Diet, exercise and acne!

I noticed my skin clearing up once i got into the habit of drinking at least 64oz of water a day and I started using an apricot scrub in the shower. I've had acne since I was 10 and it did get a little better once I reached adulthood, but it was still alway there. Now, for three weeks out of the month, I have clear skin. TOM always makes one or two pop up. Maybe some day it will go away for good lol

Greasy foods like takeaways cause me to break out - and chocolate. I know because the day after I am plagued with spots! i have suffered since about 14 years old.

I'm on medication for my skin now. It's called tetracycline if you want to look it up. I've had no bad side affects and I rarely get a single spot now - even on my T.O.T.M.

I had a huge problem with acne and after many trial and errors of cutting things out of my diet, I found that what broke my face out was soy milk. I can eat small amounts of tofu, and soy in other products don't usually bother me, but if I drink soy milk I'll break out. I cut it out for about a month and my face cleared up. I had a glass because I do enjoy the taste and I missed it; two days later I had terrible breakouts and I now avoid soy milk completely. Anyhow, as most with acne know scars always appear after which just makes it all more depressing and frustrating. I have found that during and after a breakout I take fresh aloe from my plant and break open a leaf and very liberally apply it to my skin. It clears the breakout up faster and helps to lighten previous scarring and any new scarring. Good Luck with it I know it can be frustrating, but at lot of times it is something you are eating and it'll take some time to figure out the trigger. Personally I wanted to avoid all medications. I didn't want to take any pharmaceuticals but after about 3 years I finally figured it out and I've been break out free for quite sometime, as long as I don't consume to much soy or any soymilk

I think some of us are just unfortunately prone to it, but I think for a lot of us, our diet and exercise plays a huge roll. I would tend to get a few breakouts along my jaw line or chin area before I'd get my period but that was usually the extent of - maybe the odd one on my back.

Since I've started working out consistently for the past 4 months, I've had break outs all over my chest and back, sometimes on my shoulders. NEVER before has this happened to me, this badly. I spoke to acupuncturist who said that due to changes in exercise and diet (better foods in, lots of water and green tea, etc) that my body is basically detoxing - it's pushing out all the bad toxins and it's coming out in the form of acne.

SO - that made me feel a little bit less discouraged. I did buy some ProActive body wash and pads and some body lotion, which has seemed to help clear it up a little bit as far as the bumps and redness. I'll continue to drink lots of water and hopefully all it is a detox and it'll clear up eventually.

Also, take a look into Ayurveda... depending on your dosha and the types of food and exercise that is best for you, lots of things can affect your skin and energy.

Hope you figure things out -- the body is an amazing thing .. so complex yet so simple....

You said don't want to resort to Accutane, but have looked into at all?

I had moderate acne all through high school and it got worse in college. Finally, at 23, I went to a Dermatologist and he put me on Accutane last summer. It was the best thing I've ever done for my skin. I was on it April 2011 until September 2011 and I SWEAR, I have not had one breakout (or pimple!) since.

I've tried it all.. ProActive, face masks, Differn Gel, tanning, expensive face washes.... none of it made a noticeable difference.

They make it sounds so scary, but truly the only side effects I experienced were dry skin & lips. Sure it's an extensive process (you MUST take birth control on it, have to take monthly pregnancy tests, have a healthy cholesterol) but the results are beyond AMAZING. My self esteem couldn't be better.

Although it's not for everyone, it sounds like you should seek professional help if you really want to get rid of acne for good. Talk to a dermatologist and see what they recommend. Good luck!

Accutane (supposedly) is supposed to fix the internal problem. It shuts your oil glands (practically) off for 6 months. I paid $10 per month for mine (doesn't include monthly dermatologist costs or lab costs) and that's WAY less than I'll spend on $50 ProActive over a lifetime, LoL.

If you want to concentrate on "curing" it by diet alone, more power to you...but sometimes it's more of a genetic problem than a dietary problem, such as my case.

i've noticed that exercising and reducing my stress level has cleared my skin up a lot. also, i use "nanocleanse" which has salic acid in it. it burns a little but i see results.