Is Food Related To Acne?

A COMMON QUESTION THAT I GET A LOT FROM READERS IS WHETHER FOOD CAUSES OR IS RELATED TO ACNE.  ARE YOU A SKEPTIC TOO?  FROM MY NEW ACNE BOOK, 101 ACNE QUESTIONS ANSWERED, A YOUNG MAN WRITES TO ME ABOUT SOMETHING ALL ACNE STRUGGLERS HAVE PROBABLY PONDERED IN THE PAST…

Hey Ray,

Thank you for the article – I really appreciate it. I have been one of those people who are still a little skeptical on the whole regimen. I have been suffering from moderate acne for about 8 months now.

I really want to believe in the regimen – but I never really had a problem with acne in the past, and I ate basically whatever I wanted.

I find it hard to believe that the food I eat is the cause of the acne I am currently experiencing – because I never had that problem in the past. What do you think? Do you think your regimen can apply to everyone, or just particularly the ones who have a correlation between acne and food?

-J***

Dear HTCYA Reader,

I’m glad you brought this up:

1.) I never had a problem with food and acne in the past, what are your thoughts?
2.) Does food relate to acne for everyone?

You know what, a little while ago in my life I would’ve totally agreed with you. There’s very been little talk about how food can affect acne. In fact, most people would probably dismiss the statement as ridiculous. A lot of people still do now. But after having tried everything else and having done a little bit (or a lot =) of research, I have a different approach now to the whole subject of how food can affect not just our acne, but our entire bodies.

I do think that food can affect your acne. And I’m saying this because I think that food can affect our entire bodies. Everything from the amount of salt that we eat in a hamburger to the amount of sugar that we eat in a cheesecake to the amount of vitamin C that we eat in a tomato, these things change our bodies. Sometimes the change is for good but more often than not, I see people who do things that are changing their bodies for the worst. It’s a pretty simple concept really: what you put into your body and how you treat your body, it will respond a certain way.

If you never maintain your car, never give it tune ups, never fill up the gas or clean out the filters, it will probably have a shorter lifespan than if it were properly cared for. Of course, every is different and different people have different body types. We’re all born with different levels of health, different sizes, different strengths and weaknesses. So it’s important to find out what works for you and what your strengths and weaknesses are.

If you have acne and your friend doesn’t but you’re eating the same thing, it doesn’t mean that food doesn’t affect him and it affects you. It’s not that simple, it means that food affects you both, BUT it affects you both DIFFERENTLY. And unless you were exactly the same in every way, had the same genetics, same parents, ate the same thing, took the same number of breaths a day, and drank the exactly same amount of water each day, your bodies will respond differently to what may “seem” like the same foods.

This regimen is different because it’s not about a quick fix solution. I’m talking about getting your body healthy and specifically targeting the regions in your body that are affecting your acne. It’s an approach that looks at the body from a holistic perspective. I’m not just talking about applying a cream; I’m talking about understanding your body as a unique machine that needs certain things that we haven’t been previous told about.

I do think that this regimen can apply to most people in the United States. If you look around us, in 2011, 25.8 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. One out of every three people are obese in America today. Look around your work, around your college campus, around your school or around your family and neighborhood. USA Today states that there are currently 73 million people, about 34% of United States adults are obese.

You probably know someone who has had some form of cancer or another. Or maybe somebody in your family has had an incidence of cancer before. According to the Cancer.org, there are more than 1.5 million NEW cases of cancer in 2010 ALONE. Something is seriously wrong here. Maybe we all need to be taking better care of our health? Maybe we need to be more aware of what’s going on?

I think that people can change though. We can learn about our bodies and better ourselves. And in doing so, you can also be healing your hair, strengthening your bones, giving yourself more energy, as well as beautifying your skin. After going to graduate school for Dietetics and Nutrition, counseling clients all over the world, and thousands of hours of research, The How To Clear Your Acne regimen that I’ve designed focuses on being health from a holistic perspective with a specialization in acne and skin.

So, to answer your question, yes, I believe that we can all benefit from learning about our bodies. And we can all learn how to have clear skin the healthy and natural way.

Your  Personal Acne Coach,

-Ray