The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Fermented Foods
Posted by Penelope (Los Angeles, Ca) on 04/10/2013
★★★★★
Try introducing fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimche, and extra virgin coconut oil into your diet to clear up acne fast! Like everything, introduct these foods in small amounts first, one at a time to see what works for you and to see how much to take. For me, Kimche cleared up my acne in DAYS! Coconut oil caused me to break out initally then clear. Make sure you buy saurkraut and kimche at a korean market or health food store - not the heated, processed kinds sold elsewhere at more commercial, larger chain stores.
Lysine
Posted by Heather (San Diego, Ca) on 04/03/2013
★☆☆☆☆
Nay. I have used lysine regulalry for viral issues and don't notice any difference in my hormonal breakouts. May work for some people though.
Peppermint Tea
Posted by Heather (San Diego, California) on 03/04/2013
★★★★☆
Yeah. Better but not cured for hormonal acne.
Have used this for six months. If I drink several cups of this per week, I notice fewer breakouts. Although it did not cure my hormonal acne, I wouldn't be without it because the improvement is noticeable.
Other thing that helps is either raw carrots consumed on an empty stomach and activated charcoal caps (they both do the same thing so take either/or.)
Carrot Juice
Posted by Heather (San Diego, California) on 03/04/2013
PS: I've also tried topical antibiotics, systemic antibiotics, retin A, daily zinc lotions and zinc potions, glycolic acid peels, a and d lotion, lavendar oil, various soaps, and everything the drug store offers (benzol peroxide, salicilic acid), apple cider vinegar, and probably everything that looked promising on earthclinic.
Carrots, and avoiding the foods mentioned above, beat those things in effectiveness.
Castor Oil
Posted by Heather (San Diego, California) on 03/04/2013
★☆☆☆☆
Castor oil. Made my adult hormonal acne much worse. May be good for scars though, so I kept it for a scar on my leg.
BHA
Posted by Alex (Nyc, Usa) on 01/04/2013
From my experience, I am over 30 and suffer from adult acne occasionally I apply BHA for months and it does help from acne occurring again. Also home remedies such as banana peel, olive, avocado, and honey are a great help for making acne disappear without leaving spot and scar.
Green Tea, Olive Leaf, Nettles
Posted by Jeanne (Farmington Hills, Mi) on 11/14/2012
★★★★★
I accidentally came across some information on using Olive Leaf, Nettles and Green Tea for acne, and found it to be surprisingly effective (after trying countless other things). I Googled each of these three things individually for acne, and there were a lot of sites that showed people had immense improvement, so I just started taking all three supplements and couldn't believe the results.
It is best to use herbs that say "standardized" and/or "guaranteed potency" to ensure you're actually getting the strength and amount the label lists. I took two olive leaf capsules and two nettle leaves capsules in the morning and in the evening (although if your condition is very bad, you can take a dose at lunch, as well).
I also took Green tea extract (either the herbal liquid tincture or herbs makes a liquid cap that works better than a powdered green tea capsule-- at least in my experience) a couple times a day. Drinking the actual tea is good to do too.
Make sure you are getting adequate vitamin and mineral intake, as well. For skin, especially Vit. C, A, E, and the minerals zinc and selenium. Also, Essential Fatty Acids like fish oil (EPA/DHA).
Green Tea
Posted by Gentle (Indy, Us) on 08/11/2012
★★★★★
I've had great results with green tea. I replaced coffee with green tea and I was pretty surprised. I was more clear the very next day. BTW, I am in my 40s and dealing with hormonal acne.
Fermented Foods
Posted by Stella (Brooklyn, Ny) on 07/31/2012
★★★★★
I had terrible cystic acne. Tried a lot of things. Was told to try sauerkraut. I got the good kind (bubbies) sold at whole foods. I dont think regular brands work. This kind has lots of good bacteria. I'm not exaggerating when I say my skin was clear in three weeks. I battled with terrible skin for 10 years. Apparently, the live bacteria balanced something in my intestines and my skin cleared up. Please try it. Each jar is less than $5. I ate about 1/3 each day.
You might also want to reconsider what you're eating. Acne is usually the result of incompatible foods or imbalanced hormones. Even if the sauerkraut helps, there might still be an underlying issue that manifests in another way. Trust me, I'm living it.
Good luck!
Borax
Posted by Mable (Benalmadena, Spain) on 06/25/2012
★★★☆☆BETTER BUT WITH SIDE EFFECTS
I've been fighting skin parasites or something on my face for 2 years chronically and 8 yrs of 'acne' previously. Tried Ted's remedy in capsule form as recommended on curezone. I would not use in that way again, and would follow Ted's recipe of putting it in water to sip throughout the day.
I quit the cure after a few days due to the effects the borax had on my mental state. It was almost like a drug in the way it made my mind feel very aware. If I wanted to get off legally without being out of control, I would use borax.
I think I would try it again, using a very very small dosage, maybe even smaller than Ted's. A side effect that I liked was that the horrible bad breath I had experienced for a year went away within a day or two and stayed away for a couple of weeks. Perhaps my breath still stunk to other people, but the horrible disgusting taste in my mouth when I woke up was gone.
Lysine
Posted by Darrell (Louisville, Ky) on 06/24/2012
★★★★★
A very good treatment for acne is Lysine. It is very cheap and can be found in any store's vitamin section. It typically comes in 500mg pills. I'll chew up 2 or 3 of them a day when I have an acne outbreak and it'll be gone in no time. Hope this helps and good luck.
Bentonite Clay
Posted by Fighting4ourfreedoms (Spotsylvania, Va) on 06/04/2012
★★★★★
A few years ago I started having severe skin disorders and ended up with severe acne. I've tried everything from honey masks, herbal detoxes and tinctures, colloidial silver, vegetarian, primal, mediterranean diets, etc etc, Even expensive facial creams and soaps stuffed with glycolic acids and AHAs. And while I can delight in two-three pimples at a time instead of 40, my skin still stresses under change in weather. It peels off and sheds profusely when it's cold out, but a few days ago... BAM! Hot, humid weather and my oil reserves see no end. I started breaking out again and desperate, I grabbed an old jar of Calcium Bentonite (the green-external-use-only-kind) and washed my face with it. It WORKED. All day my face had zero oil. And my pimples were drying out. Praise God for dirt that cleans my face!
Also, I usually don't write these things because the solutions never last long enough for me, but this one truly is a blessing, even if just for a few days. See, I had mixed it before with water/apple cider vinegar and left on my face to 'pulse' for suggested time.... Big no-no. It was way too harsh for my sensitive skin. But a little pinch mixed with a lot of water, massaged onto skin like soap, and immediately washed off works just right. I hope this helps someone else who has a big tub just sitting around! It's worth a try!
Banana Peel
Posted by Aquarelle (West Coast, America) on 05/31/2012
★★★★★
It's been a few years since I've posted on earthclinic and this isn't one I have tried personally, rather found it online while conducting some research for a family member with this issue. There is a ton of info online stating that this method works even for moderate to severe acne because of the potassium and antioxidants contained in the peel. Because this is such a cheap and accessible item, and because I found glowing articles even on mainstream 'beauty' sites and such, I had to add it here. I recall info about peels for warts but did not know it helped acne.
I would suggest doing some reading online but essentially the method involves taking a fresh banana peel (yellow with brown spots works best, do not use green) and rubbing on the face for up to 10 minutes. The peel will get discoloured from rubbing on the face, and when that happens, new peel area should be used. Let this sit on the skin for some time. Some articles I read advised doing this up to 3 times per day.
I have pointed my family member in this direction and will report on the results. Surely if acne is severe many other measures should be taken, but this seems like a cheap and easy ritual to add in. It's all about good habits and remedies adding up. I wish I had known about it years ago!
Bentonite Clay
Posted by Aquarelle (West Coast, America) on 05/31/2012
★★★★★
Yet another acne remedy I discovered while helping out a family member: Bentonite Clay applied with apple cider vinegar. A specific clay was touted: Aztec Secret - Indian Healing Clay. Apparently this is benitoite clay from Death Valley, Ca and has been baked dry at a certain temperature. I do not know if other benitoite clays have the same property as Aztec; I would assume so. My relative just started using it and reported improvement in skin but has a long way to go, and is of course making other changes in order to heal from this condition. Also, there are many types of clay which are beneficial for different skin types/issues, but this was the one I found to have the most reviews on Amazon and elsewhere in treating up to severe acne. But... It should be said that other clays would likely be beneficial.
Detox Teas
Posted by Aquarelle (West Coast, America) on 05/31/2012
Yogi Tea makes a Skin Detox Tea that has great reviews on many different websites (amazon being one) in it's use for acne. I actually made my own version (not for acne, but for skin-glowing benefits) which does not contain the green tea as I am caffeine free (as far as beverages go - do enjoy chocolate! ). I also added several other herbs which I found in an online article for skin glowing tea. Many of the herbs flush out the system and help with digestion, blood purification, etc... So this tea could benefit most. In the article I read it was recommended to drink the tea for 3 weeks then take a 1 week break. Yogi's tea does not specify this that I know of, but many reviewers on amazon give in-depth descriptions of how/when they used the tea for results with acne.
My personal version of the tea wasn't anything special, just all the herbs I could find at my co-op, unmeasured and thrown together. I would go high on the hibiscus, orange peel and honeybush (plus green tea or any other flavor enhancer you like)... But all in all, it's good enough to drink : )
Burdock Root
Cardamom Pods
Dandelion
Hibiscus
Orange Peel
Yellow Dock
Sarsparilla
Sassafras
Honeybush (similar to roobois tea)
Oregon Grape Root
& powdered Stevia leaves for flavor (or honey)
Also on my list that the co-op didn't have or that I thought I still had at home (but didn't) were:
Rose petal
Red clover
Nettles
Cleavers
Toothpaste
Posted by Christie (Bristol, Ct) on 04/29/2012
★★★★★
When I was travelling last week, I ate a chocolate and peanuty dessert at a restaurant. Well, within an hour I had a big pimple popping out on my chin. Peanut and chocolate combination will sometimes do this, esp if the chocolate has cocoa butter in it. I didn't have any pimple remedies with me, but I remembered reading about toothpaste for pimples. I dabbed some on my pimple and went to bed. The next morning, it was barely visible. I think it's the mint that works. Yea toothpaste!
