In my opinion a bad hair day or even an extra pound or
two is nothing like the miseries of skin problems. Which is why I
thought I'd devote the next couple weeks to facing the day with great
skin.
There is nothing like the freedom to go out into the world, minus the wall of makeup separating you from the world.
For years my skin was my thorn in the flesh I guess you could say. Of
course I had normal teenage breakouts, which seemed to pretty much
correct themselves in college. But the real test came the first couple months of being pregnant with
my son. My skin was not happy about being pregnant. At the time I felt
there really wasn't anything I could do about it since I really didn't
know what would be safe to apply topically or take orally to solve the
problem. Thank goodness it only lasted a couple months because
pregnancy, and breastfeeding for that matter, became my skin's best
friends.
Of course, breastfeeding cannot go on forever, and once I quit nursing I was in for quite an adventure with my skin.
It was at that time that I began taking antibiotics, both topical and
oral, along with quite a few other prescription topical treatments. All
of these things together corrected the problem, but when I asked my
dermatologist how long I would have to go on popping pills and applying
a million different, very expensive, creams to my face and shoulders
everyday, she calmly responded by explaining that many women
continue the same acne regime through their 20s and 30s. That struck me
as absolutely insane.
At that time our family had began much more of an all-natural, holistic
lifestyle by ditching all our harmful cleaners and personal care
products for those with non-toxic ingredients, so it struck me as
seriously odd that I was not seeking more an alternative medicine
approach to my skin problems.
That was when I decided during a trip to visit family back in my home
state that I would visit my mother's holistic chiropractor. I
immediately stopped taking the antibiotics and changed my diet to fit
my body's needs.
Antibiotics are meant to be taken during a hospital-level emergency,
not for conditions like acne, and they are not meant to be taken for
long periods of time. The risks of antibiotics such as erythromycin
are even as serious as cardiac arrest, and one of the seemingly less
serious side effects of antibiotic use is what a lot of holistic
physicians (if there is such an oxymoron) call "leaky gut syndrome."
Dr. Bob Dorris, a doctor of oriental medicine who is a well
known acupuncturist and lecturer, describes leaky gut syndrome as what
happens when, "antibiotics cause your small intestine to become
inflamed, allowing toxins and undigested food particles to "leak" from
your small intestine into your bloodstream."
This can lead to such things as chronic fatigue, asthma, food
allergies, sinus problems, migraines, colon cancer, diarrhea and PMS.
Also, antibiotics rid your digestive system of the good bacteria it
needs to function properly.
When dealing with acne, you want to make sure that your body has all its natural defenses against toxins working properly, and all that good bacteria is one of those defenses.
Acne is very much an internal problem. You can slather on all the creams you want to try and manage the problem, but creams and antibiotics will never get to the root of acne.
One of the natural remedies that my holistic chiropractor prescribed is a supplement called Spanish Black Radish, which not only protects the body against free radicals but also aids in healthy digestion.
It helped get my digestive system on track after years of antibiotic use.
Here are a few other completely natural remedies to combat acne that your body will thank you for.
Wash your face with sulfur soap, which is a natural bacteria retardant. Most facial cleansers that claim to treat acne actually contain ingredients that begin working as they're going down the drain.
Grind vitamin B tablets into a powder, mix with water to form a paste and wear as a mask for 45 minutes every day.
Supplement with vitamin E for male acne sufferers or supplement with vitamin B6, which helps women with premenstrual acne.
Get plenty of fiber to cleanse the body of toxins.
Stay tuned next week for more lifestyle tips to treat acne.
In my opinion a bad hair day or even an extra pound or two is nothing like the miseries of skin problems. Which is why I thought I'd devote the next couple weeks to facing the day with great skin.
For years my skin was my thorn in the flesh I guess you could say. Of
course I had normal teenage breakouts, which seemed to pretty much
correct themselves in college. But the real test came the first couple months of being pregnant with
my son. My skin was not happy about being pregnant. At the time I felt
there really wasn't anything I could do about it since I really didn't
know what would be safe to apply topically or take orally to solve the
problem. Thank goodness it only lasted a couple months because
pregnancy, and breastfeeding for that matter, became my skin's best
friends.
There is nothing like the freedom to go out into the world, minus the wall of makeup separating you from the world.
Of course, breastfeeding cannot go on forever, and once I quit nursing I was in for quite an adventure with my skin.
It was at that time that I began taking antibiotics, both topical and oral, along with quite a few other prescription topical treatments. All of these things together corrected the problem, but when I asked my dermatologist how long I would have to go on popping pills and applying a million different, very expensive, creams to my face and shoulders everyday, she calmly responded by explaining that many women continue the same acne regime through their 20s and 30s. That struck me as absolutely insane.
At that time our family had began much more of an all-natural, holistic lifestyle by ditching all our harmful cleaners and personal care products for those with non-toxic ingredients, so it struck me as seriously odd that I was not seeking more an alternative medicine approach to my skin problems.
That was when I decided during a trip to visit family back in my home state that I would visit my mother's holistic chiropractor. I immediately stopped taking the antibiotics and changed my diet to fit my body's needs.
Antibiotics are meant to be taken during a hospital-level emergency, not for conditions like acne, and they are not meant to be taken for long periods of time. The risks of antibiotics such as erythromycin are even as serious as cardiac arrest, and one of the seemingly less serious side effects of antibiotic use is what a lot of holistic physicians (if there is such an oxymoron) call "leaky gut syndrome."
Dr. Bob Dorris, a doctor of oriental medicine who is a well known acupuncturist and lecturer, describes leaky gut syndrome as what happens when, "antibiotics cause your small intestine to become inflamed, allowing toxins and undigested food particles to "leak" from your small intestine into your bloodstream."
This can lead to such things as chronic fatigue, asthma, food allergies, sinus problems, migraines, colon cancer, diarrhea and PMS. Also, antibiotics rid your digestive system of the good bacteria it needs to function properly.
When dealing with acne, you want to make sure that your body has all its natural defenses against toxins working properly, and all that good bacteria is one of those defenses.
Acne is very much an internal problem. You can slather on all the creams you want to try and manage the problem, but creams and antibiotics will never get to the root of acne.
One of the natural remedies that my holistic chiropractor prescribed is a supplement called Spanish Black Radish, which not only protects the body against free radicals but also aids in healthy digestion.
It helped get my digestive system on track after years of antibiotic use.
Here are a few other completely natural remedies to combat acne that your body will thank you for.
Wash your face with sulfur soap, which is a natural bacteria retardant. Most facial cleansers that claim to treat acne actually contain ingredients that begin working as they're going down the drain.
Grind vitamin B tablets into a powder, mix with water to form a paste and wear as a mask for 45 minutes every day.
Supplement with vitamin E for male acne sufferers or supplement with vitamin B6, which helps women with premenstrual acne.
Get plenty of fiber to cleanse the body of toxins.
Stay tuned next week for more lifestyle tips to treat acne.