A couple posts ago, I gave you a ridiculously long list of opinions about how to treat acne naturally.
Now, if you feel as lost as ever after reading it, I really can’t blame ya! You might be wondering what I thought about the list. Was there a nugget of gold that I picked out of that?
Most of it was all stuff that I had heard before and lots of it I have talked about on the blog. Obviously some great advice – try eliminating or cutting way back on dairy; gluten; sugar, ditch commercial products, etc. Everyone’s different and this stuff is all good advice that may work like a million dollars for you.
To me, the one thing that stood out the most out of the entire list as something eye-catchingly interesting was this:
“I have had success with my female clients who have acne with a protocol of three months on vitex herb (chastetree berry, also known as “Agnus Castus” in some parts of the world), for balancing hormones, tincture of milk thistle for the liver, and burdock root to cleanse blood. It has worked wonders.”
What’s Adult Hormonal Acne?
Well, essentially everyone’s acne is hormonal, so this title is quite misleading. In all cases hormones are what tell the body to create acne. And if they are doing that, and you have acne, it means that your hormones are not doing the right things.
Acne isn’t, like, a normal thing that just happens for no reason. Hormones that do the right things don’t give you disease. And hormones don’t just do the wrong things just for the heck of it, they do it because of some other reason. Something is influencing them to mess up their jobs and give you acne.
However, there is a lot of different things that can mess up your hormones, and a lot of different hormonal imbalances that can result.
It appears like basically all and every hormone imbalance can cause acne, and unfortunately, I really don’t have them all exactly straightened out in order to explain them, or how to treat them specifically. It’s rather mindboggling, so I apologize. The best thing you can do if you want to know about your specific hormone issues, is to get a saliva hormone test done and talk to a natural therapist about an appropriate course of action for you.
So, having said that – there is a specific type of hormonal acne in adult women that is very, very, veeerrry common, and while all acne is technically hormonal, this one has been dubbed and is often referred to specifically as “Hormonal Acne”.
This acne usually occurs around the mouth, chin, and jawline in adult women (often can be cystic), and tends to appear or gets worse before menstruation and/or during ovulation. It’s usually accompanied by other PMS symptoms, and irregular periods.
This type of acne is usually caused by something called estrogen dominance, where your estrogen and progesterone are not in balance, usually due to having high ‘bad estrogens’ (which we accumulate from the environment from things like plastic). The protocol I’m about to describe might also work with hormonal PCOS acne as I sometimes see that ladies with PCOS use the same supplements, but I’m not 100% sure of the details quite yet (until then, check out this amazing ebook on PCOS, because this lady DOES know her stuff when it comes to that).
Also, this protocol should work for those who have acne due to coming off birth control pills (and if you are still on birth control but want to be off it, consider combining this protocol with weaning off it to lessen the chance of acne afterwards).
Clean Up Your Diet & Lifestyle First and Foremost
With all acne, the first line of defence is to fix up your diet if you eat a lot of processed foods, get better sleep, lower your stress, and exercise. Switch to a gentle and natural skin care routine too, A generally unhealthy lifestyle is the biggest reason that anyone’s hormones are going to be out of whack and produce acne (no matter what kind of acne you have).
For some people though – especially adult, female women with this type of acne – is that the diet and lifestyle improvements manage to make a huuuuge difference, but they can’t seem to get all the way to being clear, even though they feel like they’ve done everything.
This has been my problem… over the last couple of years since getting rid of my severe acne, I have managed to maintain 90% clear skin, but I have still struggled with mild, cyclical acne breakouts around my chin that come and go. They have driven me up the wall and crazy, because nothing has seemed to work, and I’ve tried tons of stuff. Lol – you probably know this because I’ve whined about it a ton on my blog!
My usual reaction to the anxiety of having this continued acne was to want to control my diet even further, or just be really strict about it. Which never did anything to improve my skin, but controlling my diet was a way for me to control my unpleasant feelings about the whole situation. Of course, in the end that only makes things worse by causing stress.
So anyway… thanks in big part to Fran Kerr and Alexis Smart (the lady who posted about vitex, burdock, and milk thistle), my own experience, and a few other smatterings of info that have come on my radar lately, I’ve come to a few realizations that can really help the ladies out there struggling with the hormonal acne.
1) Use a Supplement – Either DIM, Vitex, or Both
It seems like hormonal acne just needs a little helper to get things back on track, and that can be either of these two supplements or taking them both. DIM (Diindolymethane) works by helping your liver to detoxify ‘bad estrogens’ from your body and promote good estrogen. Vitex works on your pituitary gland, and helps it regulate its own hormone production, which can get your progesterone and good estrogens back in balance (warning: most people do just fine on Vitex, but for some people with certain body chemistries, Vitex can have quite a few side effects. Make sure to do your own thorough research on the herb before deciding to take it).
2) Do Something For Your Liver
Estrogen dominance and the liver are very closely linked because the liver is where excess estrogen will get detoxified and swept out of the body via the bowel. With an inefficient liver, the excess estrogen will have the chance to recirculate throughout the body.
So as I just said that DIM helps your liver to detoxify bad estrogens, a good liver supplement will also help this process along. Some might suggest doing the liver flush, but… I tried that, and it was a horrible, horrible experience, so I can’t say I really recommend it even though some people do get pretty great results with it. That’s one for you to make up your own mind on! Also – the liver is a big reason that improving your lifestyle will improve hormonal acne – the fewer toxins that it has to sift through, the better it can detoxify the hormones.
Alexis recommends milk thistle for this purpose, but there are other ones too. I use a mixed herbal supplement called Liv-Tox that I had recommended to me by my Naturopath. Burdock root, that Alexis suggests, is also a supplement that supports the liver and purifies the blood from excess estrogens that are floating around.
3) Knock Out Stress
When you’re stressed, your body creates cortisol, which takes away from the proper function of other body processes, including endrocrine production. This is how chronic stress can lead to acne, since without proper hormonal production, the right hormones don’t get made and it shows up on your face.
I’ve heard many, many women say that their hormonal acne gets so much worse when they’re stressed. Work on lowering that stress, including hidden sources of stress like low self esteem – and also stress and worry over controlling your food (which I will talk about in a second). Body stressors count here too like not eating enough food, following a diet long term that heavily restricts a certain macronutrient, and overexercising.
Anyway, after her comment intrigued me, I emailed Alexis to ask her to elaborate on her protocol and she said this:
“Acne, I have found is usually related to hormonal or digestive issues. When it’s hormonal, I often see more breakouts around the chin and mouth. I usually suggest a capsule form of vitex and take it as directed. I like Gaia brand herbs or I just get any organic cap they have at the healthfood store. I like to use liquid tinctures for the milk thistle and burdock. I love HerbPharm brand. I recommend three times a day for each, away from food. I like to to do ten days on and three days off.”
This Stuff Has Totally Worked For Me. And I’m Totally Stoked About It.
Me stoked to have clear skin. And a puppy.
I’m not taking Vitex, but I’ve mentioned in a few other posts that I’ve been taking Estroblock, 3 capsules a day. Estroblock is a very powerful form of DIM and one of the best brands of this supplement (although it does contain some soy so if you are very sensitive to soy, it could be a problem as it was for one of my readers. However, for me it causes no problem. You can try Estroguard instead which I believe is soy free). I’ve been on it for nearly five months now. About a month ago, I decided to start taking Liv-Tox and Burdock Root to really, really cement my results.
Well, it took a couple of months from when I started taking Estroblock to really get consistent, but honestly, my skin has seriously never looked better and this is the longest it’s been consistently and entirely clear for, since… well… since I was on birth control as a teenager. I do still get very TINY pimples sometimes, but I know my skin best and they are so small and infrequent that it doesn’t bother me at all – over all, I have been SO happy with it.
Not only that but over the last 6 or 7 months, I’ve totally stopped caring so much about being perfect with my diet and have started relaxing way more (I’d like to give a big shout out to Matt Stone for this)… I mostly eat whole foods still because that’s healthy and that’s what I’m used to, but I go out for dinner more, I eat dairy and gluten and processed foods and sugary desserts with my friends and family (and sometimes at home too), and the best part is that I don’t WORRY about it when I eat things I would have formerly worried about.
I mean, I used to do the 90/10 rule before too, and I’d eat processed foods sometimes, and I’d sometimes eat things that I believed due to all the nutrition stuff that I’ve read that I “shouldn’t” eat, but the big difference here is that this has been the first time that I’ve truly found myself truly, honestly, not worrying about it. It’s the first time there hasn’t been nagging fear at the back of my head.
I haven’t felt this relaxed about food since before my acne got severe, so this lowered stress probably has contributed to the clear skin as well. Plus, I feel like I cleared out some old emotional issues by getting reiki done in the summer (which I’ll do a follow up on in a future post).
Anyway… I’m stoked out of my head and feeling so great about finding something that has really truly worked to get rid of that last bit of acne that just wouldn’t budge. Knock on wood that it sticks, but so far so good. I hope this post helps the other ladies out there suffering with hormonal acne.
Watch Me Talk About Hormonal Acne in Video
Please share your experiences! What do you think of this protocol and have you found something that has made a big difference for your hormonal acne?
I had wondered…. whether it was the caveman routine or “something else” that has helped you skin to become even more radiant in the last few months…
You really do look amazing and I’m so happy that you are not as restrictive or stressed out about your diet. I remember earlier this year when you went through WAPF and the GAPS diet there were quite stressful for you, but hey, life is a journey and we are here to learn!
And it snowed for you! Happy holidays
Are you still taking the prescript assist probiotic? The Green pastures FCLO butter blend? Caveman routing still going strong? I’m doing these 3 things but I still feel that there is “something” else I can be doing. Whilst my diet is ok, it’s still not great and I had thought about doing the candida cleanse again, but I’m really loving dried cranberries and fresh oranges right now and I don’t want to limit my diet anymore. (Plus poor sleep is a big factor for me)
I use to take burdock root too, but it didn’t work for me. Would you say the liv-tox is a better or more powerful supplement?
This is what I have found: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Enzymatic-Therapy-Liv-A-Tox-90-Tabs/dp/B0013OQCHW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356629320&sr=8-1
I know that for men, androgens are a hormone that causes other imbalances… Are you aware of and specific supplements for males too?
Hi Nathan
Right now I’m not taking a probiotic, I am taking FCLO, but I’m not very good at remembering to take it every day like I should. I’m not sure how Liv-tox compares to burdock root side by side effectiveness… that Liv-A-Tox you linked to isn’t the same one, but Enzymatic Therapy is a good brand of supplements so it’s probably good too.
As for supplements for men… unfortunately I don’t have it all figured out yet… took me long enough to get this one sorted hahah… as I said, there’s like a bajillion different things your hormones could be doing, and the only real way to know is to get a saliva hormone test done.
Your skin looks absolutely flawless. I’m so happy for you! Recommending this article to a few friends
Thanks Kit!
Hey Tracy! So good to hear that Estroblock has been working for you!
I definitely believe that vitex works wonders for women. I have been off the birth control pill for almost 6 months now, and my skin is (touch wood it will stay this way) fricking great! I take 1 capsule of vitex/day (I used to take it religiously, but this months I just took it when I remembered, often once or twice a week), one teaspoon of fermented cod liver oil, and then I just hope for the best. Every now and again, I drink burdock root herbal tea, and take probiotics.
When I started weaning off birth control, I was really strict about what I was eating, and I avoided all sugars, starchy foods, processed foods, soy, gluten, etc. Today, I eat whatever I feel like eating, and my skin is 100% clear. These past weeks I’ve been cooking beautiful whole food meal AND pigging out on chocolates with my friends and family, because hey, c’est la vie, and it makes me happy!
I have actually just finished writing you an article about how I weaned off the pill, so if you like I can send it to you and you can have a read and see if it’s appropriate material for your blog. But in all cases, yes, this adventure has been fantastic, and I’m so sure that other women like me who have suffered from hormonal acne in the past CAN get clear skin and live happy healthy lives! Tomorrow I’m turning 30, and I’m so glad to be off the pill, and living life to the full! A massive thank you, Tracy! If someone had told me last year that I’d hit 30 acne free and off the artificial hormones, I would never have believed it!
Yay, I’m so happy to hear of your success Christelle, and I really really appreciate the help you are giving the other women in that thread about weaning off the pill. And I’m SUPER stoked that you wrote an article to share your experience with it, please send it on over!!
Hi Tracy,
This resonated with me so much. I developed very disordered eating habits in my efforts to clear my skin – I became afraid of SO many foods and just obsessed with eating “perfectly.” With the help of people like Matt Stone and Gwyneth Olwyn, I’m now getting back on track… but it doesn’t help that my skin is still not clear. It’s a daily battle for me convincing myself that it doesn’t have to do with my still-stellar diet. It’s tough because when I was following certain diets and was fearful of food, I lost a lot of weight because there was so few things I could eat. My acne disappeared during this time simply because my body wasn’t producing any hormones. As soon as I began – in Matt Stone’s words – “Diet Recovery,” I no longer appeared emaciated and regained a lot of health – however, the acne began coming back.
I’m currently liver flushing (done four already), take liver supportive supplements, and I’ve been taking estroblock for 2 months. I wish I could say all my acne is gone, but alas it’s not. I just got a new cyst on my right cheek last week.
I’m truly stumped.
Nonetheless, thank you so much for this post. I have so much love for you and this blog.
xo
Hi Desi, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the post, and thanks for sharing your experience. It’s really frustrating some times that trying to get healthy is like this silly little dance… as you say, when you were eating unhealthfully by restricting your food, you were clear, and then when you started eating more, you are breaking out again even though you feel so much healthier. In the end, it might just be a longer process before you see both resolve themselves and need to be patient.
Also have you been tested with a natural therapist to see if you have food sensitivities? I think this is generally a saner way to look at food restriction instead of going by the generalizations and sweeping food villianry that goes on on the internet… many people do have certain foods that can cause acne and should be avoided at least in the short term, but what they actually are is different for everyone.. perhaps you were avoiding one that you were very sensitive to when you were dieting, that now you are eating again?
Thanks for your thoughts, Tracy. I’ve taken many food intolerance tests before, actually – over the years. My last one showed exactly what the other ones have shown: My only big food intolerance is gluten and bakers/brewers yeast. I also avoid dairy just because. I haven’t really eating sugar (not even fruit) in nearly two years. I just spoke with my naturopath on the phone and she really thinks I need to go back on the super strict anti-candida diet that I was on for 1.5 YEARS – no grains, starchy vegetables, beans, sugars, or anything else high carb. A test came back revealing that I have some unpleasant microbes in my gut. Klebsiella (spelling?), I believe. The marathon-long anti-candida diet was what triggered the food anxiety in the first place. I feel so lost. I don’t know what to do at this point! Any ideas from anyone would be welcome.
Hi Desi,
Hmm, going back on a strict long term candida diet if that was the source of your eating anxiety doesn’t sound like a good idea if you ask me!! Especially if you felt unhealthy and emaciated on it. I’m not sure what to suggest – maybe a saliva hormone test so you can actually see for sure what your hormones are doing? Have you seen any improvement at all on Estroblock? My skin didn’t get consistently clear on it until probably two or three months in, so I don’t know if it’s just a patience thing. And with the liver… people who are advocates of the liver flush say you sometimes have to do them like 11 times before getting permanent results!! Sounds crazy to me… but I don’t know. Do you see any improvement after you do a flush? Lots say they clear up a bit after a flush and then the acne comes back a week later, that is, until they’ve done enough flushes.
This article is amazing! I suffer from PCOS (or is that ‘live with’?!) and it truly is a pain in the arse. After 4 years of being incredibly careful with what I eat and put on my face (to soothe and get rid of acne), when I was diagnosed with PCOS 9 months ago, it was like a cloud had been lifted. Everything suddenly made sense; the mood swings, the acne, the always being hot, the painful abdomen. Being diagnosed gave me options. I soon realised that what I eat makes very little difference to hormonal acne – it just gave me a feeling of control.
I urge everyone woman who has hormonal acne (around the jawline, chin and mouth) and has irregular periods OR problems losing weight OR excess hair to get tested for PCOS. It’s so common and doctors just don’t look for it (still). It really has changed my life since learning that I have PCOS. I have embarked on a supplement plan with my naturopath/nutritionist to combat my excess oestrogen and to get my acne under control – how exciting is that?!
Sorry for the rant – I’m on a one-woman crusade against PCOS. It really is a mother.
Oh – P.S; exercise is PCOS’ worst enemy so get your running shoes on
Hi Tori,
I’m happy to hear that that diagnoses has relieved a lot of your stress… it really is amazing to have more of a clear picture of what is wrong so you know where to go from there!
As for exercise combating PCOS, I’ve really been into this lady’s blog lately http://gokaleo.com/.. she had PCOS and touts the HUGE benefits she’s seen from simply eating a lot of nutrient dense food to balance her energy needs and also doing lots of strength training. She said her PCOS symptoms just went POOF as soon as she started taking exercise seriously. She’s inspiring me to get to the gym! Also, she’s big into speaking about anti-dieting and anti-diet dogma, which is awesome.
Tracy, Do you know if it is safe to take Vitex or Estroblock when you are still on the birthcontrol pill? I wouldn’t want to make things even wackier while on or coming back off of it. Thanks!!
Hi Autumn,
Good question, and something I didn’t think about when writing the article… it sound like vitex is not advised while taking birth control pills, and DIM is .. kinda iffy, but it sounds like it’s probably not a good idea, since the BCP IS estrogen, and DIM metabolizes that… so it could lower the BCP’s effectiveness. And it doesn’t seem like it really makes any sense from a combating-acne-perspective to take these two things that are kind of like… opposing each other? You’re taking something that breaks down something you are also taking in pill form. If you are planning to get off the pill, I say wait until you have quit, or have started the weaning process.
Thank you for this post, Tracy, just the information I’ve been looking for!!! <3
I’m glad to have delivered what you needed Lindsay!
Hey Tracy,
Congratulations…really happy for you…you deserve the best
Thank you Konica
Hi Tracy,
I am infected with Helicobacter pylori and I get acne.So,I wanna know will H. pylori causes acne?
Can eating manuka honey help to solve the problem?
Thanks a lot!
Hi Mandy,
Well, often H Pylori and low stomach acid go hand in hand.. and low stomach acid is often correlated with acne because it is the first step in digestion, and if that isn’t working properly, it has this chain effect… you end up not getting the nutrients and minerals that you need for healthy skin. I would say manuka honey would be a good bet to try killing the H. Pylori, and also taking HCL betaine and/or eating fermented foods like sauerkraut before and with meals to help produce stomach acid
Thank you,Tracy!I am going to try the method of sauerkraut.:)
Hey Tracy,
Thanks for the last blog! After reading it And seeing so many comments recommending going grain free and you encouraging me to just give it a shot..i had been seeing a lot of grain and gluten free products, i truly thought it was a lot of hype and all the new rage!
Ive been doing grain and gluten free for about 10 days so far, and my face does seem to have improved a lot.. Also tried to cut back on a lot of processed food and sugar, which is not always easy!
I hope i do not have to do this forever and will be able to gradually add in grains again as u have been able to do!:)
Your face is so clear!
What do you think about these supplements?! Im thinking of also taking these..http://wellnessmama.com/4621/eat-your-sunscreen/
Hey Kim,
Interesting! Glad to hear you’re seeing improvements with the no grains!
As for the supplements in that article… well, I highly recommend the fermented cod liver oil/butter oil (I take that).. and you know… Vitamin C is always good haha. Definitely think coconut oil is an awesome thing to cook with/eat and I eat that every day too. The Astaxanthin is an interesting one… don’t know a lot about it, but I did hear about it and briefly read about it the other day and was intrigued. In my experience, eating healthier has made a huge difference in how much sun I can tolerate before burning… I hate sunscreen, and it would be cool to see if I could ramp it up even more next summer by taking that. I guess we’ll see
Ok Tracy,
Thanks so much for the tips! I do have regular cod liver oil at home.. The fermented one is just so frightfully expensive!
Do you know anyplace i could get it cheaper?
I know it’s expensive and that really sucks… it looks like it’s cheaper directly from the Green Pastures website instead of amazon: http://www.greenpasture.org/public/Products/ButterCodLiverBlend/index.cfm
Although this idea doesn’t make the purchase any easier on the wallet, thinking of it more like a ‘food’ than a ‘supplement’ I think it a better approach… To me, when I think of most “I CAN DO THIS, I CAN DO THAT” supplements, I think of old, dusty capsules that aren’t even going to be recognised by my body. However I think that because this ‘supplement’ makes so much sense in both the process involved in creating it, and the benefits of taking it, the price isn’t that bad. I pay around £40 and I think it has 95 servings. Taking it everyday makes it 42 pence a day…. That’s not that bad really.
I know it is still expensive for just a jar of ‘stuff’, but it’s the one thing that a lot of people seem to me taking these days, esp. people eating Paleo.
I am going to start taking cod liver oil and vitex. How long should i take them.
