Laura had been suffering from acne problems for over 15 years, and had treatments full of side effects with medications which only gave temporary alleviation. Ultimately she started searching on her own for the reason her body reacted this way.
She found low carb and this is what happened:
The Email
Hello Diet Doctor!
I've never been overweight, instead it was my skin problems that got me looking for alternatives to the countless ineffective pieces of advice I've received from physicians over the years. I'm now 28 years old but until recently have never had a completely acne-free face. Really, not even one day free from acne for 15 years. I've tried everything from Tetralysal, doxycycline, cortisone, prescription creams, expensive facial treatments and creams, to excluding dairy products and having osteopath treatment. Everything except for Accutane which, according to me, causes side effects that are too difficult. I could probably have gone on a trip around the world with all the money I've spent on fixing my skin. Imagine if I had met a doctor who focused on what causes acne instead of trying to remove the symptoms!
About four years ago I had just given up on my acne, accepted that it doesn't "go away when you grow up" like the dermatologists had said. On top of everything I got a strange redness with little pus-filled pimples around my eyes, nose and mouth - I had developed perioral dermatitis. Everyone who's got acne, perioral dermatitis or rosacea knows how incredibly much it affects ones quality of life. I was desperate and turned once again to the health care. The doctor at the care center prescribed tetralysal for 8 weeks as well as cortisone cream for my face. The antibiotics and the cortisone not only wiped out my entire immune system and ruined my sensitive skin but the dermatitis came back after a few months. I decided to never again eat antibiotics or use strong medications. I decided to find the reason for my problems and I felt more and more convinced that my skin problems were a sign that something wasn't right with my body.
I quickly found LCHF, low carb high fat, and gobbled down enormous amounts of information and changed my diet straight away. My skin got better, not entirely good, but better. Being a severe sugar addict I felt content with this and ate liberal LCHF and fell off the wagon and ate sugar every once in a while. I felt good, but I now realize that the insulin resistance caused an inflammation which never got to heal properly and therefore prevented my skin from being quite free from problems. I was inspired by Ann Fernholm's book about the hormone IGF-1 and immediately realized the connection. And after having read Dr. Fung's blog I started with intermittent fasting in order to raise the insulin sensitivity and lower the inflammation: 16:8 plus one 24 hour fast every week.
I'm not kidding, after FOUR days my skin was free of problems. For the first time in 15 years I'm free of acne and for the first time in four years my perioral dermatitis is gone. In order to rule out other underlying factors that could possibly explain this change, I stopped after a month and ate "regular" food without fasting - the problem returned! So I've really found my lifestyle, thank you for an awesome blog!
/L
Comment
A big congratulations to you, Laura! To be rid of something that's been troubling you for so long must be a relief.
There are scientific reasons for why LCHF and intermittent fasting can help with acne problems. These kinds of problems seem to have strong connections to elevated hormone levels of insulin and IGF in the blood. These send growth signals to sebaceous glands in the skin which grow together and block the pores.
LCHF and intermittent fasting lowers and normalizes insulin and IGF numbers, which may normalize the sebaceous glands as well, so that they no longer are a hotbed for acne.
This isn't the first success story on this theme:
Acne (and IBS) Vanished with a Diet ChangeDo you have experience with acne and diet changes? Let us know in the comments.
Do you want to try a low-carb diet yourself? Use these resources: