This is a huge topic and something that I have a lot of personal experience with. I couldn’t fit everything I wanted to say onto this one video so I’ll go into the finer detail in future videos.
This is a really important video to watch for any adult female that has a problem with persistent acne.
Fran
Fran Kerr is the founding editor of High on Health. To cure your acne, sign up to Fran's FREE acne cure mini-course or download her latest how to guide, Eat Away Your Acne.
6 responses ↓
Hi Fran
Thanks for all you info really helpfull.
I have suffered from acne since age 15 and now currently 25. I have been on and off the pill since 19 years of age. Brenda and Loette are the only things that have completely cleared my skin but i do not like being on the pill due to its risks.
Last year i tried B5 alone for a year taking doses of 8 grams per day. I stoped this due to consulting a natropath who reported it would be doing more damage then good for my body.
A month after i stoped taking B5 i had a massive out break of pimples. It has now been 3 months since i stoped taking B5 and my skin is horrible really oily with lots of pussey pimples all over my face.
I started taking Maca and Biojuvena 3 weeks ago but haven’t seen any improvement yet. I thought maybe Maca might be ok for me because i do not get any PMS sypmtoms? What do you think?
I have been to many different natropaths over the years and nothing has worked. When i was 19/20ty I tried Vitex Angus Castus, fish oils, omeaga 3 oils and over the years i have tried a number of other natural supplements. Some times i think i should just go back on the pill. How long have you been taking Premular and the different oils for?
Thanks again for all your advice.
cheers
Alex
PS your skin looks amazing.
Hi Alex,
The good news is it’s obvious that your spots are caused by hormones (simply because the pill did such a great job at fixing it). It’s just unfortunate that you’re not having any luck with naturopaths or supplements.
I find that supplements alone don’t work, I have to eat well too. Sugar and caffeine (especially white refined sugar) are the biggest causes of hormonal acne for me, so I need to avoid these as much as I can. Both the supplements and the eating well combined take a good 2-3 months to work. You also need to take a lot of epo and fish oil for it to work. I take 3 capsules of each per day which is double what it says on the containers. This was advised to me by my naturopath and it’s worked well.
You can then work on your skin care routine, make sure you’re using products that will not clog your pores (I’m about to post something about this soon). That’s VERY important when recovering from acne. Because most natural products contain a lot of oils, sometimes it’s necessary to use some good quality ‘commercial’ products until your skin settles down.
I’ve managed to keep my acne to mild by doing all of this, you can see from the videos that my skin is looking good. Yes, I still do have spots but they’re not that bad. I know the pill would most likely clear my skin by 100% which I’m considering taking, but like you I know the pill isn’t that great for the body so I’ve been hesitant over the last year.
Ultimately the decision is up to you. If you’re worried about going on the pill again I’d work really hard at your diet for 3 months and take the supplements. If you see improvement in that 3 month period, then great!! you’re onto a good thing. If you don’t then you may need to explore conventional treatments.
This is a great book that I’ve bought about diet and acne by Karen Jesett. She cleared her severe acne by 99% by diet alone:
http://www.acne-advice.com/articles/diet/index.shtml
take care,
fran
Can you tell me a little more about the pill? I was considering taking it but you mention it is not that good for the body. It may be something I’m willing to sacrifice if it clears my face up!
Thank you.
Hi Ruth, it’s best to visit a doctor and/or naturopath to get the rundown on the pill. I haven’t taken it in many years because it gave me a chronic case of thrush that took me a whole year to get rid of. I’m just about to try it again though, but will stop if I get a bad reaction again.
Honestly, I waited a long time to take it again because I don’t think it’s good our bodies. For me, it’s creepy putting fake hormones in my body. There are also a ton of other short and long term side effects that you can possibly get.
A friend of mine on the other hand has been on it for years with no side effects at all, and she’s really happy being on it, so it’s a very individual thing
If you do decide to take it, make sure you take the one that’s designed for the skin, because there are only some pills that work at clearing acne. Some of the others can actually make acne worse. Your doctor will know which on to prescribe.
HI Ruth
Brenda is the best one for clearing the skin and completely cleared my skin within a couple of months. It is a medium strength pill. I am now going to probably go back to Loette which is a low strength pill but it cleared my skin as well; however I still got a few pimples now and again.
Just make sure you’re taking a multivitamin while on the pill because it depletes our body’s B vitamins, zinc, folic acid and a few others.
Also if you get thrush take a probiotic supplement.
hope that helps
cheers
alex
Thanks very much for the replies. I’ve never fancied going on the pill really because of the idea of putting fake hormones in my body like you say. But it’s been suggested to me with regard to helping my bad period cramps, and if it can help my skin aswell there’s another great reason. Plus of course it’s a more reliable form of contraception which is a third great reason since I’ve already had one unplanned pregnancy through failed contraception!
Leave a Response