Hi Tracy,
I feel like my acne is a little bit hormonal in that I get breakouts around the time I get my period. I only get breakouts on my forehead though, and never on other parts of my face.
According to face maps, forehead acne might be due to digestive/liver issues. Would you still recommend Estroblock for me? Or maybe the liv-tox supplement?
Thanks!!
Belle
P.S. Also, I have to admit that I’m really tempted to try estroblock, but also kind of scared/wary of messing with my hormones.
I say give both a try, sounds like they’d both probably help. As for Estroblock.. I know what you mean.. it took me months and months to decide to try it after Fran Kerr recommended it on her site because I was worried about that. With DIM though, it’s not like you are adding hormones to your body – it’s just helping along a process that is going on naturally in your liver… it actually doesn’t really lower estrogen levels that much, it just metabolizes bad estrogens into good estrogens. Over all, I personally think it’s quite a safe supplement to take.
Hey Tracey! I went to a natropath who diagnosed me with adrenal fatigue, could that be causing my acne?
Yep, apparently adrenal fatigue messes with progesterone sensitivity which can lead to estrogen dominance… plus lots of other hormonal issues since the adrenals manufacture so many hormones… so I think getting lots of sleep, lowering stress, exercising (but not super intense overexercising), quitting caffeine you use it, and estroblock would probably help you
If you get a saliva test done and find that you’re a bit too high in testosterone, I really recommend giving Testo-Quench a try (http://www.douglaslabs.com/product.cfm?litm=99093-90X).
I’ve noticed quite a difference. Things still aren’t perfect, but it’s definitely a piece of the puzzle for me, and it might be for you. Trying this made me feel for the first time since starting this journey that I’d begun to start making a difference in my skin. I’m also taking a liver cleansing supplement (with turmeric, milk thistle and dandelion) but it’s too soon to tell…but I’m hoping after reading your article that it’ll give the Testo-Quench a boost!
Just wanted to pass that along for other ladies who might have testosterone as a specific problem
Thanks for your suggestion Katherine! That’s really helpful, and I’m glad to hear it’s made a difference in your skin!
Hey Tracy,
Well I have went through all the things you have talked about on this site and i believe that my acne is hormonal. I was looking into the products you spoke about above but I am on a tight budget so I cant afford them right now. So that is why i wanted to ask you about maca root. I just ordered some from mountain rose herbs. supposedly it is good for balancing hormones naturally, so I was wondering if you know anything about it…? thanks, maeghan
Hi Meghan!
I know, these supplements can be really expensive, and I must say that is unfortunate. Taking a basic vitex and a milk thistle supplement shouldn’t be too pricey though.
Maca root… I haven’t really done enough thorough research on it to say .. I know it is often used to balance hormones similar to the way Vitex is used so it might be a good choice. I’ve also heard it can go the other way and create more problems. I think you just need to start off slow with it and don’t start taking a heap of it right off the bat.. start with a small amount and work your way up
Hi Meghan and Tracy,
I did the maca root thing for a while, I put it in my smoothies everyday for at least 4 months but unfortunately I did not see a huge difference.
However, it isn’t too expensive so maybe it’s worth trying yourself!
Cheers,
Natasha
Hey Tracy,
I have a quick question on the estroblock or DIM. I have been debating on taking it for awhile, but the only thing stoping me is I’m afraid it will affect my thyroid. I had low grade hypothyroidism about a year and a half ago, and I know it removes bad estrogens, but do you possibly know if it could throw off any other hormones or the thyroid? I did email the company awhile ago, with no response. Also are other brands of DIM just as good as estroblock?
thanks, your skin looks great!
I actually had a similar situation as you Sarah. I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue and hypothyroidism. I started taking Armour thyroid which didn’t help so I took matters into my own hands. I started taking CanPrev Adrenal Pro, which helps both the thyroid and adrenals. I have been gluten free as well because that has been linked to causing adrenal fatigue which then causes thyroid problems. I have also been taking EstroSense and Vitex and drinking burdock root tea and my skin is so great! I was nervous about messing with my hormones too but I figured they were already messed up so I had nothing to lose! Hope this helps
okay thank you! that does help a lot. has the CanPrev helped your thyroid?
I’m glad! CanPrev contains L-Tyrosine which is supposed to be crucial in thyroid health. I know I feel much better and have more energy, but I don’t get my actual levels checked until next year. For me, how I feel is the best indicator, so I would say try it. http://www.nationalnutrition.ca is where I bought it and it’s much cheaper than buying in the store.
Good luck!
Just made my first appointment with a naturopath, and I’m really excited! Tracy, I was wondering if you had any thoughts on NAET? I feel like I read something about it in one of your articles, but can’t remember which….
Hi Lindsey! Oh good, good luck with the naturopath
I didn’t specifically talk about NAET, but I think maybe someone in the comments did… I’ve heard it can be really helpful for eliminating allergies … are you going to get it done?
I’m not sure…on the naturopath’s website, that was listed as one of the treatments/tests they offer, I’m not sure if they offer any other kind of allergy testing, but if that IS the test they do, I wanted to know your thoughts or the thoughts of other Love Vitamin readers. From what I gathered through a general google search, reviews are mixed.
I’m really excited though. Never would have thought to do this if not for you and the community you have here!
There’s mixed reviews on all of the “alternative” ways of testing for food sensitivities if you google them. I’m sure none of them are completely accurate (and I can’t personally vouch for any of them), all I know is that getting the vega sensitivity test was really helpful for me .. so hopefully this helps you!!
Hey, Tracy, thanks for looking that up! Had my naturopath appointment this past weekend, and it was fantastic!!! She’s recommending red clover tincture to help my liver, and a B-vitamin complex with a lotta B-6. We’re gonna see how that works. I’m so happy I went.
Awesome!! Glad to hear it went well
Congratulations Tracy, you’re looking great!
Several of the supplements that my naturopath has prescribed for me are similar to yours; he also pretty much echoed what you are saying: lower stress and clean up diet and lifestyle. I’ve been working on these things for about a month and am having good results. However my skin is still very congested; I have clogged pores and blackheads. I’m hoping the supplements will help with this; also, I’m using jojoba oil. Do you have any other suggestions? Unfortunately, I have lots of acne scars, and this prevents me from feeling happy about my progress. I’m terrified that I’ll never regain my smooth completion. And there are so many treatments (chemical peels, lasers, microdermabrasion, dermarollers) It’s mind boggling! I’ve been researching tepezcohuite bark which is supposed to be good for scars. Have you heard of it? Anyways, sorry I’ve gone off topic. (BTW, your new e-book is great:-)
Hi Lorena,
I saw that you were talking about scars. I also have them and am using Lavender Essential oil and the results are wonderful! But make sure you buy a high quality brand that is organic or else it is pointless. I got my at Mountain Rose herbs and I have also used the brand aura cacia which is at whole foods.
Also for me jojoba oil did not work so I use hemp oil. You can also get this at mountain rose herbs. I also take it internally everyday, research about it and you will see it is worth it!
Mix a little baking soda with water and make a paste, exfoliate with this twice or so a week. find what works for you. it is very gentle on your skin and will help remove those scars! hope this all helps you!!!
Maeghan
Peace man!
Hi Lorena,
Well, my forehead was really congested and blocked up with whiteheads a few months ago, but between the jojoba oil and the estroblock etc, my forehead is smooth as a baby’s bottom now. So.. I say just be patient and give it some time and things should smooth out. Also, forget about your scars!! Be HAPPY about your progress. The scars will fade… I know having them sucks, but letting them shed sadness and fear onto the rest of your life is not going to make them go away any faster or change the reality of having them or having acne.. it’s just going to make life suck! Your progress is AMAZING!!! I’m so proud of you!
So if you take the burdock you dont have to take the milk thistle?
Well, you can take them both, or just take one, or do whatever you want to do. They are different supplements contributing to the cause, but you might not need to take both
Hi. I thought I’d give an update on my progress. I was getting cystic acne before my period, along with smaller pimples on my temples and cheeks throughout the month. I’ve cut out most gluten and diary, sugar, soy, legumes. I do oil cleansing, and I take fermented cod liver oil, a multi vitamin and probiotics. I started taking burdock, chaste tree (vitex) and calcium d-gluacarate (all advised by naturopath) and didn’t get any cysts last period (but did get a few smaller pimples in the normal places). I ordered Estroblock but I am going to wait another month. I also have milk thistle but the naturopath didn’t think I needed it.
I love reading about people’s progress on here!
Hi Tracy,
Similar question to Jess, should I be taking 3 supplements then, DIM, Milk Thistle and Burdock Root? Does LivTox have milk thistle in it? Will any milk thistle supplement work?
I am a little bit confused about what supplements to go for, is Vitex (Gaia brand recommended by Alexis) similar to taking Estroblock/Estroguard? I would prefer to avoid soy if possible. What would you recommend based on your research?
Do you mind providing a link to the Burdock Root you buy? (My apologies if I just missed the link!)
Thank you!
Natasha
p.s. I am so grateful you have this blog. I have seen some minor results with changing my diet etc. Unfortunately, not the results I have been hoping for but it does make me feel better to know that I am working on healing my skin and my body internally in a natural way. I have been on accutane 3 times, minocyclin, everything, and every time I went off the drugs my acne came back. My acne is concentrated on each side of the lower part of my face (below my lip and on either side of my chin). I really do think hormonal imbalance and liver issues have a lot to do with it. I hope this works!
Just watched your video, probably should have watched it before I left a comment! I’ll try the Vitex and Estroblock. Would you recommend LivTox over taking milk thistle?
Cheers,
Natasha
Hi Natasha,
Well, you can decide for yourself what you want to take. At the minimum I would say take either Dim or Vitex, and either milk thistle (or Liv-tox) or burdock root. Or you can take all four to really pack a punch. I can’t really say which one is going to be more effective for you between vitex and DIM if you just want to pick one. I guess from my personal experience, I would recommend Estroblock since I have seen such amazing results with it, but on the other hand, I haven’t tried Vitex for any significant length of time but often hear of it’s positive results for other women. If you’re worried about soy look into Estroguard (I linked to it in the article), it’s soy free
Liv-tox does contain milk thistle, as well as artichoke, turmeric, Schisandra, Picrorhiza, and Niruri (all herbs for supporting liver function).
The brand of burdock root … Alexis said she likes Herb Pharm brand… I got a tincture from the local health food store, the brand is Prairie Doctor
Anyway! Good luck, I also hope this hormone/liver thing works out for you!
Hi Tracy!
So I decided to go with all four to pack a punch! I have been taking the supplements for about 2 weeks now. At first it seemed like it was really working, there seemed to be some really good healing action going on. Only now, I just broke out with a few quite large and painful blemishes.
Do you know how long it should take to start working? Also, I went to planet organics to buy the milk thistle and burdock root and decided to just buy the DIM and Chasteberry there (different brands from those recommended). I just read a different post of yours where you mentioned that you had been trying an estrogen block/hormone balancer (I think it was DIM) but it wasn’t Estroblock and it wasn’t working. In your experience, have the supplement brands made a difference? Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
Thank you!
Natasha
Hi Natasha,
I wouldn’t worry yet, the road to recovery is not always smooth… give it some time. If you saw improvement to begin with that’s a good sign. As for the DIM – yes, it does seem that there is a difference between cheap DIM and high end supplements like Estroblock or Estroguard, as they are made with higher quality ingredients that get absorbed better… from what I know anyway. And a lot of people need a pretty high dose of even the good quality ones to see benefit (like I needed three pills a day).. So yeah, it’s hard to say if the DIM you are using is worthwhile or not, I don’t know!
Hey Tracy!
I’ve been following your blog for quite some time since it’s the only reliable source I can count on. I’ve had acne ever since I started my period. It was cyclic acne around my chin. I spent thousands of dollars on an esthetician and it did clear up 2 years ago for a few months. When I went traveling to visit some relatives, I forgot my face wash and used drugstore products. Ever since then my acne has returned and with a vengeance. All over my cheeks, temples and between my eyebrows are where I have it worst. I’ve been doing the caveman regiem for a few months but it makes no difference. I eat healthy most of the time and exercise a good amount during the week. My stress level has been pretty high though but is it enough to cause this much damage all over my face? I know this seems like a lengthy note but I
f you could help me to get my self confidence back you don’t understand how grateful I’d be. Im 19 and just about to start college. clear skin would mean me being able to finally come out of my shell. Thanks for all your help and great posts
Hi Kayla, yes for some people stress is definitely the biggest thing with the acne… stress can be so much more harmful than people give it credit for. Work on lowering that as best you can, and maybe try the other suggestions in this article too?
I never knew it could be such a big problem. I’ll try working to reduce it thank you. And can you purchase these products in most natural health food stores such as whole foods or do I have to go through the Web? it’s great you reply so quickly! Much appreciated!
I took vitex four years ago, but not for acne, it was to come off of depo BC which I will never use again, as depo gave me months of non-stop bleeding. After only a couple weeks on vitex, I got a normal cycle, and on the next cycle I conceived my first baby girl
It didn’t do anything for my acne, but reading about the different supplements here, it makes sense because I’ve always felt as though my acne was more closely related to my thyroid, bad/imbalances estrogens and my liver than my pituitary.
I’m having a physical done on the 8th, and I’ve had hormonal blood work done before, but I’m going to request another one to determine if I have a dangerously overactive thyroid (as I know it’s overactive, but it may be moreso than I should be living with). I’ll turn to natural remedies if that’s the case, as I refuse to be on prescriptions for the rest of my life. I might even try this estroblock stuff if the diagnosis calls for it. I’ll keep ya posted! Thanks, Tracy. You look great!
Ah, interesting! Thanks for sharing your experience with Vitex. I’m so happy for you that it regulated your cycle and allowed you to get pregnant with a beautiful baby!
Anyway – yes, if you feel the acne is estrogen/liver related, the Estroblock should definitely help. Good that you’re getting some tests done though, that’s always the smarter way to go! haha
I know thyroid activity can change significantly 6 months after giving birth, and it’s been 14 months since my second daughter and I am still losing weight fast. I had hormone testing after my first girl, (without insurance….eek!) But not for my thyroid, just androgen levels and everything came back within the normal range. But now that I have health insurance, I wanna make use of it! And I’ve had really heavy, painful cycles since my last birth, so I wanna get to the route of all of this. I’ve implemented several tips you’ve given with amazing results (no dairy, jojoba oil, omega 3s, stop picking), but lately I’ve had terrible breakouts canvassing below the jaw on both sides of my face
sounds hormonal to me!
Thanks, Tracy.
I love reading your blogs! You’re an inspiration and steadily changing my life!
Yay
Good luck on getting the bottom of all this. The acne definitely sounds hormonal.
Hi Tracy.
Thank you so much for this wonderful post.
I definitely think my acne is hormonal. I’ve had acne since the age of 12, and I’ve been battling it since. The only time I had close to perfect skin, was when I was on the pill called microgynon 30 (made of Ethinylestradiol which is a synthetic version of oestrogen and levonorgestrel, a synthetic form of progesterone.)
Since I came of it, absolute disaster. My face went back to what it was before. clogged, congested, with breakouts especially on my jawline/chin, and huge pores on my cheeks.
So based on what you wrote:
- if I take vitex and drink burdock root-milk thistle tea, will my skin improve.
- if I take estroguard, will it mimic the effect of microgynon on my skin. Or better yet, is there a way to naturally get what is in the pill in its syntetic form?
- Finally, I wanted to know if estroguard/DIM/Vitex will have contraceptive effect. I would like to try for a baby in the near futur, and do not want to take anything that will act as a contraceptive (this is why I came off the pill in the 1st place).
Thanks you so much, and keep up the great work
Hi Sara,
1) I can’t make any guarantees whatsoever that this combinations of supplements is going to do anything for you and your skin – but hopefully it will! That’s the plan anyway.
2) Estroblock or Estroguard won’t mimic the effect of the birth control pill, it’s just going to help you get your natural estrogen levels back in balance. Hopefully this will help you skin look as good as it did on birth control pills.
3) No, they don’t have contraceptive effect.. if anything, it’s the opposite… getting your natural hormones in balance is only going to help you conceive. (although I don’t think you’re supposed to take Vitex past the first trimester if you do get pregnant, and apparently there isn’t much that is known about taking DIM while pregnant so it might best be avoided once you do get your little bun in the oven)
omgosh i am so so so happy for you! you look so great! (not that you always haven’t lol) i’ve been seeing a medicinal herbalist and have felt so much better since, herbs are really amazingly powerful – also you probably feel less stressed because all your hormones are more balanced now, so generally your whole body will be too
Thanks Amy!
Hi Tracy!
I’m sorry to hijack this post of yours with a -relatively- unrelated question, but I figured if I posted in your last article there would be a higher chance to be answered. I’m also sorry about the length of this comment, I just don’t want to leave any detail out.
A little background, I’m a 22 years old male with no really a big acne problem. Just a oily T-zone, but not a lot of oil. For some years I’ve been getting the occasional pimple on my forehead, usually 1 or 2 every week – or every two weeks. But in the last months I’ve got some pimples on my nose -front and wings-, so I decided to do something about it. I should note that, although I did not get a single pimple on my nose until three months ago (I wonder why??), I did have blackheads since I remember. I’ve also got a few pimples (most of them red without white head) under the eyes, next to the nose. Related to this post: do you think this could be an indication of a wrongly functioning liver or other organ?
Long story short, last week I tried a couple things on my skin, and although results are not really that unexpected, it’s making me get a little worried.
What I did was a sugar-lemon-EVOO (I later discovered that the olive oil maybe wasn’t THAT extra virgin) scrub twice, on Monday and Wednesday. I also used a honey mask, I may have used it 5 times tops, but I remember using it on Saturday morning, night, and on Sunday morning. I also remember that the first time I used it was after the Wednesday scrub. It was not manuka honey, it was -allegedly, but I’m starting to doubt- raw honey. And this is where it all started.
I know, because I’ve read it, that at first when you use honey on your skin you go through a “purging” phase, when you are more likely to break out a little. And I did get the initial breakout, ESPECIALLY in my nose (I don’t remember if I got the same kind of acne on my forehead). English is not my first language, but I think you call those something like postules: those red spots with a white head. Well, the break outs in my nose where really really tiny, not like my previous ones, and they developed the white head really quickly, or at least they developed it quickly after becoming red (maybe they were below the surface before and I didn’t notice).
My last application of the honey mask was on Sunday morning. I didn’t broke out a lot since the first few, but I notice that my skin is VERY VERY OILY. Three to four hours after I cleanse it, and with the right light, you can literally see tiny oil drops or oil bumps on the pores. If I’m hit by direct light my nose and forehead shine a lot. I wonder if this is normal. This may sound like a stupid question, but as someone who has not struggled with severe acne, I don’t really know. Is the initial breakout from honey only because the toxins it is flushing, or is it accompanied by an overproduction of the oil glands?
I’ve not yet had a -noticeably at least- diminished production of oil, especially on my nose, although I’ve been watching my diet, cutting bad fats and sugar: except for honey, damn delicious thing. But honey didn’t broke me out before, nor did it make me produce more oil (when I ate it). It has been almost a week since my last application. It may have lowered a bit on my forehead, but I’m not sure what should I expect? Will the
Since Tuesday night I’ve been using aloe vera gel (extracted directly from my plant) on the forehead and the nose. On the forehead I leave it overnight, on the nose I wash it after 10-20 mins (I wanted to be sure it didn’t broke me out in the forehead before using it on the nose)
I remind you that I also used a sugar-lemon-olive oil scrub twice, so maybe it’s also contributing to the overproduction of oil?
I should mention that I’ve been regularly using a salicylic acid bar cleanser, and since monday night I’ve been using benzoyl peroxide on my nose, and wash it of the next morning. This means that I’ve been using the salicylic acid way before I got so oily, and I started to use the benzoyl peroxide after the face got oily, so I don’t think they contribute too much.
Thank you for your time
Hi Ale,
Hmm well… what were you using before you got this new acne on your nose and using all this stuff? I think you should just go back to that or just stop using everything completely… using too many things and switching between them and getting anxious about all of this probably isn’t helping (it’s not, it’s making you more oily!), I know you feel like you want to do something and put something on your skin, but I doubt it’s helping that much
Well, yes I suppose I should do that once my skin stops getting so oily. What I’m asking is if it is normal to get an over production of oil after the first applications of honey, and if I can expect it to go away. As I said, my skin wasn’t so oily before the honey. Is the “initial breakout” supposed to be accompanied with this production of oil, or are they just pimples that seem to get out of nowhere?
hmm I wouldn’t say it’s normal to get oilier, no (I mean specifically due to the honey). Sometimes messing with your face, and washing it and drying it out can create more oil because your skin wants to overcompensate. Are you washing your face more than you were before?
No, I’m not washing it more, just twice a day. Now that you mention it, I have a question. People say that you shouldn’t wash your face more than twice a day, but what about the shower? That would be another water splash. What if you wear a mask and then have to take it of? Another one. If you use a toner that you have to take of after a few mins, that’s another one.
