ACNE and ACNE SCARS are ruining my life. I have tried literally everything!

White

For almost 8 years now I have been battling ACNE with no real success. It is completely ruining my life in all aspects.

Things I have tried for acne:

not eating gluten for 1 whole year
eating beef liver 3x a week for 2 months
eating beef liver 1x a week for a month
being out in the sun lots and lots (getting tanned helped reduce the visibility of the acne but nothing beyond that)
swimming in sea water every day for a week
gelatine 30g every day for 3 months
collagen 30g every day for 6 months
avoiding fruit
not eating pork for 10 months
not having any pufas for 1 year
taking cyproheptadine for 2 weeks every day
taking vitamin d3+k2 daily for 6 months
consuming seaweed for iodine every 3 days for 1 month
topical vitamin c serum for 2 months along with red light chicken lamp before bed
topical pure aloe vera gel after shower for 8 months
avoiding dairy completely for 8 months (did make a difference)
avoiding dairy except raw milk (raw milk made my acne worse)
drinking quality spring water 2l+ per day
gym almost daily
taking eggshells for calcium
checking ferritin for possible iron overload (was on low end of normal)
no seed oils for a year (not even EVOO)
supplementing pantethine (didnt rly make a difference)
taking zinc daily (25mg zinc, 1mg copper)
no cheat meals for a year (if anything a cheat "meal" for me is to not eat)
tried katialis ointment for 2 months
avoiding nuts & seeds for a year
buying commercial shower filter
avoiding cooked/processed red vegetables
supplementing copper
taking MSM for a year
avoiding creatine
i dont smoke nor drink. both make my acne worse.

Things that help my acne to an extent:

7 to 8 hours of sleep seem to reduce the acne a bit. Anything under/over makes it worse. Under moreso.
Sweating a lot
Hot showers
Avoiding dairy

Spending lots of time in front of the computer dries my skin out and increases the acne.

Other health problems/symptoms I have:
GERD symptoms, nose is constantly stuffed with very thick white muccus, white tongue, bad breath in the morning, excessive sweating with strong smell, low appettite, low blood flow, bad lung health, skinny (but buff), very vivid dreams waking me up sluggish, histamine issues.

My diet consists of eggs, meat(ground beef, chicken breasts), fruit, rice, potatoes, butter, coconut oil, dark chocolate and honey. Every night before bed a cup of chamomille tea with 40g collagen and tsp raw honey. Occasional parmigiano, egg shells, orange juice.

Fruits in the morning and throughout day
Eggs and rice for breakfast
Beef and rice for lunch
Cbreasts and rice for dinner, 40g collagen, honey
2+ liters spring water daily

Supplements I currently take:

3000 IU Vit D3 + K2 drops
Thiamine 3 x week, 100mg
Zinc 25mg + Copper 1mg daily
Creatine

I do not use any products. 6 years ago when my acne started I first tried the mainstream face washes with no success, then dermatologist prescribed me Epiduo Forte (Adapalene/Benzoyl Peroxide combo) which completely destroyed my skin barrier. Now my cheeks and jawline are much more dry and sensitive.

Did hormone test in October 2023, skin looked almost same as now. Estradiol was at lower reference range, prolactin at upper refference range (9.90 ng/mL). Cortisol at upper refference range (17.4 µg/dl) . FSH very low (1.90 mU/ml), TSH was 2.7, free testosterone high, total test upper middle of reference range. IGF-1 was at 260 ng/mL

The acne has caused scarring as well, especially on the cheeks. The acne seems to come and go in waves. There is no exact pattern that triggers these waves.

Here are images of the acne currently: https://imgur.com/a/ReoZyXH

I am out of ideas anymore. I have no clue what to try and it is driving me insane. Help me peaters.

wrl

@White said in ACNE and ACNE SCARS are ruining my life. I have tried literally everything!:

histamine issues

Fwiw, here's a detailed histamine food list, it could help to identify particularly high histamine foods:

https://www.mastzellaktivierung.info/de/downloads.html#lm_en

@White said in ACNE and ACNE SCARS are ruining my life. I have tried literally everything!:

Thiamine 3 x week, 100mg
Zinc 25mg + Copper 1mg daily

Both thiamine and zinc are pro-acetylcholine (ACh), which can cause excess ACh leading to vivid dreams. Potentially, you could try reducing the thiamine and zinc dosage and frequency, and not having them on the same day. Also, thiamine taken alone can deplete other B vitamins (perhaps try a B complex?, or rely on food sources)

