Acne was a tough topic for natural health coach Denise Martin for many years, since decades of severe acne damaged her self-esteem profoundly. She tried anything and everything available to her — from products and beyond — but there was never a solution that stuck. At the age of 38, she did a sugar detox and suddenly saw her skin improve. It was a lesson that taught her she could beat anything, including cancer and managing psoriasis, by paying attention to her diet. These days, she shies away from refined sugar, only drinks high-quality water and avoids coffee. "In my opinion, all skin diseases are born out of dehydration, which stymies the colon and puts our skin in overdrive to detox us," she shares. "Whole foods and high alkaline water will heal the skin."
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"I Cut Out Dairy."
Copywriter and body confidence coach Rebekah Buege started suffering from cystic acne at the age of 12, creating deep bumps below the skin that always felt inflamed, tender and painful, even when a pimple wasn't on the surface. It was tough on her sense of self, as she shared there was never a day in high school or college that she didn't have at least two to three pimples to cover up. To rid her breakouts, Buege tried everything except Accutane. In fact, anytime a friend mentioned a product they liked, she went for it: Proactiv, Murad, SkinCeuticals, AcneFree and even birth control. "The birth control helped, but I didn't like the idea of being dependent on something like that to keep my skin clear. I went to several dermatologists and got chemical peels to try and even out my skin because I had deep scarring," she shared.
So what finally did the trick? Giving up her beloved nachos. Though she was incredibly resistant, considering she adored dairy, she decided to see if it would make an improvement. "Within just two weeks I noticed an actual difference in my skin. The breakouts stopped but, more importantly, I stopped feeling them so deep in my skin. For the first time in my life, I could feel my skin, not my acne. It was hard to cut out all dairy, but once I started living on my own and stocking my own fridge, it became easier and I discovered some dairy was OK," she shared. "Now and then, I do have cheese or a little ice cream and my skin does okay. But if I ever eat yogurt, within a day I have tiny breakouts all along my jawline, proof that there is a reaction."