What I’ve noticed is that my skin has become a little irritated, and maybe that’s why it’s producing more oil. I’ve been using aloe vera to treat it, leaving it overnight on the forehead and washing it off after 10 mins in the nose. Unsurprisingly, I’ve noticed a diminished production of oil in the forehead, and not so much in the nose. Maybe that’s why.
It’s just that the overproduction of oil happened to coincide in time with my honey usage. Have you heard of an initial breakout or purgin phase when you start using honey?
Some people do get initial breakouts with honey, yes!
Gotcha, but do these breakouts usually come with over production of oil? Do you have any idea?
I don’t know.. sorry. I don’t think so for most people, but I don’t know.
DIM – safe during breastfeeding? (I tandem nurse).
I don’t know, there haven’t really been any studies on its effects on pregnancy and breast feeding, so I’m not sure the answer on that one
I am breastfeeding and going to a naturopath in two weeks. I’m going to ask about vitex, milk thistle, etc. and can let people know what I’m told.
Tracy! What a great article and I’m glad you’ve found relief for your skin. I’m in the same boat you were once in. After keeping up with lifestyle and diet changes for almost a year I went from severe acne to mild… which is great but I have to really watch diet to keep my skin consistently mild to clear.
I’ve seen a naturopath months ago and had my hormones checked. They were all within normal range with no dominance. My naturopath told me even though they are within range they may be out of balance with one another. I do notice I break out around my chin and jawline area often. Since I’m not technically estrogen dominant would you recommend Estroblock/DIM for me? I would love to try it but I don’t want to mess things up hormone wise! Thanks and lots of love.
Hi Ericka,
How come she wasn’t able to tell from your results whether they were not in balance with each other? isn’t that something she should be able to see if she had the levels? (I’m just curious, I have no idea how the interpretation of the testing works). Anyway… I think DIM is probably worth a shot… I mean after all, your estrogen levels might be in range, but you might have a lot more bad estrogens than good estrogens
You know, I’m not sure! My paperwork shows a number range for each hormone and then my number results for each… And my number results all fell within the normal range for each hormone. I thought it was strange for her to make that comment too. Maybe more testing needs to be done to find out my exact levels? I’m not sure. I think I may have to give DIM a try though. Thanks Tracy!
Just a heads up about DIM. I had been taking shatavari, which is a phytoetrogen, but also claims to help balance female hormones in the ayrvedic tradiction, and it was really helping my migraines. Since I still had acne though, I went off it and started the DIM, which I thought would be better for my hormones and help both the acne and miraines. BAM! Migraine after migraine. Now, I could be wrong, but if something is balancing your hormones, I can’t imagine that it would cause such terrible hormonal symptoms. So, I can understand why one might think that it’s fairly risk free, but my experience leads me to believe that it could actually have harmful effects. There might be some danger in assuming that just because you’re a female with adult acne, that it’s necessarily estrogen dominance.
Hi Andrea, thanks for sharing your experience with it! I know it’s not going to work for everyone – it really is best if you can get a saliva hormone test and get prescribed supplements by some kind of professional… because it’s definitely true that not all adult acne is caused by estrogen dominance, but many times it is… how long did you take it and what brand of DIM were you using?
I used Nature’s Way Plus. I took it for 3 or 4 weeks. Once my period came the migraines started and didn’t stop for almost 2 weeks, until I stopped taking it and started the shatavari again. I didn’t mean to imply that you were saying estrogen dominance is the only cause of adult acne, I just wanted to add some warning, since everywhere I look, even here, that is mostly what is suggested.
Who knows, maybe it would have eventually cleared my skin, it certainly didn’t get worse while I was on it, but it wasn’t worth crippling daily migraines.
Who knows, maybe I even have estrogen dominance, but need lots of estrogen to keep my migraines at bay. I know when I was pregnant with my son, by the time I got into my 2nd and 3rd trimesters, my skin was perfect and my migraines were gone. Estrogen and progesterone are supposed to be sky high at that point. I have tried everything for my migraines which had been becoming worse and worse, and the shatavari is the first thing I’ve tried, natural or otherwise, that has given me some respite.
I might someday have my hormones tested, but I’m not at all certain that those tests are reliable. It seems many people with terrible issues have these tests done and are told there is absolutely nothing wrong with them.
Mainstream medical doctors often cause more harm than good–very few have ever helped me. However, I may have an even more dismal view of naturopaths. I think they’re mostly charlatans whose methods are not based on sound science and often achieve results through placebo.
Wow, this all sounds really negative, and I’m really not a negative person in general. I guess because I try to be so objective, it sometimes appears that way
Well done! You sure deserve having such beautiful skin after all you’ve done
I did pretty good I guess after about 5 months but I decided not to worry too much about what I was eating this christmas (it would’ve made me too unhappy) and started eating pretty normal food (still dairy-free) and then my skin started breaking out and is now worse than ever. So now I’ve cancelled my plans for new years just to keep me from having anything like sugar or alcohol ( and keeps me from showing myself in public) I know it’s pathetic but I’d just feel worse about the acne if I’d go out. What do you suggest I do? I’m too scared of eating what I want, meeting people or just going to school (where all the stress is). I used to love going out for a beer with friends but I have to say no every single time they ask these days and have been staying home every friday for 5 months now.. It’s starting to drive me crazy. I imagine you’ve felt the same way? SO, any suggestions? (thanks for a great blog!)
Hi Anna, I’m sorry to hear this backfired on you! My suggestion is to just bite the bullet and get tested for food sensitivities… then you know which foods might be causing it and you can stop living in fear of the unknown. Also, over Christmas when you ate what you wanted… did you actually ENJOY the food? Or were you just stressed out and worrying about it the whole time? Because that can make a big difference. You really need to work on the stress. I know that suggestion isn’t that helpful because you know that, but honestly… go out with your friends!! Five months!! I know acne is embarrassing, and yes I’ve totally been there, but the truth is that nobody cares except you… your friends just want to hang out with you and spend time with you… they don’t care if you have acne. Hiding away is so stressful and it’s really not making the situation better!
Tracy,
My friend is 24. She has had problems with acne since early teens. For the past two years or so, it has changed to small white hard bumps that they say LOOK like milia, but are not. Estheticians that looked at her could not identify. She is lactose intolerant, and her mother and aunt and uncle had severe acne but it (mostly) went away in their early 20′s. She IS on oral contraceptives which are not helping. Any ideas?? When her face is red, it looks like her top layer of skin has been stretched over a blanket of tiny hard bumps. She went through a LOT of dermatologist treatments that did not work for her. We have not found any photos that look like her “bumps”. She does have some “pimples” that come and go, but these are there all the time.
Hi Betty! I’m sorry I can’t really tell what she has.. I can’t see it lol! It sounds like rosacea, but if you haven’t been able to find any pictures that match it, I don’t know what to say. Has she seen a doctor or dermatologist? I’m not really a big fan of either in treating skin problems, but they do a good job of diagnosing them at least
Hello Tracy! Just want to ask where can I find Estroblock here in Dubai, UAE. I can’t seem to find it.
Hi Arjay, unfortunately you have to order it online, even in North America… there’s no other way to get it as far as I know (maybe through a naturopath or something). And shipping on it is really expensive… it’s super annoying.
Hi Tracy,
I’ve been reading your blog for a while now, but haven’t commented before, so hi
Thanks for all the great info you give here at The Love Vitamin.
After reading this post and doing some other research I ordered myself some EstroBlock and LivTox. I’m in the midst of improving my diet and using all natural products, but a lot of my acne is around the chin and jawline, which makes me believe it could be hormonal. But I do feel a little apprehensive about taking the EstroBlock. I know it is natural and should help everything regulate and such, but will this have any dangerous/lasting side effects on my body, particularly my cycle? Particularly on my ability to get pregnant? I am not planning on having kids for probably another five years or so, but still, I just want to be cautious. Because if I had to choose between children and clear skin, I’d have to pick the children!
I’ve read some of the other comments here and have found them reassuring, but I just wanted to specifically ask for any further opinion you may have on this. I know this is natural, but words like “estrogen” and “blocker” and “inhibitor” all make me a little apprehensive about what I could be doing to my body and my natural cycle.
Again, thanks so much for all the time and effort you put into this whole project. It is so helpful to have people like you out there who care enough about this issue to help other people work through it.
Happy New Year!
Kassondra
Hi Kassondra,
Well, from my understanding of it, it blocks BAD estrogens, and increases good estrogens… it’s supposed to balance your hormones which would only help you get pregnant, not prevent that.
But then again, you have to remember I’m just a person on the internet doing her best, but I’m not a doctor or naturopath, so I’m proud of you for being skeptical and asking questions… NOBODY should just take my advice or anyone else’s advice on the internet without doing lots of your own research… I do my best to give good information, but I’m only a flawed human and I can’t be responsible if things don’t go as planned with anything I recommend. I hope it won’t, but … you know.
… if it makes you feel any better, my naturopath did prescribe me DIM way back in the day before the word DIM meant anything to me, so that tells me it’s pretty safe (from my point of view). If you are worried I would contact the Delgado Protocol who are the people who make it.
Thanks for your input, Tracy. That is reassuring. I’ll continue to look into a bit more on my own and make my decision from there
Kassondra
thanks so much for posting this! After learning that I think I have hormonal acne I was left feeling kinda hopeless because of hearing that anything topical doesn’t really clear it up! In a small way I gave up…but always get inspired when I come to your page!!! After breaking out horrible around Christmas, I came to your page for some fresh inspiration and realized that I haven’t been taking care of myself as I should. So thats what Im doing and I’m going to the health store today to pick these supplements up! I’m super stoked and can’t wait to post the results! thanks so much Tracy, blesssings upon blessings to you!!!
Hi Lindsey!
Yay, glad to hear I’m inspiring you to get back on track
Be ware that if you are after Estroblock, you have to order it online.. it isn’t carried in stores. The rest of them you should be able to get in any health store
Have you ever heard of anyone using Red Clover supplement to help with hormonal balance? I just picked some up the other day and I was torn between that and Vitex, and then you wrote this post haha
Oh, actually, yes I have – I forgot about that one. Sounds like it’s a blood cleanser like burdock root? I don’t know that much about it though to make too many comments on it, and I don’t know if you can take them together. I’m not saying vitex is better than red clover, I just don’t know that much about it yet.
I went to see a naturopath for the first time last week for what I suspected was hormonal acne, and Red Clover Supreme tincture is what she recommended to me. From what research I did online and from what the naturopath told me, it helps a sluggish or overwhelmed liver detoxify your body, including bad estrogens, and will help to regulate hormones. She also recommended a B-vitamin complex with high B-6 to me, just until things improve. It’s got good reviews!