Generally speaking, it could help to...

drink warm water upon waking, potentially adding ½ teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate
keep minimum of 30mins between drinking and meals so as to promote proper digestion and not dilute stomach acid
eat fruit separately (eg as snacks between meals) giving it the "space" and time to digest so it doesn't stagnate and cause gas/discomfort. Waiting longer before/after more complex meals involving meat

Jennifer

@White said in ACNE and ACNE SCARS are ruining my life. I have tried literally everything!:

Other health problems/symptoms I have:
GERD symptoms, nose is constantly stuffed with very thick white muccus, white tongue, bad breath in the morning, excessive sweating with strong smell, low appettite, low blood flow, bad lung health, skinny (but buff), very vivid dreams waking me up sluggish, histamine issues.

Have you been tested for a bacterial overgrowth in your intestines, taken antibiotics and/or tried eliminating starch? Have you measured your temp first thing in the morning and 20–30 minutes after you eat? And your pulse rate? My guess is something you’re consuming isn’t digesting well (possibly due to poor thyroid function?) and/or is allergenic, leading to all the symptoms you listed.

White

@wrl thank you for the histamine foods list. Thiamine is a recent addition to my stack, to counteract the amount of rice im eating that is depleting B1. I take it early after breakfast. My other B Vitamins are plenty, according to cronometer. I was already following the "eat fruit separately" and "minimum 30min between drinking and meals" advices, but I will try adding 1/2 tsp of sodium bicarbonate. Thanks.

EDIT: The vivid dreams are from the amount of glycine in the collagen I take before bed. I will move it to earlier during the day.

White

@Jennifer I havent tested for bacterial overgrowth nor taken antibiotics. I thought we should stay as far away as possible from them. But symptoms ARE pointing at bacterial overgrowth, I just dont understand why this is the case since I dont eat gut wrecking foods and consume gelatin etc. for my gut lining.

I have not tried completely eliminating starch since I cannot even come close to eating the same amount of carbs from fruits as an active athletic guy, I would have to eat 5kg of fruit a day. But eating rice as my main carb source is only the case since last summer.

Before that I was eating less and different starch yet the skin was the same.

Body Temp first thing in the morning is around 36,2°C based on multiple measurements. Evening Body Temp is between 36,8 and 37°C

I dont think my issue is due to consuming something I'm not digesting well, since I've changed up my diet drastically over the years with my skin issue staying the same. Only thing I still eat that I ate 2 years ago is eggs and fruits. I tried eliminating both, my skin issues stayed the same.

It might be a bacterial infection that I've had for years which hasnt fixed itself by eating clean now.

edouard

@White I'm also dealing with acne, one year ago I had a similar acne on my jawline/neck like you and this product (LL Neroli Glow Polishing Cleanser - expensive but it last 1+ year for me) eliminated it. I only use this topically on my face. I still have one or two pimples here and there near my face but almost not anymore near jawline.

I also used to have huge acne and scars in my back. I tried colostrum (Now) and without telling my ex, she told me a few weeks after my back acne is disappearing. My brother also have acne in his back and I told him to try colostrum (he used another brand): exact same situation a few weeks after - his gf noticed less acne. So maybe try Colostrum or Lactoferrin (although I saw you seem to not have an iron overload problem but we never know...). I've made a video about my colostrum experience related to acne if you want to watch it

I know my solutions are not targeting directly the root cause but that's what helping me

Cearrson

how many times a day do you poop? Even if you feel your gut microbiome is healthy this could be the issue. taking something like carrot salad daily to control overgrowth and endotoxins, as well as taking cascara sagrada or something adjacent to keep everything moving could be beneficial. Also daily aspirin to help deplete excess estrogen. Any major stressors in your life? are you overly anxious or stressed etc? These things can play heavily into it. I've been helping my gf figure out her acne naturally as well and its been a bitch for sure but anytime she has something that spikes her cortisol/serotonin it gets much worse. Doing what you can to avoid unnecessary stressors could go a long way.

edouard

@Cearrson This. Forgot to mention to op but when I started to have more regulare bowel movements (2-3/day instead of 1) I saw a MAJOR difference on my acne. For me, magnesium glycinate and movements (even if it is just walking) increased my bowel frequencies

Jennifer

@White said in ACNE and ACNE SCARS are ruining my life. I have tried literally everything!:

@Jennifer I havent tested for bacterial overgrowth nor taken antibiotics. I thought we should stay as far away as possible from them. But symptoms ARE pointing at bacterial overgrowth, I just dont understand why this is the case since I dont eat gut wrecking foods and consume gelatin etc. for my gut lining.

