Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

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I'm looking for a way to make my skin clearer (I struggle with a little bit of acne here and there) while also fading some of the blotchiness from my teenage acne days. I eat a paleo diet and have found that this helped clear my skin, but not completely.

I'm just curious whether any of you have found that consuming more of certain foods has made a difference in the quality of your skin. What foods would you recommend I consume more of (or less of) to experience the best results? *Is there a cleansing regimen that you've found to be helpful?* Any input is greatly appreciated!

flag	asked Sep 16 2011 at 23:21 Starfish 621●2●9

yes! I've never had what I'd describe as radiant skin, but about 3 weeks into the primal blueprint I noticed how bright my skin had become. only takes about 3 days of eating processed foods and it fades into what I thought was my normal color, then within a week back on primal it glows again. So, for me, the formula is high protein/fat and moderate (75 or so grams) of carbs. – Nance Sep 17 2011 at 19:09

Sunshine · Answer 1 · 2011-09-17 01:19:16Z UTC

This may raise some eyebrows....but I found that my over consumption of O3 rich foods made my skin drier and more prone to acne flare ups. Also, prior to this i was basically low carb paleo which probably exacerbated the skin issue. I have since incorporated starches back into my diet like skinless potatoes and rice and my skin glows.

I do not use any facial products if i dont have to. coconut oil actually dries my skin out so i resort to almond oil if need be.

best!

none · Answer 2 · 2011-09-16 23:33:43Z UTC

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Drink lots and lots of gelatin rich bone broth. Also, I have read that eyeballs are as good as Restalyn, I haven't YET tried the eyeballs, but I drink a mug of broth with each meal. I think it helps the complextion, it's also great for joints.

answered Sep 16 2011 at 23:33

none
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Oh I don't know that I could do eyeballs unless they were already cut up for me. – vdh1979 Sep 17 2011 at 0:07

I AM going to try the eyeballs once I can source them. I assume that they will taste like hell and the consistency will make me want to kill myself whilst eating them. BUT I am quite vain. – none Sep 17 2011 at 15:15

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Eyeballs! I ate them a couple Xs this summer. Salmon eyeballs. They were fine, but the plastic-y lens was gross. – Meg Sep 17 2011 at 19:50

Dragonfly · Answer 3 · 2011-09-17 00:05:22Z UTC

I'm 48 and look about 10 years younger than my chronological peers.

Wash in warm or cold water, no soap.

High Vitamin D level: 91 ng/ml at last test.

NO gluten ever!

Coconut milk seems to make me break out, so no more of that... Dairy works fine for me--YMMV!

Gelatin 2-4 x a week, 60-70% fat, super-low Omega 6 intake (stick to eating mostly 100% grass-fed ruminants as your protein source.)

I use Kiss My Face Olive & Aloe lotion at night, mixed with 10% glycolic acid or retinol cream (by Alpha Hydrox). I alternate these nightly.

thatonecrazylady · Answer 4 · 2011-09-17 01:24:16Z UTC

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I love blue green algae supplements.. makes my nails and hair grow like crazy too! And I have tried just about every "hair skin and nails" supplement out there.. none have worked like blue green algae!

answered Sep 17 2011 at 1:24

thatonecrazylady
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Jan · Answer 5 · 2011-09-17 08:32:13Z UTC

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I recently started using coconut oil, its little embarassing now how smooth the skin is, almost like a womans ;) I also included kombu, dunno if it might have anything to do it. Perhaps its optimizing my thyroid. And less drying of skin. Some starch doesnt hurt too i guess.

answered Sep 17 2011 at 8:32

Jan
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And i havent been using any dairy, i re-started using bone marrow and marrow fat in cooking too. I think its the finest type of fat beef has. Atleast that kind that paleos should be eating more, rather than muscle fat. – Jan Sep 17 2011 at 8:34