I should also mention that I had been taking Nature’s Way Vitex 3 times a day because I had just kept reading about how wonderful it is, and I experienced a REALLY bad breakout fairly quickly. She told me to discontinue the vitex for now, it might be too strong for my system. So I’m assuming the red clover might be a bit gentler. Keep in mind that these herbs and supplements are POWERFUL, even though they come from plants. I asked about milkthistle for my liver and the naturopath immediately said milkthistle is very strong, I’d probably experience an acne flare-up, so to stick with the red clover and vit B for now.
Hey Tracy! I ended up going to a doctor to get my hormones tested (I’m on thyroid medication and I had to get that rechecked) and after suspecting my acne my be hormonal I thought is finally get some answers. I see here you talk mostly of estrogen, and my estrogen levels came back in the normal range (normal is 50-100 and mine was 62.3). But my progestorone came back very low (normal is 5-20 and mine was 0.5) . She suggested a progesterone cream but I don’t want to mess with them if I could take a suppliment or herb that could help balance them naturally. Do you have a suggestion on what I could do? Do you think this low level would be causing my acne, or is estrogen the one to worry about with acne? I appreciate your help and all you do!
Hi Kelsey,
Yes, if you have low progesterone, then it means that your body is still estrogen dominant because even though estrogen is in range, it’s all about it’s ratio to your progesterone levels.
Good for you for getting your hormones tested
I think vitex would be the best supplement for you.. you can probably take estroblock too. Vitex seems to work on your pituitary gland so it naturally produces more of its own progesterone (instead of adding synthetic progesterone). Estroblock doesn’t really lower estrogen levels, just converts the bad estrogens to good estrogens, which could still be a problem for you even if the estrogen is in the normal range. I say start with Vitex though, and take it for a good few months (apparently it takes two to three months to really work at its full capacity).
Ohh ok, I see! Thank you so so much! I was really wanting to hear your opinion before putting more hormones into my body. I will try out the Vitex for sure!
Thanks again!! You’re the best!
Tracy,
This is a great article and perfect timing! I have been taking Vitex, Dim, and progesterone cream for about 9 months with improvment slowly. I have pcos, so this is why I suspect it is taking so long to balance. I want to take the burdock root as I have blood clots from B.C. but I am worried about a relapse. Did you have any inital breakouts from taking liver/blood cleansing pills? I was thinking of just taking the dosing slowly and working my way up. Thanks!
Hi Stacey,
Personally I didn’t have any relapse breakouts, but it’s not to say that couldn’t happen. Starting off slow with them is a really good idea!
Thanks for the pep talk Tracy:). It’s just so hard sometimes.
Maeghan, thanks for the tips!
Tracy, what is your current “skincare” routine? Are you still on the caveman? How long between splashing your face with water?
I’ve just come to the conclusion, that I need to do more for my skin externally. I’m on day 3 of a sugar detox and although it might help, I just feel miserable
. Not in the sense that ” I NEED CANDY NOW” but the emotional side of further restricting my food intake. I feel like giving up right now because it is causing too much stress. (I loved your candida cleanse which I did for 7 weeks, but even after than my skin wasn’t great). I think that the main point of this detox right now is to reset myself to real meals and real food, so I think that I can still do that with fruit and ‘healthy treats’ like cocoa cinnamon kale chips which I love!
I’ve also looked into digestive healing for which I’ve had poor digestion since last summer really (I know that gluten has shot my digestive tract)… I’ve ordered magnesium supplements, enema kit (yuk) and a liver detox supplement. I’m also really considering sauerkraut. (But I’d like to buy it… is that OK as long as it has been stored in the fridge?)
Thanks for your help! I love your latest video too! It seems that a few Paleo people have also made similar statements.
Yep, I’m still on the caveman… I don’t really splash my face at all… sometimes a little water gets on it when I was my hair but that’s about it. As for sauerkraut… as long as it’s supposed to be a live unpasteurized sauerkraut and is refrigerated, it’s cool. Bubbie’s a good brand, but I donno what you have in the UK
That’s the brand I remember hearing about! Unfortunatley it doesn’t seem to be in the UK.
I’m thinking about using carrots and ginger instead of cabbage for this time around (my first sauekraut made me vomit. literally
)http://thenourishingcook.com/follow-the-whey-to-ginger-carrot-land/
Plus I don’t really want to be eating too much FODMAP foods if I’m trying to heal my Digestive tract.
Have a great day
Hey Tracy I tried reading this article in the little time I have a work and probably missed a lot but a quick question I was wonder on your number 1. thing “Use a Supplement – Either DIM, Vitex, or Both”
is that the same as the Liv-Tox you remcommended or something different
Nope that’s in addition to DIM or Vitex.. I’d suggest giving the article a good read over when you have more time Kamila
Hi Tracy,
Great article, as always!
I just started using DIM and Calcium d-glucarate together. Been on it for three weeks, so it is too early to tell whether it is helping or not. Anyway, after reading your article, and doing my own research, I got really interested in the Burdock Root. I’ll might switch the Calcium d-glucarate with the Burdock. Or do you think I can use all 3 of them together? Or maybe that will be just to much?
Have a great day!
Hi Maria,
Honestly, I’m not sure of that answer to this one! Sorry! I don’t know enough about calcium D-glucarate to say if one is better than the other
That’s alright! Thanks anyway
Do you know if DIM, Burdock and evening primrose oil would be a good combination?
Yes, I think those three would jive!
Great, thanks! Are you also doing the “ten days on and three days off”? Are you planning on taking Burdock, Milk Thistle and DIM for the long run? Also, are you supposed to use Burdock for more than 3 months?
Thank you for responding so quickly! You look absolutely amazing!
Hi Maria,
Well with the burdock I was doing ten on and three off but I’ve gone off the burdock now after a month or so, because I got lazy with taking it! My skin seems to be doing fine without it. But I’m still taking the DIM and the Liv-tox (both of which I’m not doing the three days off, but maybe with the liv-tox I should be). I’m thinking of maybe cutting back on the DIM to two pills per day now to see if I can lower the dose and maybe even begin weaning off it.
Hi Tracy!
I’ve been following you for around six months now… I started with your candida cleanse and have since stopped eating dairy probably 97% percent…. I really struggle with my diet . I’m pretty sure I have hormonal acne. It’s always on my jawline and around my mouth and is often cystic. I’ve been getting worse instead of better lately and about three weeks ago I started on milk thistle and a dim supplement but am still breaking out quite badly. I’m just wondering if you have any advice. I’m on the verge of asking my doctor to put me on accutaine which I know is awful as I was on it once in my teens but I am just struggling so much. At 29 years old I really want to find a solution. I feel this has been holding me back so much and I seem to have spent a small fortune on trying to get clear. Any advice would be awesome! Also I do exercise regularly and my diet is not perfect but loads better than a year ago
Cheers! -robyn
Hi Robyn,
Sorry to hear things aren’t going that well! What type of DIM are you taking and how much? If it’s not a good supplement and you aren’t taking enough of it it won’t be absorbed well… I guess I should mention that I took a not-as-good brand of DIM only taking one or two per day before trying estroblock, and it did nothing. In the end though, I know you don’t want to spend more money but if you really want to know what your hormones are doing you will need to get a saliva hormone test done that will actually tell you. And of course, there could be a dietary factor.. like you could be sensitive to something that you aren’t aware of, so a food sensitivity test might be a good idea too. If you are willing to do anything before Accutane, I think doing these two things would really really help you figure out what is going on and actually get rid of your acne.
The DIM I’m taking is estrosmsrt plus by Lorna vanderhaeghe….. When I researched them online it seemed to be a good one. Have you heard of it before?
Hi Robyn,
I don’t know how they compare, but if you did lots of research than you probably know more about it than I!
No I hadn’t heard of it… I just looked it up and it looks like a good supplement, but it’s hard for me to objectively say. Like for example, Estroblock says they are different because of the quality of their ingredients that make it up to 500% more absorptive than other brands. so.. yeah
And I’m taking two a day as per the bottle
Hi! Just wanted to see if anyone knows of a store in the US where I can get Estroblock.
I’ve been taking it for a few months now…4 caps a day plus Nature’s Way Liver supplement. They seem to be doing wonders. However- if I miss a day of the Estroblock my skin freaks out again. I ordered some from amazon but they won’t arrive until next Thursday so I’m trying to see if I can find them anywhere. I thought I saw it in whole foods not too long ago but I can’t find them again.
thank you Tracy for this article! Really great info
Hi Kate,
As far as I know, I don’t think you can get it in stores. But I might be wrong. It sucks to hear that if you forget to take it even for one day that you break out! The hope is that after you take it long enough that your body has detoxified its stores of bad estrogens and changed the balance in your body enough from the bads to the goods, that you will be able to wean off it. I just started cutting back to two a day after taking three a day for over 5 months (never forgetting a day, imagine that!!)… I’m hoping maybe to get to one per day or none and keep the results… we’ll see
I hope I won’t have to keep taking 4/day to keep good results. I had been taking 2 per day and that didn’t work- so I upped to 3 per day and didn’t get results but the 4 per day I’ve been doing for about 2 weeks (knock on wood) seems to do the trick.
Part of me wishes I didn’t check to see how much more I had left in my bottle because I’m sure the stress of knowing I won’t have any for three days doesn’t help. But life will go on
thanks again Tracy!
Hello Tracy,
My name is Kiara and Im from Puerto Rico. (sorry for my writing in english ..I have to work more on it).
I have been struggling with acne since Im in fourth grade!!.. I’ve tried EVERYTHING.. I almost got prescribe accutane. I say almost because the day before the appointment my dad stopped me. He doesnt believe in medications..he is a vegan. I was diagnosed with Polycystic ovary syndrome. The gynecologist put me in different birth control pills but nothing happened!One year ago my dad convinced me to go to a naturopathy and they put me in a vegan diet.. (im currently on it).I’ve been drinking different herbs ..for the pituitary gland, another herb is to regulate my menstrual cycle & to treat some ovarian cysts. I also drink lysine(for my immune system, kelp, Zinc , calcium, magnesium & B6. And not to forget I use a Natural Progestorone Cream 3 times a day.. I use for my face too.
