitamin A, which is important for healthy skin.
Try increasing your vitamin A intake as well.
Another thing--I rarely use sunscreen on my face. I HATE not protecting it from the rays, but I always break out from sunscreen. That might be a problem for you too if you wear it.

Good luck, wishing you the best!!

Drinking lots of water (10+ glasses a day) and working out more (without makeup on, of course) has seemed to make some real improvements in my skin.

I suffered from acne from my preteen years until mid thirties.....severe, cystic type. I finally found out accidently that I apparently have sensitive skin and all those harsh cleansers and treatments were actually making it worse! I switched to Neutrogena's extra sensitive face cleanser and the matching lotion. It took about 2 weeks to notice a difference, and then it continually improved over time.
Also, I bought a couple extra pillow cases so I can change them out every couple of days instead of only when I wash the entire sheet set. That helped reduce flareups too.
I don't wash my face after every workout, necessarily, but I do rinse thoroughly. Proper hydration makes a huge difference....so very many things are affected negatively when we don't get enough water regularly!
Now, I only wash my face at night and rinse with clean water in the mornings (sometimes even just water irritates my skin). I see minor flareups only when I wax, don't drink enough water and/or at "that" time of the month.
So, some acne needs harsh treatments, some does not - I'd give some TLC a try for a few weeks before subjecting yourself to Acutane - it has SO many scary side effects in addition to being known to cause Krohn's disease later in life.
I have never dieted severely, I just drop off extra snacks and junk and add in exercise until I get where I want to be, so I can't say what extreme dieting might do to your skin, but overall if you are eating a healthy diet providing enough nutrition for your body's needs, then your skin should not be adversely affected.....vice versa, if you are on an extreme diet (aka unhealthy), you might find your skin breaks out more due to the stress.
Last point: if you are sensitive to certain foods, such as dairy, eggs, wheat, etc, even if you are not all-out allergic to them, then it would make sense that they could stress your body into an acne flareup if you eat them a lot.