Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? - PaleoHacks.com most recent 30 from http://paleohacks.com 2013-05-18T23:06:41Z http://paleohacks.com/feeds/question/106300 http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/rdf http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Denis 2012-03-20T18:25:18Z 2012-10-22T03:11:45Z <p>I have been Paleo for a few months and have had occasional flare ups of acne. Its been quite bad these past few days so I went in search of the cause. I heard Chocolate caused acne, but found a study that found no link a few weeks back, so I ruled it out.</p> <p>I reconsidered my position after thinking about how my Dark Chocolate has increased a lot this past week and my flare ups have increased at the same time. After finding another hack with a similar experience to mine I did some research on google and found the following article describing a study that found a link:</p> <p><a href="http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/737037" rel="nofollow">http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/737037</a></p> <p>How has your experience with chocolate been? Has it caused acne for you? Now that I think about it the flare ups have always coincided with my intake of chocolate.</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106316#106316 Answer by Mark Field for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Mark Field 2012-03-20T19:01:00Z 2012-03-20T19:01:00Z <p>Does your chocolate have sugar in it? For me, at least, it's not the chocolate, it's the sugar. I eat 99% dark chocolate (Scharffenberger) with no problems.</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106317#106317 Answer by Bill for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Bill 2012-03-20T19:01:52Z 2012-03-20T19:01:52Z <p>I have eaten a piece of 85% dark chocolate about 5 times a week or used raw cacao powder in coffee or smoothies for the past 3 weeks and my skin looks great... I have also been super stressed with my thesis and still my skin looks great... Maybe the phytic acid is a thing for some people. I do eat oysters and liver at least once a week so my mineral status is probs good. With acne and skin issues... it's always individual and YMMV. </p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106321#106321 Answer by Medis for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Medis 2012-03-20T19:14:41Z 2012-03-20T19:14:41Z <p>I'm noticing the same reaction in myself, and I think it's the caffeine!</p> <p>I don't know how much dark chocolate has, but I have the 85% Lindt bars and they make me quite hyperactive. I've noticed myself breaking out in small pimples on my forehead after eating them, which is usually something that happens with stress. Caffeine makes me feel stressed out so I think it might be the cause (quite sensitive to it). Stopped eating it and the pimples are dying down.</p> <p>It's probably the quantity I eat too... I mean the fact that it's all cocoa is not enough to deter me from chomping through nearly the whole bar. I make myself sick on it and get really jittery and crazy and later, stressed out.</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106388#106388 Answer by Canis Minor for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Canis Minor 2012-03-20T23:21:24Z 2012-03-20T23:21:24Z <p>Going low-carbish paleo cleared my (adult, cystic) acne in a month, that was over three years ago. I introduced 100% dark Ghirardelli about a year ago -- your mileage may vary, but I've still had no skin problems in all this time. </p> <p>Caffeine, soy lecithin and sugar seem to be triggers for some people. </p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106485#106485 Answer by August for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? August 2012-03-21T13:49:20Z 2012-03-21T13:49:20Z <p>I think it is the soy lecithin. Lindt changed their recipe last year and started including soy lecithin in some of their bars that hadn't had them previously. When I can find bars that are free of grains, legumes, and dairy, I have zero problems, even if there is more sugar in them than I like. I find bars that don't list them as ingredients but mention they are made in factories that use them- these sometimes cause problems, sometimes they don't as one might guess. </p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106571#106571 Answer by FED at LiveCaveman.com for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? FED at LiveCaveman.com 2012-03-21T20:05:23Z 2012-03-21T20:05:23Z <p>I eat approximately 1oz of 100% chocolate (Baker's) daily and have had no issues with acne. I have noticed a relationship with dairy consumption and skin problems however.</p> <p>Perhaps milk, soy, sugar or other ingredients found in chocolate bars (with less than 100% cacao) are confounding factors in your chocolate-breakout experience?</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106682#106682 Answer by raydawg for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? raydawg 2012-03-22T09:51:41Z 2012-03-22T09:51:41Z <p>I can be a chocolate fiend, but only eat 85%+, though rarely that low, it's mostly either 100% Ghirardelli baking bars, or 90% Lindt. I also use about a teaspoon or two of unsweetened cocoa in coffee daily. Never had an issue with acne from it.</p> <p>However, recently, I've had two cups of goat's milk kefir in one sitting because it's been sitting around in the fridge for too long and didn't want it to go bad - had acne the next day. Not a lot, just a zit or two on my arm and one on my belly.</p> <p>If I dip lower than 85%, and eat more than a few squares - i.e. white chocolate, I do see acne form the next day, sometimes as boils.</p> <p>Are we sure it's the chocolate and not the dairy? Or perhaps chocolate when there's dairy in the diet as well? I'm a bit skeptical of this article - at least for this n=1. :)</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/106697#106697 Answer by Janry for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Janry 2012-03-22T12:18:54Z 2012-03-22T12:18:54Z <p>Any chocolate that has soy lecithin makes me break out. I tried making my own chocolate which solved that.</p> http://paleohacks.com/questions/106300/chocolate-100-cocoa-has-been-linked-to-acne-your-experience/157217#157217 Answer by Mary for Chocolate (100% Cocoa) has been linked to acne. Your experience? Mary 2012-10-22T03:11:45Z 2012-10-22T03:11:45Z <p>Cocoa isn't causing the acne. It's the lecithin that's mixed with the cocoa and sugar. Take lecithin out of the equation and you can enjoy chocolate without getting acne. </p>