Despite being almost a year in treatment I still have a lot of cystic acne (chin area and the sides of my face mostly). Sometimes my face clears a little bit but then it gets worse. I currently use for my face.. tea tree oil, zinc cream (margarite zinc cream), natural witch hazel as a toner and the progesterone cream. (I dont put this on my face at the same time.. sometimes I dont use the witch hazel etc)
What do you recommend or suggestions in my case… :S
Hi Kiara,
Have you tried exercise? like strength/weight training? I suggest checking out this lady… her name is Amanda Rodgers and she’s awesome. She healed her PCOS with a real foods diet (not vegan, just a well balanced whole foods diet with real food), and exercise, and that’s it. That could potentially be the missing piece of the puzzle for you: http://www.gokaleo.com/
Hello Tracy,
I do exercises regularly almost everyday. I lost 28 pounds already. I’m considering traveling to the U.S. or some other place to seek opinions. Do you know of any good naturopath or have heard ?
Interesting, I’m not sure what to suggest! And sorry I don’t have any specific naturopath to suggest… although there is an ebook called PCOS Unlocked that might really help you.. the one I mentioned in this article. There’s an ad for it in my sidebar on the right
Btw, my diet is base in vegestables & fruits . I avoid soy and gluten.
Sorry to comment again ,, I just remember something else.. .I detox regularly (laxative) .. I use a tea made of “senna leafs”
Hi Tracey, I wrote to you last night not sure if you got my message. I have been tAking DIM for almost 2 months now and have not seen an improvement. I have been bcp free for almost 8 months now and have been doing everything I can to avoid breaking out diet,exercise,Chinese medicine, naturopath. My acne isn’t bad it never has been I probably get about 2 -3 pimples are week but they are deep. And it gets worse right before my period. I have had the hormone test done about 4 months ago where I was low in progesterone, high in testosterone and high in bad estrogens. Which is why I thought estrogen dominance was my issue. The brand of DIM I am taking in natures way. I have just ordered the retro lock triple strength. I live in Australia so it’s supper expensive to have it shipped out. So I guess I Willa have to see if there is any improvement in the next month. 1 positive thing I realized wAs my nose and forhead haven’t been getting as oily as I would Normally wake up of a morning and they would feel oily. So I hope that’s a sign of it to be working and the break outs slow down soon!
Hi Rebecca,
I didn’t get your email, not sure why. Well as far as I know, Estroblock is super high absorption and some people find they really don’t get results until they take 3 or even 4 estroblocks per day. So I don’t know if Nature’s Way really compares… hopefully Estroblock does something for you, because I know the shipping is horrendous to Australia. It’s horrendous to Canada too.
Anyway… have you thought about maybe taking vitex as well? Vitex helps to naturally raise your progesterone levels, so it sounds like both these supplements would help you.
Where did you get the hormone test done? Was it through a naturopath? Did they not tell you what to do with the results?
Sorry that was estroblock not retro lock : )
I was taking estroblock and then Natures way when I ran out. It states on the bottle enhanced absorption so it should be doing something. I will give it another 4 weeks as u have said it took you 3 months. I will try and be patient : ) yes I had it done at my naturopath – saliva test. I was given progestralift which is meant to encourage ur body to make its own progesterone. I tried that for 3 months with no change in my skin as well as estrofactors which has lots of herbs – turmeric,b6,rosemary etc. I have some progesterone cream I got I just haven’t used it yet as I wanted to see if the dim itself would solve it. I am just scared to play around with my hormones to much when I know they are still recovering post bcp. I have also started to see a Chinese dermatologist and have been on herbs for about 7 weeks the same time I started the dim. But like I said I have noticed less oily skin in the last couple of days so let’s hope it’s a good sign. I will do some research on vitex and chat to my naturopath to see what she thinks. I will keep u posted if there is any change. Thanks heaps Tracey. Your a star : )
Hi Tracy, I was just wondering if these supplements are safe to take for long term.. Is it ok to take them for years? Also I drink herbal teal composed of burdock and vitex instead of taking them as pills. Are teas effective as supplements? thank you Tracy for your information!!!
Hi Sara Lee,
Well, to be honest, I don’t know the answer to that and that’s why I didn’t address it. I think they are okay to take long term, but on the other hand, I think supplements like this are best to take in order for them to do a certain thing (correct an imbalance) and then you shouldn’t need them anymore. However, I don’t know how long it would take before you don’t need them anymore. As you see, Alexis recommends three months on them .. and actually I think she said to use them until your cycle is normal and your skin is clear. I don’t know if that applies to DIM or what. In the end, I’m not sure. I’m starting to try lowering my dose of Estroblock to see what happens.
Oh I see.. Please let us know what happens once you lower the estroblock! Thank you Tracy!
Hi Tracy! Thankyou for writing this article! Even though switching to a whole foods diet and cutting out gluten over a year ago has vastly improved my quality of life (like no more migraines, body aches, and brain fog, yay!) I still do suffer from cyclical hormonal acne. I thought it was just my misfortune since I refuse to go on the birth control pill, but not anymore thanks to you! I’m going to start taking some of these supplements for sure. I’m so excited to get my hormones in check but I know that doing so will only lead to a more fertile version of me which is not exactly ideal, lol, not really ready to have a baby yet! (I’m 18) But I do know that a fertile woman is a healthy woman and I’m not about to purposefully ignore this advice just because of that. I think I may get the copper IUD.
Anyway, I’m a little torn about which hormone regulating supplement to take! I know any of the ones you mentioned in the article is probably better than nothing but could you possibly elaborate on why you chose estroblock over estroguard and vitex? I know the differences between the three but I’m still torn!
P.S. My, your skin is looking B-E-A-Utiful!
Hi Kaitlyn.
Well, I tried Estroblock because it was Fran from HighonHealth.org who said this was the best supplement for hormonal acne and it’s a big part of what basically cured her from acne, she said. Now I know that just because it worked for her, didn’t mean it would work for me, so I resisted trying it for a long time… but I finally was like… i’m just gonna go for it. And it turned out that was the right decision. But I know that vitex is also another supplement that also works well for a lot of people with hormonal acne, and this thing that this lady wrote about Vitex, Burdock, and Milk Thistle was very interesting. But at that point, Estroblock on it’s own was working for me, so I didn’t bother with Vitex.
In the end, I don’t know which ones you should take. From my own experience I’m tempted to tell you to take Estroblock since that worked so well for me, and generally everyone due to modern life has some bad estrogens to detoxify, so it wouldn’t hurt (by the way, Estroblock is the same as Estroguard, Estroguard just doesn’t have soy in it)
Wow! Now I’m thinking of trying that Estroblock or Estroguard too! Is it safe to take if you’re still on the pill?
Hi Jennifer, well at first I wasn’t sure, but then I recently read on the manufacturer’s website (of estroblock) that they recommend taking it while on the pill
Thanks, Tracy. Just called the number on the EstroBlock website and spoke with a very nice lady, Rachel. She answered all my questions about the product and I ordered my first bottle. There’s no negative side-effects, no contradictions with any medications or vitamins and she said they even have cancer patients who benefit from this supplement as well. Figured with all that, it’s worth a try. She added that she’s been taking it for a while now and has noticed that her acne problem (that she’s been dealing with since she was 16) has completely disappeared and she has no mood swings and feels great! I can’t thank you enough for the tip on this product! I’ll let you know if I have the same success! ♥
Oh awesome! That’s great info, thanks for giving them a call… that’s cool to hear too that the lady on the phone has even cleared up her acne with it
Hi Tracy,
Robyn here again… I had posted a comment a couple weeks ago and I was just wondering if you’ve heard anything about milk thistle detoxifying the liver and your kidneys and colon not being able to keep up with the outflow of toxins and breaking you out even more?
Hi Robyn
I have not heard anything specifically about that, but it does make sense, like if you are prone to constipation. If you aren’t I can’t imagine it would be a problem but who knows! People’s bodies do weird things
Hi Tracy,
I just started reading your blog, and e-book.. ate your quinoa tabbouleh recipe for dinner
I have had acne since I was a teenager, and now at 27 I’m getting pretty bored with it.. the only thing that ever got rid of it (except during my period) was proactiv. I’m on the pill too, but mostly for the not getting pregnant thing.. been trying to go all natural, so 6 months ago I decided I was going to ween myself off of proactiv.. Haha that was a bad idea! My skin just kept getting worse as time went on. I was using aubrey face cleanser(all natural, mostly coconut oil) and my skin was so oily, not being used to the humid weather.. oh yeah I should mention I attempted this right before we moved across the country, from a hot dry state to a humid in the summer, and cold dry winters… So anyway, I tried a couple other things. My skin does not like tea tee oil.. after it started getting horrible, the zits just kept piling up, my husband convinced me to go back on proactiv.. I’ve been using that for 2 months now, and my face is dry and flaky, and still not better. Better than before though. My acne is only on my cheeks and jawline right now, but the is a big patch of it on each cheek that won’t go away. I went back to using the aubrey cleanser once a day, with proactiv, for the dryness. It is slowly getting better, but I feel there is something wrong with me. Sounds like it might be hormonal. Being Vegan I eat soy more now, but only like tofu once a week.. I know there has to be something wrong with my digestion. I sometimes get kind of bloated and fat as the day goes, like I’m pregnant with dinner, so I stress about the calories and foods I eat, dispite being Vegan and weighing 94 lbs..
I’ve been pretty stressed in general too I guess….
I don’t know what to do anymore. My plan right now is to stick it out with proactiv, but there’s some honey in the kitchen that I’m seriously considering rubbing on my face now.. I tried using food based stuff like that before I went on proactiv and it was very very bad.. my diet was not good then though.. maybe supplements will help. I don’t know what though..
Sorry for the long post in story form
Hi Patricia,
I know that when you’re starting your journey to figure out what is going on with you and your skin, it can be pretty stressful and scary… but just keep experimenting because I think you will find what is going to do the trick for you and your skin. You have all of our support here!
Thanks Tracy,
The support helps.
I was wondering if a hormonal imbalance is what leads to the excessive stress, or the stress just makes it worse?
Also I was curious if I attempt to go off the proactiv again and try something like honey or jojoba, should I slowly wean myself off the cleansers and lotions, or just not use it at all? I don’t want to be putting those toxins into my body. I hate it everytime I wash my face, and my dry flaky skin is yelling at me to stop, but every time I try to go natural it is a disaster. I know there is a detox period, but how long should that last and how bad does it get? I feel like its too long and too bad, when I try to eliminate the benzol peroxide.. maybe I need to work on controlling my stress and finding out what other factors may be causing my acne before I change my skin care routine?
Thanks so much for the help.
I would say yes, if changing to natural products continues not to work very well, you definitely should try working on your other lifestyle issues to begin healing the problem from the inside out. And then maybe you will have more success switching your skin care
Hi.
If I was taking cod liver oil like the one you mentioned on your other article, can I still take burdock root since that cleanses out the blood?
