All of you how suffer from adult acne I have something to say....

[strokemyforehead]

I have had chronic acne since I was 11 and I am now 31. My acne is always around my chin and o I always kind of knew it was hormonal but nothing ever touched it that the doc gave me.

Anyway for the past 6 months I have cut out dairy AND OH MY GOD !!!! I have had clear skin now for about 5 months.

I went to do an allergy test last week to confirm my suspicions and the test confirmed that I am indeed intolerant to ALL dairy.

Just wanted to share. I never thought I would get skin this clear I don't have to wear makeup now.

really pleased for you

I just wanted to let people know in case cutting out dairy helped them like it has helped me.

It really has been a revelation

ooh interesting!

acne around your chin line/jaw? thats where mine shows up the bastard

I have done some very light reading round this and i think it is to do with the hormones in the milk which can cause/aggravate acne. There was a thread on here a week or so ago about what helped acne sufferers and quite a few people said cutting out dairy had helped them,

I have had a similar problem for years, rest of the face can be clear but my chin looked terrible.

I haven't ditched dairy entirely as I still have cream and cheese but I don't have milk anymore. My skin has improved greatly since following a vlcd diet and I'm now on a low carb plan.

whether its due to the change of diet, increase in water intake or reading about acid peels on MN I don't care! I'm just happier than ever. :)

how do you go about the allergy testing if you don't mind me asking?

vlcd?

very low calorie diet. As well as restricting calories, fat and carbs are also kept low.

I think for me, ditching the carbs has helped with the acne but I would still be interested in what part dairy may be playing in the outbreak of acne.

Oh! Yikes!

My local health food shops offers it. I have to admit that I was wary of it at first.

I did not tell them why I was going as I wanted an unbiased account of possible intolerance. The way they did it was to pass a very low electrical circuit through my body ( I had to hold something in my hand and they put something else on my toe) and they then put certain things in the current to see how it affected the flow of electricity IFYSWIM (like wheat/dairy/alcohol). It was from the start of the test that my body was not happy when any type of dairy was put in the circuit and it was actually fascinating.

I also agree that a low cal and clean diet help skin as mine is always that bit better when I watch my diet but for me the absolute must for my skin is dairy free as like cutitout said the rest of my face was clear apart from my chin for many many years, all of my adult like actually. I know what you mean about being happier than ever it is amazing what a negative effect having problem skin had on my confidence and I feel like I have a new lease of life.

Plus I have lost weight as I can't have cheese/cake/biscuits.

Just for anyone thinking of paying for those health food shop tests, google them and the vegas machine they use.

See this bbc report, though there are lots of reports about them online.

If you think you have a food intolerance you are better to save your cash and see your GP tbh.

Sorry, Vega machine, not Vegas. Bloody autocorrect

this was why i was wary of the tests, but i wanted it to confirm what I already thought I knew if that makes sense.

I explained to the doc that since giving up all diary my acne had cleared and my skin was crystal clear and I asked her if there were any tests that she could do to confirm my suspicions, she said i would have to get it done locally (not much help)
To be fair on the shop that did it for me they are not a chain and a man comes in and does it every so it is not done by an employee of theirs.

are there tests on the NHS then?

jut read the comments on the bottom of that article i would be really annoyed if these tests were available and i got fobbed off by the doc

You can have RAST blood tests that check for allergies and skin prick tests too. The NHS don't offer vega machine testing because it has no medical credibility.

Intolerances and non IgE allergies are diagnosed by a specialist and those with allergies/intolerances will often be seen by a dietician to help achieve a balanced diet despite food limitations.

Ok

Well for my purposes I know that the dairy caused my acne but good to know for teh future Thanks

I found cutting out sugar and low carving really helped my skin. It was soft and even. I didn't even get menstural spots!

That's interesting, Monsoon.

stroke, are you able to eat soya milk/yogurt etc - i.e. the non-dairy alternatives?

I am tempted to go low sugar (ie cutting out refined carbs etc) and up my protein to banish the odd one i get at pmt time might give it a go for a couple of months.

Yes I can have soy just not anything from a cow or a goat

Ahh OK. I love soya milk. And the new one - Almond Milk is lush. And v low cal too.

I may give this a go - I've just come off dianette that I was taking for bad skin but I worried that at 37 I was getting too old to be on the pill. So I'm trying to wing it with healthy eating and Elemis skincare.

defo worth giving it a go. i can't believe the difference good luck and let us know how you get on

I'm intolerant to dairy but didn't realise it could affec my skin... But I love cheese!

I also used to suffer with pita acne. My consultant advised little or no dairy and referred me to this website. I've linked it before (apologies the repetition) and is really is worth reading a few of the pages. This page is v good at explaining how to give up dairy and how dairy causes acne.

It wasn't the complete answer for me but had I known this years ago maybe it would have helped.

thank you lurking