A Low-Glycemic Diet May Reduce Acne
July 9th, 2007If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
A small Australian study seems to indicate that a low-glycemic diet can decrease acne lesions. Forty-three male patients were studied for 12 weeks in an investigator blind assessment. One group ate a low-glycemic load diet, which is a diet low in sugars with moderate to low levels of carbohydrates and not as low in fat and protein. The other group ate carbs without concern for their glycemic count. The low-glycemic diet group appears to have significantly fewer new acne lesions as the control group. The low-glycemics body weight decreased and their insulin sensitivity increased (a good thing - helps stave off diabetes). While it appears that diet can play a significant role in acne, more study is needed in this case to isolate the why and exactly what is happening in the body.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 86, No. 1, 107-115, July 2007 - Abstract
Tags: acne, glycemic index, glycemic load, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, diet, low-glycemic
Posted in Acne Research
Top Of Page | Comments OffAcne Diet: Can You Fight Acne From the Inside?
May 16th, 2007
There’s a lot of debate regarding whether specific foods cause acne. We know your diet can greatly influence the way you look and feel. Acne is generally recognized to be the result of hormonal imbalances in the body due to adolescence, or a woman’s natural cycle. There may be foods that aggravate these imbalances. Similarly, there may be supplements that can help the body cope. In order to feel and look your best when suffering acne, you owe it to yourself to eat the highest quality diet you can. Let’s take a look at some things you might consider in creating an acne diet for yourself. Read the rest of this entry »
Milk May Trigger Acne, Says New Study
May 9th, 2007
A new study by the Harvard School of Public Health reignites an old debate over the links between milk and acne. A team of researchers surveyed a group of more than 47,000 women asking them about their diet as teens and whether they had ever been diagnosed with severe acne. There appears to be a correlation between women who drank a lot of milk and ultimately had acne. Scientists believe that the hormones in the milk are the culprits.
“What most dermatologists usually agree on is that the male hormone testosterone (also found in women), changes to dihy-drotestosterone (DHT) in the sebaceous glands, the oil-producing glands in the skin.”
It is this hormone that causes the skin to overproduce cells that ultimately stick together and form the telltale skin-clogging plug of acne.
“The milk most of us drink is produced by cows for their calves. To ensure maximum milk yields cows are inseminated days after giving birth to their calves, which are taken away. A dairy cow will spend most of its life being milked and being pregnant at the same time.
So milk is full of hormones: not only ones intended to help the calf grow, but also those produced by the placenta to aid the cow’s pregnancy. They include DHT, and other hormones that are the pre-cursors to DHT.”
Essentially a growing teen is getting a double whammy of hormones - from their own growth surge and the pregnant cow’s milk. And when the cow is given recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) to further stimulate milk production, this can kick up the hormone brew quite a few notches. Drinking organic milk doesn’t necessarily solve the problem. Genuine organic milk does not use rGBH in its production, but impregnating cows for max production appears to be standard practice on organic farms as well. Interestingly enough, skimmed milk consumption appears to cause the highest incidence of acne; with two eight-ounce glasses raising acne risks by 44%. Researchers theorize that the practice of adding whey, which gives the nonfat milk a creamier texture, is making the hormones in the milk more reactive.
Another study is currently in the works to further examine the link between milk and acne. Stay tuned…
Spot The Culprit - Belfast Telegraph
Light Therapy and Suction Treatment For Acne Shows Promise
April 15th, 2007
A very small study of 15 patients with severe acne showed that their acne “significantly improved” after two to three weekly treatments with photopneumatic therapy, or PPX. This new treatment consists of pulsed light therapy with vacuum suctioning of the skin. It’s reported that the suction clears pores and enhances the light treatment’s bacteria killing effects. The FDA has cleared the treatment for use; however, the American Academy for Dermatology apparently considers the procedure unproven. Because the study is so small, further research and observation will be needed to confirm the results.
Tags: photopneumatic therapy, light therapy, laser treatment, acne, acne treatment
Posted in Acne News Briefs
Top Of Page | Comments OffDon’t Buy Accutane Online, Warns FDA
March 31st, 2007
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has warned against buying the acne drug Accutane (isotretinoin) online. The agency has set up a web page to inform consumers at http://www.fda.gov/buyonline/accutane. The page is said to pop up when people search the web for Accutane or its generic versions. [I did test this on a Google search for Accutane and the government’s web warning is the number one result.] Because the drug has been linked to severe birth defects, serious mental health problems such as depression and suicide, and liver damage, the FDA wants to tighten access to Accutane.
FDA sets up Web warning against buying Accutane online - MarketWatch
Tags: Accutane, Amnesteem, Claravis, Sotret, isotretinoin, acne drug
Posted in Acne News Briefs
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