Acne Magazine

If you’ve ever read one of Dr. Perricone’s books about skin care, he delves into a lot of healthy alternatives to cosmetic surgery and expensive procedures, and really concentrates on supplementing the body inside out to achieve good skin, whether your goal is to maintain a great complexion at any age, to hold off the aging factors of the skin such as sagging and wrinkles and sunspots, or even to help with other skin problems like eczema, rosacea, and acne.

One of the common denominators in most of his literature is how you should take a good vitamin C ester supplement for good skin, pretty much no matter what your skin care goals are, ie aging prevention, acne treatment, rosacea or acne rosacea treatment and other skin care problems.  I have also read in many other places that vitamin C is a vital component to maintaining healthy skin, and have even seen a visible improvement in the tone and texture of my skin since I began taking my vitamin C supplement.

Not only that though, because I believe that good nutrition and vitamins cannot all be obtained through a supplement or pill, I’ve made sure to include high vitamin C and high antioxidant foods in my daily diet.  Examples of this are lemon juice in my water every day, oranges and other citrus fruits a couple days a week, and then other foods naturally high in antioxidants besides vitamin C, so that I can be sure I’m getting a well rounded diet of high power foods that will help fix my complexion problems and make my skin more luminous. 

Vitamin C is shown to be a very powerful antioxidant, and has incredible restorative powers to the health of the cells, including skin cells, which can benefit anyone, no matter what their skin type.  Apparently, there are some vitamin C supplements that are made so that they will not upset the stomach, so those of you who avoid this vitamin supplement because of that should be able to take that type of version without any stomach issues because of the acidity. 

Vitamin C is sort of one of those vitamins that became a staple for many of us, through either a multiple vitamin, or a single supplement, going back to our childhood, when many people believed vitamin C helped to fend off colds and/or shorten their duration.  I for one, still believe that vitamin C does this as well.  However, news is coming out also touting vitamin C’s benefit to the skin.

I already believe this because I’ve said numerous times in this blog that I believe drinking lemon juice in my water has immensely helped my skin, and may have even made me a bit healthier and less likely to get sick.  Vitamin C is a great antioxidant vitamin, and can be found in citrus fruits in abundance.  Fruits like oranges, tangerines, lemons and limes contain the nutrient, and also taste good, which is a bonus.

It’s also believed that juice from lemons helps with inflammation, which also may explain its benefits to the skin.  The key benefits of vitamin C may be great as an anti aging weapon, researchers are saying, because of its ability to fight free radicals, which are pivotal in breaking down collagen and leading to less skin elasticity and a breakdown of the skin’s natural defenses. 

Since it boosts natural defenses and may also reduce inflammation it may also be ideal to incorporate as an anti acne skin vitamin as well, by eating more citrus, especially lemons since they are lower in sugar than the sweeter citrus fruits. 

Also, new evidence is surfacing that vitamin C may also protect against sun damage, and the damaging UV rays that lead to premature aging, sun damage, freckles, age spots, and an uneven color to the complexion.  A whole new reason to eat your citrus fruit!  One of my favorites currently is the tangelo, which is an orange hybrid which is deliciously juicy and flavorful.   

Vitamin C has also been thought to be beneficial not only when consumed orally, but also when applied topically to the skin, as you will see many anti aging and skin-evening creams out there touting vitamin C as the main ingredient on the label.  Many skin care specialists say vitamin C applied topically is great for skin clarity and evening of the skin tone. 

I’ve been really interested in theories that antioxidants in fairly high doses can benefit people with acne.  I began to get interested in this when I started reviewing a product called Acnezine, which is an herbal supplement which uses this as some of its basis for clearing acne naturally. 

It is essentially a potent antioxidant formula which helps to clear the skin by attacking free radicals which cause inflammation in the skin, among a host of other bad things that it does to the skin, including accelerated aging and wrinkle formation, aggravating acne and acne rosacea, and causing a generally bad complexion with little glow and bad tone. 

I had never really heard of using antioxidant therapy as a natural acne remedy, and this intrigued me, especially since antioxidants are touted as having a multitude of additional benefits besides just skin care, including heart and organ health, preventing diseases such as cancer and nerve related diseases, and many, many other health benefits too numerous to mention.  I read again about how high priced anti oxidant drinks such as Xango, which containg the potent juice of the mangosteen fruits, and other high antioxidant fruits such as noni juice and acai berry had shown promise in helping to clear acne.

