Acne and breastfeeding

[heartlanddrive]

Hi,
I'm 28 now and I've always suffered with acne since about 13 years old. After a few years of using different products and trying what felt like everything out there, I went on birth control (the combined pill) and it worked for years!
After a few years I decided to come off bc as I wasn't happy with the other side effects I was having and even then my skin stayed manageable for a few more years until about about three years ago when my acne came back! At the time, I went to the doctors and was put on a range of different antibiotics,none of them helped and so I gave up and tried to treat them myself by trying different skincare ranges.

I then got pregnant and my skin was amazing for the first time ever... Fast forward to now, 14 weeks postpartum and my pregnancy hair and skin has officially gone!

It seems to only affect my chin area but looks awful and is making me not want to get out and meet other mums and go to baby groups etc, which is something I really have wanted to do as I have no friends with babies.

I'm exclusively breastfeeding so I went back to the doctors and was given a prescription for 'Duac once daily' which contains Clindamycin and anhydrous benzoyl peroxide. The GP and pharmacist both said it's safe to take while breastfeeding however, on the leaflet that came with it, it says that the effects of taking this while breastfeeding is not known and should be used with caution.
I don't want to use anything that could potentially harm my son so I'm a bit paranoid now about using it. I was just wondering if anyone has any knowledge about this or has used it while breastfeeding.
Thanks

Hi @heartlanddrive I used benzoyl peroxide throughout pregnancy and while BF'ing. They always put unknown (unless you definitely can't use a medicine) as they can't test on pregnant women due to ethical reasons. Hope it works for you!

@Flatwhite32 ahh that makes sense. That's reassuring, thank you so much!

It’s absolutely fine. I too suffer from acne and had to ha e medication during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Unfortunately my skin couldn’t tolerate duac it really burnt my skin on my face. I found azelaic acid beneficial (financea on prescription). Sadly I had to give up bf in the end to go on roaccutane (my second course) which now I’ve finished the spots are creeping back...argh!!!

@Troton thanks. Duac seems to be doing something for me, it's only been a few days but the redness has gone down a bit and some of the smaller spots have cleared so fingers crossed it gets better. But glad to hear I'm not the only one who's used things while breastfeeding. I've also considered going on roaccutane a few times but I'm a bit nervous about the side effects. I didn't realise you might have to take a few courses of it before it worked

Most people do get cleared and stay clear from one course. Sadly I seem to be one of the unlucky few for whom it’s not a long term fix. Duac is very effective though if your skin can tolerate it so hopefully that should be alright for you

@Troton hope you don't mind me asking but what side effects did you get from roaccutane and how long were you using it for during the first course?

Hi 6 months and manageable side effects as I took a low ish dose (20mg a day)
I had very very dry lips and was a bit more tired and achey than usual but that’s it really. Very tolerable but just sadly has t worked long term for me.