Dr Art Ayers thinks differently. He thinks rosacea and acne are inflammatory in nature. He thinks that inflammation is mediated by balancing pro- and anti-inflammatory components of your immune system. If you want to search the literature, he's talking about Tregs or regulatory T cells. The bulk of your Tregs are incubated in your gut lymphocytes. Gut bacteria control which way Tregs mature -- into either pro- or anti-inflammatory Tregs.

So, a poor balance of gut bacteria leads to a poor balance of Tregs, and thus chronic inflammation, and things like rosacea and acne.

The reason antibiotics works is because they kill a lot of your gut bacteria, depressing the overall population and temporarily changing the balance. But when you stop the antibiotics, the poor balance returns and the inflammation returns.

I can't vouch for his model myself, but I think Dr Ayers is smarter than me and I think the hypothesis is interesting. You could read his blog for more, particularly the comments, he carries on extensive conversations there.

According to that model, you need to restore a healthy balance of gut microbes, and you do that by carefully adding unwashed or gently rinsed raw organic produce to your diet.

the causative agent of acne is caused by the bacterium propionibacterium acnes, this species of anaerobic bacteria is susceptible to the class of antibiotic called tetracycline's.

the answer about acne being caused by bacterium propioni is spot on. tetracyclines work by binding cations (like calcium) and thereby disrupting bacterial cell walls. make sure you don't the drugs past their expiration date (can lead to nephrotoxicity) and don't take with any calcium foods or supplements as the drug will bind it. also a big no no for pregnant women!

not sure how to mimic or effect this "naturally". but couldn't pass up any opportunity to elucidate some knowledge i have to know for my upcoming med school bacteriology exam!

I started taking CLO with natural vitamin A 2 weeks ago, i swear my acnes improved. Previously i took straight fish oil. Ive also tried retinyl palmitate previously without much positive effect. Ive tried alot of things for acne generally. That said you seem to be eating liver, so i assume youre getting enough A. Anyone had their vitamin A status measured?

ANYONE WHO THINKS ACNE IS CAUSED PRIMARILY BY BACTERIA HASN'T DONE THE PROPER RESEARCH.

No amount of washing your face with astringent antibacterials will cure your acne, because acne is an internal disorder caused by chronic inflammation and keratosis/improper skin cell shedding (usually caused by a Vitamin A deficiency in combination with various other deficiencies such as Sulfur/Vit C and especially Zinc.)

**As someone who's struggled with acne his entire life the only two things that work effectively for treating acne are a HIGHLY anti-inflammatory low-carb/low-GL diet (or fasting, but you can't fast for the rest of your life) that's low in PUFAs (Even DHA from omega-3s) and eliminates the most common allergens (all dairy/wheat/soy/tree nuts.)

The other alternative is a NON-SYNTHETIC topical retinoid. Acne is a disorder of the body that is clear proof that the body is in a state of inflammation. Natural retinol encourages collagen production and proper skin cell shedding (so the pore can't be blocked as the cells rise to the surface of the skin.) Unfortunately, I believe that taking Vit A internally (such as in liver) may not do nearly as much as topical application of retinoids. Many people, especially those who eliminate toxins through their skin (such as those with acne/eczema/dermatitis/etc.) probably have trouble absorbing nutrients and the nutrients they may be absorbing are probably going to more "vital" and necessary uses in the body. P. Acnes which is the "acne bacteria" plays very little role in the formation of acne. Although Mino is evil, it actually has some anti-inflammatory effects which, on top of the antibacterial effects, reduce skin lesions.

I took mino once and lost 10 pounds in the first week (it made me vomit and diarrhea a lot. a LOT.) then I threw that shit away.

Be sure to get plenty of sunlight too and sleep in total darkness (no night lights or computer lights on.)

Minocycline and all the tetracycline antibiotics inhibit a matrix metalloproteinase in the skin that is involved in dermal inflammation. That's why sub-anti microbial doses of doxycycline (like oracea) are useful in rosacea, in which the repeated vasodilation of hyper reactive vessels results in inflammation of the skin.

I think antibiotics can be useful to get things back to a normal state as far as enzyme activity in the skin goes, but don't tend to use them long term for acne. They do alter normal flora, and have a myriad of other possible side effects. There are multiple issues that contribute to acne besides inflammation. Comedogenesis, sebum production (influenced by sex steroid hormones), and bacterial overgrowth, among others, are involved. One size will not fit all for treating it.

Didn't experience any side effects. Took it during early spring so over exposure of sun was not an issue. Cleared up all my under the skin acne (large, red, inflamed zits that could be very painful). After two months of taking this Minocycline medication I stopped and now have no acne. It's been three months and I'm very satisfied since I've fought with bad acne for six years now.

Bump!

Antibiotics once got rid of all My acne, after the treatment it came back with full strenght.

Should I go for gaps or art ayers recommendation on anti inflammatory diet?

My acne just do not want to go away

Not to hijack, but I submitted a question regarding high LDLs and noticed this thread - I've been on Mino for almost a decade and my LDLs are over 270. Could this be the cause?? Otherwise I'm in excellent shape and my doctor said nothing about the medication perhaps contributing.

If we say acne is due to gut issues, wouldnt the best diet be GAPS to get rid of acne? Any ezperiences?