I read several different places that antioxidant rich drinks and supplements, while they could not be solidly proven to help fight disease, did show that people with varying degrees of acne benefitted from them, and this cemented the belief that antioxidants in potent supplement form could definitely be of benefit.  For a review of the product we reviewed on this site that contains high antioxidant counts as a means to fight acne, see Acnezine review. 

If you’d like to read more about juices that contain high antioxidant counts, try mangosteen, acai and noni as a start.  Also, broccoli, tomatoes and several other foods rich in antioxidants can benefit the acne sufferer, so it is important to keep a lot of fruits and veggies in your fridge at all times.  Just another example of why we “are what we eat”. 

Recently, the FDA has stepped up and tightened regulations for herbal supplements, dietary supplements and vitamins, so this could logically include a lot of vitamins or supplements for acne prevention and treatment if they fit the FDA’s target criteria.  But so far, not to worry, they are not going to be taking away supplements, what they are doing is actually a protective measure to make sure that vitamins and supplements have what they say they have and nothing that they say they don’t have in them, for safety and consumer protection purposes. 

As of June of 2007, the FDA mandated that all of the ingredients used in the production of vitamins and herbal and dietary supplements will have to be tested by the manufacturer and strictly labeled as to what they actually contain in them.The most recent crackdown stems from concern over existing rulings being too lax with substandard vitamins and supplements slipping through to be marketed.   Under the old rulings, there were instances of contamination and sometimes products didn’t contain the dietary ingredients as stated on the label.

The specific instances that prompted the newer, stricter mandates were supplements found that did not contain the level of vitamin A and vitamin C that they claimed.  The other situation was some supplements that contained active ingredients that are used in the prescription drugs for erectile dysfunction that were not declared.
Harsher regulations for manufacturers will allow the FDA to remove a product from the shelves, seize the product or, in more severe cases, file a lawsuit and seek criminal charges.   These measures may be taken if, upon inspection, a product does not contain what the manufacturer says it does or if any ingredient is considered to be contaminated.
 Most companies do test their ingredients that are used in their herbal and supplemental products.  Manufacturers, for the most part, have already set high standards in the natural food and supplement industry.  The FDA’s newer, tighter regulations will ensure that all manufacturers will have to comply with testing of their ingredients for the safety of the general public.
 The few manufacturers that have not been compliant with strict testing and accurate labeling will have to either raise the bar of quality standards or face much harsher consequences if they don’t.  A higher degree of accountability will be expected in the herbal, vitamin and natural dietary supplement industries, including acne skin vitamins and possibly herbal supplements for acne. 

It is estimated that nearly 80% of people in the US take some sort of daily multivitamin. Vitamins are a huge industry, and there is a reason why : Many people really believe that multivitamins help them in one way or another, and feel good about taking a multivitamin to help round out the vital vitamins and minerals they may not be getting in their average daily food consumption.  These vitamins can be incredibly helpful in the fight against acne, acne rosacea skin care, and just generally maintaining the health and overall integrity of the skin over time. What about multivitamins specifically made for the health of your skin? Skin health is of vital importance, especially to those of us with acne, because if our skin’s defenses are low, our acne lesions tend to take a lot longer to heal, and our skin may even be more prone to acne breakouts to begin with if it is not in top condition.

I read an interesting article the other day about the importance that many skincare specialists think orally taken vitamin C can benefit the cell turnover and cellular strength of the skin.

We’ve talked before about antioxidants and how they can help a person with acne get clearer skin, but they can also help a person with acne scarring and pitting to speed along the healing and recovery of their skin as well.  How do antioxidants help everyone’s skin, including acne sufferers? 

Well, antioxidants are a powerful weapon against one of our skin’s worst enemies, the free radical.  Free radicals are created by environmental toxins, the foods we eat, UV sunlight rays (one of the worst offenders) and a bevy of other bad environmental factors too numerous to name. 

What free radicals essentially do is take away key components from our healthy skin cells because they are essentially “incomplete” and seek to repair themselves by leaching your good, complete skin cells.  What results is the aging process, the degradation of the skin and ultimately wrinkles, ever-present scars, age spots, sun damage and every other nasty thing you can think of which takes away from our skin’s natural beauty, vibrance and ability to blemish free. 

