Hey there, I also have had Acne for most of my life, yes you are right that taking the anti-biotics will make things worse in the long run and is probably the worst thing doctors can prescribe for Acne next to accutane. I actually took accutane a long, long time ago and had no idea how harmful it could be who knows what consequences from that I may still be suffering and it didn't even work, cleared up the Acne for about a year then it came back. You are definitely going in the right direction, diet and herbs is the way to go for clearing up acne. Yes candida can be one of the main causes but there are plenty of people who have candida that don't have acne. To me, it seems that a hormone imbalance is one of the main issues with acne. Previously, I have had temporary relief with doing juice fasts and raw food fasts (eating only raw food for extended periods of time). Doing these cleared up the acne for me but always came back when I added in other foods, also using these excessively led to weight loss, muscle loss, and fatigue. Now I am using the principles of ayurveda (ancient Indian medicine) to bring my body back in balance, I feel way better on this than on any other regimen. It takes the guess-work out of what foods and herbs are best for you because it is specifically tailored to your body. Ayurveda helps to balance all the energy in your body, repairs the immune system (which will also cure candida) and balances the hormones. If you are interested, do a little research online and send me an message, I can get you going in the right direction on this.

I am certain you are doing much better since your current diet is probably much better than the way you ate before. However, your diet could use some adjustments as well. The dairy, I would say, has got to go as well as the olive oil. The oil is not in its natural state. It has been removed from the fruit and is pure fat, which can contribute to acne. Candida is present in everyone's body. You can't kill it. You can, however, return it to normal levels. The only thing that has helped me is a low fat 100% raw vegan diet. Lots of raw sweet fruits packed full of vitamins and minerals and lettuces like iceberg, green and red leaf, and romaine. Dairy was never meant for human consumption. It is calf food just like breast milk is food for babies. The proteins in dairy are also linked to cancer. It is also known that meat immediately increases acidity in one's body. It causes your body to buffer the acidity with minerals. Often these minerals are taken from bone. Hence the reason why calcium intake is quite high in the U.S. when compared to other countries, yet osteoporosis is still prominent and even higher than countries with less dairy consumption. As far as the Liver Flushes are concerned, I believe they have been debunked on curezone. As a matter of fact, one person even claims to have eliminated gall stones, but admits to have had his gall bladder removed and yet still highly recommends the flushes.

Hi There,
I feel your pain and commend you on taking responsibility for your own health and not relying on dermatologists and doctors. I took Accutane 3x many years ago when I was in my 20's and didn't know better and it never worked.

What I have found to work the most for clearing up my skin from the inside out is doing a colon/bowel, liver, kidney detox/cleanse. It's about 1 month but it completely clears everything out. During this time you do have a limited diet of mostly fruits, vegetables and juicing. But yes, when you start adding the foods back in after a couple of months I do start breaking out again.

Much like you I suffer from much worse Acne in the winter time and I believe that is from lower levels of sun exposure meaning less Vitamin D intake. I live in sunny southern California so spend a lot more time in the sun in spring/summer which clears up my skin. I do now supplement with 5000 mg Vit. D supplements in the winter, Solgar is a good natural product. This has helped a bit. I also started using the new Proactiv and it actually works.

Regarding being very active and running, I too used to be more active and found the more I sweat, the more I break out, so I've switched to more low impact activities like yoga and if I am very active I shower right away as soon as I'm done.

I thought I had a hormone imbalance and so went to a holistic internist who's an MD and he ran a blood, urine and fecal panel to see what is going on and found my testosterone levels were normal but that my thyroid and Vit. D levels were low, another reason why I've added Vit. D to diet.

I hope these few insights are helpful. Please do share with me if you do find something that works for the long haul... this condition takes a lot of discipline to clear up :(.

To your health and wellness,
ZenJenn

I wrote the following few lines some times ago and those lines are the most important information that you were suppose to get from your doctor the very same day you were diagnosed!





People get Acne symptoms on their skin because they are hypersensitive to something.
Hypersensitivity does not always means an allergy.
There are 5 different hypersensitivity reactions, allergy being just one of those.
An allergy is IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction.
There are hypersensitivity reactions that are not IgE-mediated and can not be discovered by an IgE patch test or blood test.


People get those symptoms on their skin and those diagnoses because they are hypersensitive to something.
Hypersensitivity is a signature factor of almost all autoimmune disorders. What you are hypersensitive to is your symptom trigger! 2 people can have identical symptoms triggered by totally different triggers. Some triggers are under our control while other triggers may not be 100% controllable.

Diet, cosmetics, soaps, toothpaste, supplements and medications seem to be the potential triggers easiest to control.


How can you identify your triggers?

1. Watch when Acne appears !

2. Make a detail list of everything you ate and everything you touched (cosmetics, soaps, chemicals, foods etc) during the last 24-36-48 hours before the Acne started.
Some people, actually very few, may even react as late as 72 hours after exposure to a very specific food trigger.

Complete list you compose should contain all of your triggers, as long as you are able to compose a 100% complete list. Writing detail diary (everything you put into your mouth) every single day helps !