I have not tried completely eliminating starch since I cannot even come close to eating the same amount of carbs from fruits as an active athletic guy, I would have to eat 5kg of fruit a day. But eating rice as my main carb source is only the case since last summer.

Before that I was eating less and different starch yet the skin was the same.

Body Temp first thing in the morning is around 36,2°C based on multiple measurements. Evening Body Temp is between 36,8 and 37°C

I dont think my issue is due to consuming something I'm not digesting well, since I've changed up my diet drastically over the years with my skin issue staying the same. Only thing I still eat that I ate 2 years ago is eggs and fruits. I tried eliminating both, my skin issues stayed the same.

It might be a bacterial infection that I've had for years which hasnt fixed itself by eating clean now.

I suppose the safety of antibiotics depends on who you ask, but the two used to treat SIBO—rifaximin for hydrogen producing bacteria and neomycin for methane producing bacteria—are typically well tolerated, and a food doesn’t have to be gut wrecking to develop an overgrowth, though, overgrowths can damage the gut. That’s why I mentioned digestion. Poor digestion and SIBO (and histamine symptoms) tend to go hand in hand and fuel each other—poorly digested food feeds bacteria and the bacteria’s lipopolysaccharides or “endotoxin” can cause systemic issues, including damage to the lining of the intestines, leading to poor digestion of food. If you experience any other digestive related symptoms besides the GERD such as gas, bloating, constipation, diarrhea and/or smelly stools, you might find it beneficial to get tested for SIBO?

It can certainly be challenging to get enough calories as an active person when replacing starch with fruit. For years, I consumed over 3,000 calories of fruit, and fruit currently comprises the majority of my diet. I’m a mountain climber so I’m active, and half of my fruit calories come from whole fruit (mostly bananas and dates) and the other half from juice.

I can see the type of starchy food playing a role in allergies, since every plant has its own compounds that one may react to, however, if you have trouble breaking down polysaccharides in general, they could be feeding the overgrowth. You may be totally fine with starch, I just thought I would mention it as a possible cause, since I know quite a few people whose SIBO was exacerbated by it.

Your temp is a little low in the morning but not too bad, however, have you taken your temp after eating? I only ask because poor thyroid function is a common cause of SIBO, and adrenaline, which compensates for the thyroid when it isn’t functioning well, raises the temp so if one is running on stress hormones, their temp will usually go down after eating.

Cearrson

@edouard good i think the flow of digestion as well as controlling endotoxins and making sure youre body is getting rid of them is key so they dont get reabsorbed causing more issues.

Serotoninskeptic

Using a dry brush, rebounding, sweating and other things that are good for lynph flow can help. For products ive noticed benefits from topical caffeine, naringenin, and vit E. I like to keep my skincare simple though so i just use beef tallow and raw honey.

edouard

@Sugarnotsnow I tried dry brushing but I sticked to the Big 6 Lymph Reset in shower

Serotoninskeptic

@edouard Have you tried rebounding. Skipping. jumping on a trampoline, jump roping etc.

izkrov

I've got some mild bacne and I'll be trying hibiclens, supposedly should have results in a week. Foid told me about it. Could be worth a try.

Milk Destroyer

Carboxytherapy should be considered

edouard

@Sugarnotsnow I do a bit of rebounding on the balls of my feet at the end of the big 6 lymph reset

VehmicJuryman

Are you getting enough magnesium? It's necessary for cellular metabolism. Eating a lot of white rice could deplete thiamine and magnesium, you need both.

Also, I agree with the others that starch might be feeding SIBO. Maybe consuming more carbs from fruit juice would help. I had similar cystic acne, and consuming more simple sugars actually helped reduce it by a lot.

@White Did you say hot showers were good for your skin?

That's surprising to me. Hot water is consistently bad for my skin. The colder the water is the better looking my skin and hair usually gets.