A popular acne remedy that employs the use of antioxidant therapy is the acnezine acne remedy, which packs their supplement full of these antioxidants to combat all the bad things free radicals do and help restore skin health and longevity, as well as heal acne and acne scarring. 

Antioxidants essentially stop free radicals before they can steal components of your healthy skin cells, so you can see why they are important, otherwise, our body does not have a reserve to regenerate healthy skin tissue when it is faced with skin trauma such as acne lesions. 

Evening primrose oil, or as it is otherwise known, EPO, is an all natural flower plant that is used for it’s qualities of soothing and healing, internally.  It is supposedly very useful for some skin conditions, including eczema which is a dry, scaly and flaky skin condition that is pretty tought to treat. 

Evening primrose oil has a substance in it called gamma linolenic acid, which is actually a natural compound which is currently an approved natural medicine for the treatment of eczema over in Britain right now.  It is suggested that you just take whatever the recommended dosage of these oil caps when you purchase them. 

There isn’t really too much on whether GLA, or gamma linolenic acid, is useful in treating actual acne, but my guess would be since it is supposed to be beneficial for treating irritating skin conditions like eczema and dermatitis, it will also be of help if you have acne scarred skin, or skin irritations related to acne, as it may help speed the healing and “calming” process up so you have less redness, irritation and overal dry skin.

Evening primrose oil is actually quite a common natural remedy that is “prescribed” to women that are going through change of life, as it is supposed to help counteract many of the side effects and symptoms of menopause in women.  I actually took this supplement for a little while and did not have a good reaction to it, but that’s just me. 

I actually think I may have had an allergy to it, as it made my skin break out in almost a rash like state, and it was unlike any acne I ever had, it was just more like a red rash on my face.  Like I said, that was just my experience though, and I do have some known allergies to things, so this is most likely the explanation.

You’ve undoubtedly read that there are certain “dietary supplements” which can supposedly help clear your acne up, and are probably curious if they really work, are worth the time, money and hope, and if they are safe. 

Well, I thought it would be good to go over exactly how the government regulating agency the FDA actually defines a “dietary supplement” - whether it claims to help with acne or other skin conditions, or has other purposes in human health promotion. 

A dietary supplement is one that is sold over the counter (OTC), and is taken voluntarily by an individual, whether it be to improve upon a health condition, or simply enhance their health, well being (mental and physical), or perhaps comsetically improve their appearance. 

The latter, cosmetic dietary supplements, are becoming more popular and widely used, such as herbal acne supplements aimed at clearing up acne and other skin problems, or simply improving the overall condition of the skin. 

There is an act that was enforced by the FDA called the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), which stated that the dietary supplement maker was responsible for ensuring that it’s dietary products was safe for human consumption, before any marketing even took place, and certainly before anyone was sold the dietary supplement.

The FDA is also responsible for taking action against any dietary supplement which is deemed unsafe through a series of checks and balances after it reaches the consumer’s market. While dietary acne supplement manufacturers do not need to register their product or gain approval with the FDA, they are not allowed to label the supplement in any way that is misleading or omits any ingredients. 

A lot of people who have acne seek out natural nutritional supplements that will help their acne clear up and maybe even help their skin out in other ways as well.  If you walk down the vitamin aisle at any grocery or drug store now, you probably see a few vitamin formulas or nutritional supplement formulas for acne or for basic skin care and beauty maintenance. 

Most of these nutritional supplements are formulated with ingredients like natural herbs, botanicals and vitamins that have historically shown a property which helps the skin to defend itself against free radicals.  Say for instance, Vitamin C.  Vitamin C has long been used both topically and as a concentrated supplement for many things, and especially for skin care amongst others.

Vitamin C contains a lot of antioxidants which are good for acne, as well as healing properties and clarifying properties when applied in concentrated form to the skin topically.  Other vitamins that are known for skin healing and therapeutic properties which may also be included in nutritional supplements for acne are Vitamin E, certain types of Vitamin B, and even Vitamin K (applied topically though, Vitamin K has been known to promote healing when applied to the skin in cream form). 

Many women and men report that when using a supplement for their acne, they enjoy other fringe benefits due to the wide reaching capabilities of many of the nutritional support ingredients in them which not only help with acne but also help with anti aging and overal skin fitness and firmness. 

Also they may help add a little extra “glow” to your skin. Ever see a woman with glowing skin?  It can knock you off your feet!