Actinic Keratosis (solar keratosis) is a common skin condition caused repeated sun damage over many years. While the condition is generally harmless, the risk exists that a solar keratosis patch may develop into skin cancer. Because these skin patches can appear on the head, face, hands, and arms, they are a cosmetic concern for many as well. Home remedies for actinic keratosis are inexpensive, effective and easy to use. Apple cider vinegar, borax, iodine and vitamin C are among the simple proven natural cures for actinic keratosis.
Natural Remedies for Solar Keratosis
Apple Cider Vinegar
Raw and organic apple cider vinegar is used internally and externally to treat actinic keratosis.
External Use
Depending on the size of the actinic keratosis, use a q-tip or cotton ball to apply raw, organic apple cider vinegar to the spots 2-4 times a day. If you find that this irritates your skin, dilute it with water – use equal parts of water and apple cider vinegar.
Internal Use
Apple cider vinegar has been used for generations to heal a variety of conditions, including skin problems. Add 1 -3 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar to a tall glass of water once or twice a day.
Borax
Borax, found in the laundry section of larger grocery stores, is a very inexpensive natural remedy for actinic keratosis. Make a paste with borax and water. Apply to the lesions 2-4 times a day. One of our readers mixed the borax with Listerine instead of water and found that to be very helpful!
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is best used internally and externally for the treatment of actinic keratosis.
To use vitamin C topically you will Vitamin C powder in the form of ascorbic acid. Mix 1/8 teaspoon of ascorbic acid with 1 teaspoon of water. Use a cotton ball or q-tip to apply this solution to your lesions 2 – 4 times a day. Make a new batch of solution each day.
The ascorbic acid powder can be used as your internal vitamin c supplement, which is also helpful for skin conditions and immune system support. It will be the least expensive way to get your vitamin c anyway. Mix 1/4 teaspoon of ascorbic acid and 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda and 4 ounces of water. This will give you a little over 1 gram of vitamin C in the form of sodium ascorbate, which is easier on the stomach than ascorbic acid. This amount can be taken 2-3 times a day or even more often. If you get loose stools, cut back on the amount you take.
Iodine
Topical use of iodine has been found effective in healing actinic keratosis. Use a q-tip to apply iodine to the lesions twice a day. Try this first at night. Iodine stains the skin for a time and you may not wish to go out with your skin an orange-yellow color! It is possible you will only want to use this treatment at bedtime. If so, perhaps try one of the other topical solutions above each morning. Lugol’s iodine is a popular iodine for internal and external use.
Colloidal Silver
Colorless and odorless, colloidal silver can be used for solar keratosis. If you put colloidal silver in a spray bottle it is easy to apply and won’t stain or sting! Apply colloidal silver at least twice a day.
If you have actinic keratosis, you should protect your skin from overexposure to the sun. Short periods of sun exposure are important for the body, but if you will be in the sun for extended periods, protect your skin. Lightweight long sleeves, pants and hats are preferred over sunscreen. Overuse of chemical sunscreen has been linked to skin cancers.
Have you tried a natural remedy for actinic keratosis? Please share your story with us! And continue reading to find out how our readers have used the above remedies, and others, to treat their actinic keratosis.
The comments about apple cider viniger being uncomfortable, orther substances being painful, are unique to each individual. I think just treating a small part of the area at first would be common sense, why treat with a substance when you don't know how you will react. But it's proven that apple cider viniger and many of the other DIY remedies help with skin lesions such a actinic keratosis. In the absence of doctors who will aggressively people, especially older people afflicted with this condition, I think whatever we can do in a common sense way to help ourselves, is smart. I can tell you, as a former nurse, I saw people who just gave up on the lesions on their necks, face, scalp, and especially their backs. Those lesions itch and are unsightly and it's darn hard to put up with it. If you find a dermatologist who will welcome you, treat treat them, and you can afford it, please let us know. Most of us are met with the standard…Oh those things, like skin tags, and keratosis just come with age, they are harmless." You are left to live with it. So I get steamed when I see people try a remedy and just because they got uncomfortable, they beat the topic to death. As for me, I would much rather put on my big girl britches, use my cheap vinigar and be free of unsightly skin patches. I treat regularly and see results. I also make sure to get a yearly skin examination to make sure nothing is developing that needs a biopsy. I don't claim to be a doctor, but we'd be in sad shape if we just ignored common sense and proven helpful education to share here on other sites.
My doctor tried to get me to do the freeze method and I am into all natural everything. I have been used colloidal silver years ago, and it killed a scary spot on my face.
About a year or more ago, a friend suggested using it to kill viruses, etc, and my family and I stayed healthy through this year's flu attacks. I started using colloidal silver ointment on my keratosis about a week ago. this has a higher ppm than the liquid spray that I use for every other thing. (I had been using the spray on it, but I wasn't consistent. )
Things are changing rapidly, and it is burning off. the first week, it just turned pink, and now things are more active. Hoping that soon that thing will be gone. The silver has killed lots of cancerous looking cells on my shoulders and on my husband's back. Colloidal silver is amazing!
Side effect reported
OMG I put ACV on my entire nose and chin 2 times for actinic keratosis and will never use it again. My face is bright red and blistered bad. I even rinsed it off after the 2nd time. I don't know how anyone can apply ACV 4-5 times a day for weeks. They are a tougher person than I am (I am 60 years old)
I had a tiny scab that wouldn't heal on my upper lip and I had it for at least a year. I was slightly concerned that it may be a type of skin cancer and to be honest having already had moles removed in the past and the scars that were left, I didn't fancy going down the conventional doctor route as a first port of call. I came aross the reviews that folks kindly shared on this great site and saw that it was something called Actinic Keratosis – often caused by sun damage.
I was thinking about buying the curaderm cream which is based on the aubergine remedy however as a first off I thought I would try apple cider vinegar. I had seen some folks say it gets worse before it gets better. It stung a bit when I first applied it and then within about 24 hours of applying it neat a few times a day just using a bit of cotton wool ( I used the mother Apple Cider Vinegar ) I noticed that other scabs were appearing ( about 5 on my upper lip ) and my lower lip also scabbed over. My mouth was in a bit of a mess to be honest and I was really self conscious when I saw people as I thought it looked like I had a ton of cold sores.
I had read that the Apple Cider Vinegar can bring out the hidden stuff so I just gritted my teeth, kept a fairly low profile as much as possible and carried on in the good faith that if it had worked for all these other folks then it would work for me. Within about 5/ 6 days things were looking considerably better and I could see that my lips were actually healing. About another 3 days after that so about 9 or 10 days in total my lips were looking totally normal again. I finished the treatment about 2 months ago ( was extra careful putting on a high sunscreen when I went on holiday ) and glad to say they are still looking great.
ACV rocks. to think that I could have gone to doctors and quite possibly ended up with some chemical chemo type cream which would have side effects, what I can say? Thrilled that this worked.
For AK( actinic keratosis), use sap from Euphorbia peplus (petty spurge, radium weed, cancer weed, or milkweed). This white milky sap applied once per day for 3 days will burn off spots. Scab forms in few days, heals to normal skin. Keep out of eyes. Natural weed found wild in Southern California. Studies in England confirm results, used for hundreds of years.
Well, I have finally taken the plunge and joined earth clinic after years of using your site for all my familys health problems, you are a wonderful site. I take 2 tablespoons of ACV in water each morning and have cleared up my post nasal drip that doctors could never heal, cured. I now use colloidal silver every day as I have found it better on my skin cancers than ACV, I have solar keratosis everywhere (the joy`s, of an Australian sun), I wipe it on each cancer and take 1/2 tablespoon daily I do this once daily and so far the results are great it has cured many small ones, also I work in a garden centre and any small cuts and rose thorn sores it heals overnight a great product that I would never have known about if I had not found this site, we now keep a bottle at work. Keep up the good work Earth Clinic.
So you want to heal your skin. I am 55 years old Male, olive complexion, with dozens of age spots, AK’s, non-healing spots, solar freckles from years of Surfing, Tennis and all outdoor sports since I was about 4 years old. I have taken whole vitamins for years so I feel great and am extremely active, decades younger than my years but my age is given away by my terribly aged skin.
FIRST reduce the bio burden so your body can heal itself. Clean up the diet, drink only filtered water without chlorine or fluoride, get rid of fluoride toothpaste, take lots of Vitamin C (5-10 grams spread through the day) and a good multi. I applied topical Derma E, Aloe, and Coconut Oil to start helping to heal the easiest areas and reduce my bio burden to help my body heal itself.
I did the Carac and it is horrible, turns your face pink, hurts and stings everywhere. It works on most AK's but I had several on the hands and a few areas on the face that were unaffected, plus some areas on the face that were not AK's but something unknown to the dermatologist, plus brown age spots. I do not recommend this unless everything else fails.
So I scoured the web, and came up with several natural therapies: BEC5 (made from Apple Cider Vinegar/eggplant with hand mixer, keep in fridge), Magnesium Oil and Vitamin C. I rotated these by applying the BEC5, then the Mag Oil, then the Vitamin C crystals with water, repeat as many times as you like.
The BEC5 seemed to be pretty powerful and went after the affected areas, it stings a little and turns injured areas red, it also went after age spots, the mag oil helped dry everything out and replenish minerals, the vitamin C was then taken up readily by the dry skin. When repeated or every time moisture was applied the mag oil and vit C was reactivated, so it worked over and over, even without re-application.
After a couple weeks, the red areas started to heal. For a couple days here and there between treatments, I applied Derma E Night Moisturizer with Vit C and Hyaluronic Acid in the PM and aloe in the AM during work days. Then applied the therapies in the PM a couple hours before bed. After 2-3 weeks my worst AK’s were peeling off, the unknown issue on my face had turned red, and then healed. Small areas on my ears turned red, then healed along with all of the non-healing sores. Several of the worst brown spots flaked off, and others were fading. I am nearing the finish, when I apply the therapies they no longer sting, the skin is healing back and much better than it was before. Keep drinking lots of water, add some Apple cider Vinegar if you want, also saw that there are other things to do when the BIG problems are healed: Drink Aloe, take Pycnogenol and Nicotinic Acid. I will also continue with coconut oil, Derma E and trial some Retin A on the wrinkled areas for a few months. I hope to look a decade or two younger. See the Video’s of the 60 year old on retin A, she looks great…I hope to get there over a couple of years, but it takes time and diligence.
Don’t trust me, do you own due diligence, study up for yourself and try lots of things until something works for you. I tried more than a dozen oils, but nothing worked. Everyone is different…..Good luck.
The first Actinic Keratosis lesion I had was removed by my Dr. I had been applying a dissolved Vitamin C tablet covered by a Band-Aid to that lesion for a few weeks prior to removal, and it seemed to remained unchanged by that treatment.
About a year later, to my dismay, another lesion showed up. This time I decided I was going to give organic ACV a try. For the first few days I just applied the ACV to a swab and dabbed vinegar on in the am, dinnertime, pm, and bedtime. I did that for about a week, with no apparent changes. I wondered if I should be more aggressive, so I applied the ACV to a small piece of cotton and kept it in place on the lesion with a Band-Aid. I would re-wet when needed to keep the area moist, changing out the old cotton every day. The Band-Aid was removed at bath time. I kept it on almost continually, but did give the area fresh air a few hours per day or sometimes overnight. This is when changes started happening much more quickly. The lesion changed to a dark pink, and I would experience burning and stinging. I felt something was happening so kept up the routine. At around the two week mark, the lesion had begun to separate from the healthy surrounding tissue. I was amazed! It took about four more days for the lesion to let go.
That was about two weeks ago that the lesion let go completely. The spot is still a slightly pink color. It is flat and smooth. If I didn't point out the spot to you, you would not see it. I apply natural ointment and liquid Vitamin C to facilitate healing. Of course, I have no idea if will come back again, but I will leave another review if it does to state that has happened.
Hi
has anybody used for actinic chellitis of the lips? I have on my top lip on the pink bit. I had some removed by laser above my lip and it didn't go well. Any advise re ACV for the lip? Also, any advise how to reduce the white scar tissue look from the lasered part?
Thanks, Nigel
Hi,
has anybody used for actinic chellitis of the lips? I have on my top lip on the pink bit. I had some removed by laser above my lip and it didn't go well. Any advise re ACV for the lip? Also, any advise how to reduce the white scar tissue look from the lasered part?
Thanks, Nigel
I had a small spot of actinic keratosis on my face next to my nose about 1/4" diameter. The dermatologist performed cryosurgery on the spot three time without success. So, I tried apple cider vinegar and cured it myself. Now it's completely gone and the skin is smooth as silk. I used organic, raw, unfiltered ACV. I applied it undiluted with a Q-tip swab 4 times per day for 5 days. Held it on the spot for one minute each time.
I did not use the ACV internally. It stung a little. On the second day, I had a little bleeding and scabbing. On the fourth day, the scab floated off. It's been over a month now, and there are no signs of AK.
ACV for Solar Keratosis:
10 days into the treatment; 2-6 times a day, dabbed on with cotton wool, and the difference is amazing. Got worst before it got better. Uncomfortable/painful. The full extent of the problem was exposed by the ACV. That was worrisome. Now I only have scabs on my pate in a few places. They are diminishing daily. Could not be any happier or more relieved, after years of using diclofenac. I have toasted myself in the sun & on sunbeds all my life despite being blond and fair skinned. I say try it, persevere with it. Tell someone else about it.
Hi, good luck with the final bit of the treatment. I'm just about to start. Do you keep putting on the ACV to the Keratosis when the scabs are formed or do you stop and let them dry out?
Thanks, David
PS. Pity about the smell, my kids can't stand it 🙂 Oh and I'm telling everyone
Excellent results from apple cider vinegar. I had many sores on my bald head from sun damage accumulated over the years from overexposurer ( Actinic Keratosis). I applied the ACV with a q-tip soaked in the ACV three or four times a day for approximately four days. Scabs began to form within a few days and I was able to gently remove the scabs. So far so good. Actually, amazing .
Hi, do you know whether you keep applying the ACV once the scab has formed or do you stop? I have AK on my nose, temple, cheek and a number on my scalp and want to get right Thanks Nigel
Excellent results from apple cider vinegar. I had many sores on my bald head from sun damage accumulated over the years from overexposurer ( Actinic Keratosis). I applied the ACV with a q-tip soaked in the ACV three or four times a day for approximately four days. Scabs began to form within a few days and I was able to gently remove the scabs. So far so good. Actually, amazing .
I have been battling skin cancer in various stages for over 3 years. First 2nd stage melanoma tumor removed from the inside arch of my left foot – 2"x2" tumor. Last year I had 7 surgeries for skin cancer in various types & stages with the largest tumor removed from right thigh. I needed a 6 month break from the surgeries and I was due 3 months ago for skin check but want to try some natural healing first. I just tried lemongrass oil on 3 spots to see, one on my right wrist about the size of a pea, my left ankle and another spot about the size of a nickel on my right thigh. I applied it straight with a q-tip and to day is day 3 and the wrist is almost gone and the others are making great progress. Since I have so many more spots I want to try to Apple Cider Vinegar. I am curious approximate how many spots have you treated and how many are gone. You had expressed you did your treatment process for 4 days after it started to dry up did you continue the treatment or just let it take its course? Thank you in advance for your response.
For some years I've had a spot on my forearm that started out as a mosquito bite, but which never completely healed, forming a 1/2 inch area of thin pink skin which would almost seem to heal and then crack open again and scab over. It looked exactly like the pics of actinic keratosis. It did not seem to grow, and I was reluctant to offer it up to a dermatologist for removal.
I tried many remedies, none worked, and then I tried coconut oil, which someone recommended with the idea the problem might be a fungus. The coconut oil did seem to bring very slow improvement, so I started thinking what else I could use for a fungus, and I came up with borax. I made a paste of borax laundry detergent booster and water, applied a chickpea sized dab to the lesion, and covered it with a band aid. I kept the bandaid on most of the time, reapplying borax at night. Within a week, I knew it was working, as the scab kept shrinking and the pink skin got thicker. It's been two weeks now, and the lesion is closed, the skin, still pink, but thicker and looking resilient. I will probably always have a scar there, but I am very happy to have the skin healed over.
I did add another tweak after the first ten days. Convinced the anti fungal treatment was working, I started using Listerine (original) instead of water to wet the borax. Listerine has thymol and eucalyptol, apparently the real plant oils, which are effective against fungus. I did this because my brother claimed to have gotten rid of bad toenail fungus by painting Listerine all over his nails every night. Not to say that AK is the same fungus, but just that anti fungal treatment seems to have worked amazingly in my case.
I would love to know if this will work for anybody else!
I am also convinced that at least some pre cancers and cancers ate actually fungus and or a bacteria that acts fungal such as Streptomyces and labs are getting it wrong because diagnosis requires special cultures and because of repeated incorrect training. I have been diagnosed with actinic keritosis and antimicrobials work. Is it a coincidence that antimicrobials work for certain cancer and pre cancer lesions, I don't think so. They are either fungal/bacterial infections or simply misdiagnosis.
This is my first time posting and I'm unsure if this is the right place to post about this cure. So my apologies if it's not.
I've had 3 rough red spots on the bridge of my nose for a number of years. Doc said they were actinic keratosis (ak) and to keep an eye on them since they can occasionally turn into cancer. They were unsightly and would sometimes get inflamed a little and peel, so I wanted to get rid of them. It's not uncommon for bruises, cuts and other injuries to leave marks on my skin for a long time after they've healed up, so I didn't want to do the cut or burn approach and have marks from that for a year, so I started looking for alternative treatments.
I read about using eggplant and ACV on AKs, so I blended up an eggplant with raw ACV and let it sit in the fridge for a day. Then I'd apply a thick layer of that paste to the lesions and leave it on overnight (uncovered). In the morning the paste would be dried up and firmly attached to the AKs and I had to peel them off or wash them off with lots of water and patience. The AKs got pretty inflammed and sore after a couple of days, then they started to weep and bleed a little. But only the AKs reacted. The rest of the skin in the treated area showed absolutely no reaction to the paste. About 5 days into the treatment the area was pretty sore and inflamed, so I stopped treatment for a couple of days to let it rest. Then I resumed treatment.