3. Make a new list every time there is a flare, if ever.

4. Cross-reference lists from the last several flares looking for possible common triggers.

5. Take a special note on the TOP 8, as up to 90% of people with skin symptoms react to the TOP 8.
Yes, you read it right! 90% of people react to at least one of the TOP 8!
That is hundreds of millions of people around the globe using corticosteroids for something triggered by the Top 8.
You are buying your disease at the grocery store, and you are not even aware of it !


The most common food allergens (and symptom triggers) (the Big 8) are

1. dairy, (all cow milk products belong to this category)
2. egg, ( eggs are also a common ingredient in vaccines )
3. wheat, ( includes wheat oil and wheat gluten added to many foods and also to vaccines)
4. soy, (includes soy oil and soy proteins added to many foods and also to vaccines)
5. peanuts, (includes peanuts oil added to many foods and also to vaccines)
6. tree nuts ( hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, macadamia, chestnuts etc)
7. fish
8. shellfish, shrimps, crabs

Allergic reactions or intolerance reactions can be caused by virtually any food and any cosmetic, but these 8 food groups are the cause of 90% of all food intolerance reactions and food allergic reactions.

Cow's milk is the most common trigger in children. Most formulas contain Cow's milk, and majority of mothers who breastfeed, drink milk.


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Beside food, people with skin disorders also often react to toothpaste, soaps, shampoos, cosmetics, laundry detergent, rubber, plastics, nickel, implants, mobile phones, shoes, clothes, bedsheets, dust, cat dander, dog dander, pollen etc.

Take a special note to liquid products containing MIT = methylisothiazolinone

The preservative – known as MI or MIT (methylisothiazolinone)– is used in a wide range of liquid products like shampoos, moisturisers and shower gels as well as make-up and baby wipes.
Experts say the chemical is second only to nickel in causing contact allergies.
Well-known products that contain MI found on sale in shops included "Nivea body lotion", "Wet Ones" and "Boots men's face wash".
Experts say incidents of allergies are occurring faster than they did to methyl­dibromo glutaronitrile, another preservative that was banned from use in cosmetics in 2005 after it was linked to an increase in eczema cases.


MIT belongs to a group of similar compounds called “isothiazolinones,” which also include the following chemicals:

Chloromethylisothiazolinone (CMIT)
Benzisothiazolinone (BIT)
Octylisothiazolinone (OIT)
Dichlorooctylisothiazolinone (DCOIT)

You'll find MIT and chemicals like it at low concentrations in most liquid “rinse-off” products.
How to avoid it ? Avoid using liquid products!

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Are there any other factors that can affect hypersensitivity ?

Stress makes body more hypersensitive, so people are more likely to react to milder sensitivities when under extreme stress.
For example, you are mildly sensitive to wheat. When living with no stress, you consume wheat every day, and you get no symptoms on yoir skin. But, 24 hours after a major stress situation (an exam at your school), skin symptoms appear. If you would have known that wheat is your mild trigger, you could have avoided wheat days before the exam, and you would have no symptoms on your skin. And, if you do not know, you just blame the stress.
The same is true for people who get the symptoms seasonally. Or during pregnancy.

Season, temperature, weather, climate, pregnancy, sleep or lack of it etc. may affect hypersensitivity of some people, so people are far more likely to react to milder sensitivities when under special weather conditions.
Hormones associated with menstrual cycle in women can also affect hypersensitivity in some individuals.
Some women know they get more symptoms before or during their menstruation. That is a sign of your body being more hypersensitive during those days.
Artificial hormones from IUD may have effect on some individuals.

Alcohol and Sugar consumption may make some people more hypersensitive due to depletion of DAO (diaminoxidase) and increase in the levels of histamine.
Not sleeping enough may make you more hypersensitive due to depletion of DAO and increase in the levels of histamine.

Negative emotions (depression, anxiety, fear, anger, worry etc) can make you more hypersensitive.

Positive emotions (love, joy, happiness, calmness, serenity etc ) can make you significantly less hypersensitive and more likely to tolerate mild triggers.

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Can an allergy test help discover you personal Seborrheic Dermatitis triggers ?

Maybe, if the test is positive. Negative allergy test is of no value for people with skin symptoms.

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Hypersensitivity reactions and allergies, are they the same ?

You can be hypersensitive to things without being allergic to things.

Gluten sensitivity is not an allergy (it is non-IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction).
Gluten sensitivity is not the same as wheat allergy. Wheat allergy is IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction. It is a true allergy.

Nightshade Sensitivity can be both an allergy (IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction) and an intolerance (NON-IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction)

Lactose intolerance is not an allergy (it is non-IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction).
Lactose intolerance is not the same as a milk or dairy allergy.

food intolerance is not an allergy (it is non-IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction).

Sulfite sensitivity is not an allergy!

Histamine sensitivity is not an allergy!

Salicylate sensitivity is not an allergy (it is non-IgE-mediated hypersensitivity reaction).

You can be sensitive to gluten without having celiac disease (non-celiac gluten sensitivity).


Research the Liver Flushing and start cleansing your liver!