Acne and Food

The first surprise I had in my Dermatology Course at Johns Hopkins was learning that the experts believed NO FOOD caused a worsening of acne in teens.

I had been raised to believe that eating greasy foods, chocolate, and pizza were damaging to the skin.  That turned out to be untrue when controlled experiments were done with volunteers. 

Now some good research has shown that SKIM MILK will aggravate acne.  Patients drinking skim milk tended to have worse complexions than those who drink whole milk, or low fat milk (and the subjects drinking whole milk were actually a bit better off than the low fat group).   Some people using skim milk still had good skin, but it's something to consider if a young person is having acne problems.

I also have a suspicion that eating A LOT of orange vegetables and broccoli can be helpful.  The Vitamin A in carrots, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash is chemically similar to the active ingredient in THE MOST POWERFUL acne medicine around, Accutane.   So eating a bunch of those foods every day seems like a good idea for healthy skin.  Even if it doesn't improve your skin, you will be healthier because you are eating them!