There was one spot on the right side of my nose that had been slightly pink, but had never had a visible AK. It got inflammed and sore too, so I assume it was an AK that hadn't surfaced yet.
About a week into treatment the AKs started going away. The AKs started sloughing and the redness and inflammation subsided. Four small pimples popped up on the edge of a couple of the AKs. They were small but quite sore. They lasted for about a week, then they peeled and fell off too. I continued to apply the paste for another week. But when the AKs started peeling the skin stopped reacting to the paste and nothing more happed, so I quit using it.
It's been about 4 weeks since I started the treatment, and at this point the areas where the AKs were are a light pink color, but all of the skin there is soft and smooth now. So for me the eggplant/ACV paste was a success. And it was cheap and easy too. Just one eggplant and about a half of a cup of raw ACV vinegar.
I'm 61 and a redhead and have had solar keratosis for about 5 years. Initially one on my face and some on my back and then several on my chin I've been treated with cryotherapy but it takes ages to heal and has always returned. I started treating myself with 'diluted ' cyder vinegar but again it came back. In the last 3 months I have been mixing the vinegar with aubergine and I think I'm finally seeing normal skin.
I have stopped and started and almost given up on several occasions as it got worse and new areas appeared . It's not easy having to burn your face time and time again knowing it will scab over and praying it will heal and not return. I have to virtually perform surgery on my face every day before it's smooth enough to wear make up before I can go out. I'm lucky I'm retired now. That's maybe why it's taken so long but it was either that or be a total hermit. I've stayed in for days to avoid picking the scabs and allow it to heal but to no avail. My husband thinks I'm self harming but what choice do I have when it's on my face.
Anyway, am keeping my fingers crossed and will keep posting. Am not sure if I'll be left with scarring. I also had a biopsy about a month ago and have to wait 6 wks on the result. The dermatologist said she couldn't diagnose my condition because I couldn't leave my skin alone. I need to be checked on a regular basis in future as obviously now high risk for squamous cell carcinoma. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to show the dermatologist a positive result.
Update – It's been 11 months since I used the eggplant/ACV paste on the four solar keratoses on my nose, and I can now say that the treatment was a complete success. There are no signs that the keratoses were ever there. The skin is smooth and soft, and there are none of the lingering red marks that often will remain for a year or so after my skin has had an injury.
A question. Why Apple Cider Vinegar as opposed to other vinegars. They are all acetic acid. Why not distilled malt vinegar, or even malt vinegar itself. The method seems to promote skin peeling (acid is corrosive) rather than a chemical effect.
Comments please.
Anon, go ahead and try the different vinegars on your keratosis and let us know what your results are. I am always interested in what actually works for people. Good luck!
A little risky on the face.
I pick at mine too. Been applying ACV for about 2-3 weeks 3-5x per day with q-tip, but I can't help but pick at the things, and now they are all bloody and scabby. Not sure if I should stop the ACV and let them heal? Or just keep on with the ACV and stop rubbing and picking at them. Probably that one. I think I'll try a week of ACV and absolutely NO scraping. Maybe they'll scab over and fall off!
Good luck with yours, too.
I am in the same position as you. Have been applying ACV for over a week now and my arms are covered in very dry scabs and itchy. I shall continue to apply ACV and see what happens. I might try rubbing aloe Vera on my arms, as they are very dry.
Diagnosed with pre-cancerous Actinic Ketosis on my back. Read here, (thank you Earth Clinic for this site and all of you! ) that ACV could help this. Since I'm up for experimenting on myself, I tried it.
I used the ACV straight on the Ketosis after I took a picture of it. It is now healed completely. Also used the ACV straight, no dilution, on my face, and any bumps that I have on my body and under breasts. A small skin nodule under my lip fell off in one day. At first, my skin seemed to get very red, but I think that was the stuff coming out that needed healing. All other bumps (moles, etc.) are getting better but not healed yet.
My husband had a rash on the back of his knee and has been using ACV for the past month and it is much better but not healed yet. ACV rocks!
How long did you use the ACV? I have been using it for 3 weeks and the scabs seem to come back so I'm thinking the area needs more work. ANY thoughts?
Dear Shellie. My husband is fair-skinned and doesn't use sunblock so he gets actinic keratoses a lot. Have found: (1) exfoliate often..can use a rough washcloth or charcoal sponge (2) apply aloe vera gel AM and PM (3) always use sunblock.
Good Luck, Rose