Solshine · Answer 6 · 2011-09-17 01:33:56Z UTC

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Somewhere on here (Paleohacks.com) I read a thread on skincare and started using Castor Oil with Olive Oil to cleanse my skin and moisturize. I've not had any problems since then and going Whole30 even reduced the hair I had problems with on my chin and neck. I'm not sure which variable cleared things up but you could look around on the cleansing and moisturizing threads here for ideas to try. :D

answered Sep 17 2011 at 1:33

Solshine
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	Could you elaborate on how you use the olive and castor oils, please? – Rockgrrl Sep 17 2011 at 2:49
	Check out the threads on oil cleansing method. I loved what it did for my skin, but I'm just too lazy to keep it up. – katesonskates Sep 17 2011 at 3:32
	That's it! It's called the Oil Cleansing Method - theoilcleansingmethod.com - I found out about it on this site, though. I just bought some jojoba oil to add to the mix because I've read it's the closest to our natural oils. I've started with half castor oil and half olive oil. They say you adjust down the castor oil if your skin gets too dry. – Solshine Sep 17 2011 at 23:26

Jake · Answer 7 · 2011-09-17 08:39:12Z UTC

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My skin didn't go completely clear until I started following @the_quilt's leptin reset protocol. I'm at the point where I have had clear skin and NO acne for 10 days now. Very surprising...and quite welcome.

I had some luck before with coconut oil and got good looking skin, but I still had issues with sporadic acne.

edit So my diet is almost completely VLC Primal at this point. Some cream and butter, but no cheese or such. I'm finding that any sort of carbs above 30g or so exacerbates the skin issue.

answered Sep 17 2011 at 8:39

Jake
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	was your acne hormonal? cystic? this is the first time i've heard the quilt's leptin protocol alleviating acne! thanks – themobiustrip Sep 17 2011 at 17:02
	Both. I just know that that it went away. Face has completely cleared up, I have the best skin I've ever seen for me. My previous paleo challenge doesn't even compare. – Jake Sep 18 2011 at 3:38
	I'm assuming it helps because the quilt's protocol is about managing wacky hormones. So getting that in line and being serious about limiting starch/carbs/sugar helps too. – Jake Sep 18 2011 at 3:39
	I have a special skin lotion that my local compounding pharmacy makes for bad skin, stretch marks and acne. I put it in the massive MDA thread around page 80-85. – The Quilt Oct 15 2011 at 18:34

jesuisjuba - paleorepublic.com · Answer 8 · 2011-09-17 12:22:59Z UTC

I cut out gluten, sleep a ton, drink insane amounts of water, CrossFit/Bikram/lifting 4-5 days a week, eat a really well rounded diet - lots of brightly coloured vegetables and berries, and am generally happy and cheery all the time.

No rosacea breakouts in 5-months.

I will be adding thick tasty broth into my eating habits with the cooler weather coming. I want to note that I have noticed that if I don't eat eggs for awhile, then have a couple a few days in a row, that I will get a welt on my chin above a little mole that I have. It's the weirdest thing and only where the mole is. No eggs? No dime/nickel sized painful welt. 4-6 eggs? Welt. It goes away after a few days, tho. Something I'm N=1'ing.

LadyAdmin · Answer 9 · 2011-09-16 23:29:34Z UTC

As I'm a lady of a certain age now, I don't have quite the oiliness issues of my youth. I've found that my skin has done best when I don't use soap of any kind on face (unless there is actual dirt on my face). I just wash my face using the hot water I'm showering with. And then because I have dryness on my forehead, I use a high quality but light almond-based lotion there.

For myself, I'm not sure how much of a connection there is between my diet and my skin. I'm pretty Primal at this point, eating very little dairy and fruit.

April · Answer 10 · 2011-09-17 00:11:43Z UTC

Within a few days of completely cutting out all dairy and grains my complexion drastically improved. I wash and moisturize my face at night, as I wear makeup, but just rinse it and moisturize it in the morning. It's smoother and less red when I don't wash it in the morning. I'm also following a relatively high fat, lowish carb version of paleo.

Phazo · Answer 11 · 2011-09-17 04:26:50Z UTC

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Tuna, almonds and sweet potatoes. Avoid egg substitutes.

answered Sep 17 2011 at 4:26

Phazo
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vdh1979 · Answer 12 · 2011-09-17 00:05:53Z UTC

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Plain and simply, coconut oil as a moisturizer!

answered Sep 17 2011 at 0:05

vdh1979
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It works so well to moisturize but definitely makes me break out. – Rockgrrl Sep 17 2011 at 2:47

NickTheRealEater · Answer 13 · 2011-10-15 16:41:11Z UTC

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Mostly increasing fat and dropping sweets did the trick for me.No more zits.Butter and beef tallow work wonders.

answered Oct 15 2011 at 16:41

NickTheRealEater
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What’s your paleo prescription for radiant skin?

13 Answers