Or is it just ok to take the cod liver oil without adding any more supplements?
Thank You
Yes, you can definitely take them both. Also yes, you can take burdock in tea form, capsule, or tincture. The tea is fine, it’s just that I always find taking supplement in tea form much less convenient… not to say it’s any worse.
I forgot to mention is taking the burdock root by drinking them as tea (Alvita Caffeine Free Tea Burdock Root) is similar to taking the capsules?
Hi Tracy,
Would it be wise to begin on vitex now that I’ve started weaning off the pill? I heard it often takes 3 months before it starts to work and I’m scared of breaking out once I’ve comletely weaned off BC and before vitex kicks in. What would you suggest?
Yes, if you’re weaning off the pill, I would start using it now so that it can start to take effect
Thanks Tracy. I’ll get on it right away. Also, I just wanted to thank you for all the great information you’ve made available to me and tons of other people. Your website and all the articles have been extremly helpful so thanks!
Thanks Nicole!
Hi Tracy,
I am wondering what were the stages that you experienced. Did you get an initial breakout and when did you realize that your acne started clearing?
And also what you think about evening primrose oil?
Hi Joy,
I wouldn’t say I got an initial breakout.. I’ve had mild cyclical acne around my chin that comes and goes for a couple of years since I got rid of my severe acne (like it would be pretty much clear for three or four weeks, and then for a week or so I’d get quite a few smallish pimples around my chin, and then that would go, and come back, and so forth). So I’d say my normal breakout cycle just continued, until a few months in and then stopped! I’ve still had a pimple here and there since, but that whole breakout cycle has pretty much stopped completely.
Since I got off the pill during the summer, I’m just now getting acne around my mouth. Does it matter what brand of Vitex? I got the GNC Herbal Plus Vitex and that says to only take one a day so just wondering if that’s enough or if I should have gotten a different brand? I’m 19 and really trying to regulate my hormones. BC is terrible. I also got some probiotics from GNC to help and I take multi-vitamins. What else should help?
I’ve found it difficult to find exact information on how much Vitex to take, and I’m thinking that the potency might vary from brand to brand, which is why it’s probably a good idea just to take what the bottle says. In addition to vitex, make sure you are eating well, sleeping well, exercising, etc.. this will all help to regulate the hormones!
Hi Tracy!!!
Thank you for being an inspiration for us all and you help in spreading knowledge about natural ways of healing acne.
You helped me to a great deal. After reading this post I ordered DIM, vitex and burdock root supplements, and IT TOOK A WEEK to get me almost clear! I feel like it’s a miracle and am so greatful!!! I’m not completely clear yet, because I’ve bee eating wrong a lot lately, but my skin is about 80 % better and smoother and heals faster. I’m pretty sure I will get completely clear with these supplements if I live and eat a bit healthier and this has lifetd my spirits so much! It’s been amazing to be able to eat even a bit dairy which has always made me break out a lot, not having to worry that much about food anymore.
I’m 30 now and have tried pretty much everything to cure my acne, which i got when I was 11. Several times of anitbiotics, isotretinoin, birth control pills, spironolactone, chiro-inositol, NAG, low carb dairy & gluten free diet, more and more supplements… I had already almost given up on getting clear.
All I can say is that you kind of saved me!
))) Thank you so much & keep up the good work!
That’s awesome!!!
Yay, I’m so happy for you
Hi Tracy,
Let me first say that I have learned a lot from your website, and I think it contains a lot of really valuable tips/information. About two months ago, I had pretty clear skin while using prescription topicals (Retin-A and sulfacatemide), but I was worried about their long-term effects and they affected my overall skin texture/quality. So I opted for an all-natural approach and stumbled across your site. YAY!
That said, however, I wanted to share with you my personal experience taking Vitex Chaste berry and Nature’s Way Dim-plus. After I read this article in early December, I read some positive reviews on Amazon and quickly ordered both supplements. I also started doing the Caveman regimen in early December, and, at first, was having really great results. My skin started regaining its glow and my pores shrunk in a way that I didn’t know was possible.
Toward the end of the month, however, I experienced some major breakouts along my chin and jawline, which I figured might be some initial reaction to the caveman regimen. I carried on but eventually had to start wearing makeup because I was embarrased to go to work. Throughout December, I only took the supplements when I remembered (maybe 4-5 days a week, not twice a day).
In the second half of December and into January, my emotional health took a nose dive. I began feeling extremely extremely anxious and having negative thoughts that I just couldn’t shake. (“I have nothing going for me; I’ve made so many irrevocable errors in my life; I have no social skills; etc.”) In the past, I have experienced depression and anxiety, so I didn’t make any connection between those emotional issues and the supplements. (I had also recently broken up with my boyfriend, was spending way too much time at home, and was having trouble finding a decent job after graduating.)
THEN, in early January, I cleaned my room and transferred the supplements on my desk where I would see them. I started taking them everyday, 2x for the chaste berry. During this time, I also cut out almost all sugar, wheat, and dairy from my diet as part of my skin regimen. All the while, my skin kept looking worse and worse, but I attributed it to stress and wearing makeup on the caveman regimen.
Meanwhile, my emotional state dropped to the point that I had almost zero self-confidence.
I had major painful red spots all along my jawline, and then my forehead totally exploded. Little bumps EVERYWHERE. Last week, I finally just broke down and started crying because I was so upset with my skin and my life, and I told my mom I needed a therapist.
Later that night, I was sitting at my desk and thinking about the comment my brother had made about my forehead resembling a poison ivy rash. I suddenly looked at the Vitex Chaste Berry supplement and FINALLY connected the dots. I researched the supplement, and it turns out that depending on a person’s hormone balance, it has the potential to exacerbate. In my case, I may also have been allergic to the supplement because the “acne” ITCHES.
IN ADDITION, I found out that Vitex Chaste berry affects dopamine levels in the brain and can aggravate depression and anxiety, particularly in those with prior history of the problems. I even read reports from women who had taken the supplement and began having suicidal thoughts. It is SERIOUS stuff.
The supplement also caused me to miss my period. So I have now not had one for about 6 weeks, as a result of the hormone disturbance.
Of course, I was pretty dumb not to have made the connection between the herbal remedies and my skin problems far sooner. Now, a week after stopping them, my acne is horrible. It might be improving slowly, but it’s still itchy. Without makeup, I look rather hideous. I imagine it will take a while for my hormone levels to re-adjust. (I read one account of a girl who had been off it for a month, and her skin was still awful.)
Emotionally, however, I am feeling ten times better than even last week. I am no longer entrapped in a pit of despair. My thoughts are much more positive, and I’m generally less sensitive. Thank goodness!!
I am hopeful that my skin will clear up, even if it takes a few months for all the redness to diminish. I just wanted to share this horror story to let you know that this is a VERY STRONG SUPPLEMENT that CAN totally disrupt the body’s hormone balance. Although it undoubtedly works for many women, it probably should not be recommended without warnings. For six weeks, I didn’t think to blame the supplement because I trusted your information without questioning it.
This is the first time I have ever left a comment on a blog, but I thought that other people should be aware of the risks (physical & mental) of Vitex Chaste Berry and other herbal supplements. I found that “natural” does not = safe.
All the best,
Brooke
P.S. Based on my research, I believe that Vitex Chaste berry was the source of my problems, but it is possible that the DIM supplement also had adverse effects. (I cannot know for sure.)
Hi Brooke,
Brooke, here’s to your healing, lots of love. Tracy x
Thanks for sharing your experience with Vitex. Sorry to hear it was such a bad experience for you! This is kind of why I hate making recommendations at all, because you never know how people will react to any given thing. Anyway, it’s good that you have shared this because now people can take it into consideration before trying it. So everyone: it really is best to get your hormones tested first or talk to a naturopath before using supplements, especially if this story has concerned you. And always thoroughly research anything you read about, and don’t just take anyone’s word for anything.
* Also, I just edited the article and gave a little warning about the potential for side effects with Vitex
Thank you for this video and post! Five months ago when I quit nursing my son and consequently got off the mini pill my face went absolutely crazed, along with my hormones! I tried a regular bc pill for a month after and just really didn’t want to take them so I stopped. Since then I’ve been battling hormonal acne. And although I haven’t got the deep, cystic type for the last few months, it’s still a constant breakout battle all the time! I just ordered EstroBlock and burdock root, and I also have an essential oil blend from the brand doTerra called Zendocrine for liver detoxify. I really hope they do the trick and thank you again!
Good luck Katie, I hope it works out for you! x
Do you know much about the blood type diet? I went to a naturopath and she suggested that I go on it to help with breakouts and she said supporting your liver will keep your gut happy and that will help regulate your hormones. So I’m blood type O. I’m glad I can eat meat, but being a college girl it’s difficult to not eat wheat or dairy
It’s also expensive to eat healthier (which doesn’t make sense) but I’m willing to try it and I like it so far. It’s cool trying new things. Also, burdock root is discouraged for blood type O…I got some before I found that out. What do you think about that? I’m really not sure why. And for everyone, get probiotics! The ones that have to be refrigerated are the best. Those really help enhance digestion and elimination. You want to keep some of the good bacteria in your system and pasteurization gets rid of that.
Hi Maria,
I can’t verify if the blood type diet is legit, but I think it’s an interesting thing to explore. It is definitely a potential explanation as to why certain types of foods work better with certain people. I also have no idea why burdock root would be discouraged with Os, but maybe it’s true ?
Hi Tracy, I have had acne for 26 years and have tried every medication, pill lotion cream going but nothing has made it disapear for good. I have an underactive thyroid and since i became ill with the symptoms my acne got worse ( around 6yrs since i entered my 30′s). I have it really bad on my chin and mouth lips etc and around my eybrows. I also have big painful ones by my ears and neck and on my back. I trained in beauty so i know how to look after my skin but even with a heavy coverage of make up on im still too embarrassed to go up close to people in daylight as the huge lumps and bumps stick out…i hate it so much. I have switched to a dairy wheat and gluten free diet and have been doing it for around 6wks now and nothing has changed so far. I was wondering, i take a thyroid medication called t3, do you know if i could take the supplements you surgest while taking t3? I cant seem to find any info about it. Thanks x
Hi Claire,
I’m sorry to hear of your long struggle with acne! Unfortunately I don’t know how these supplements react with other supplements, you will need to contact the company that makes them to see if there are any concerns! love x
Hi Tracy! Great article! I suffer from hormonal cystic acne and have heard a lot of great things about this supplement called Herpanacine (that I just started taking about a month ago). The idea behind Herpanacine is that it’s a “skin support system from the inside out”. It’s cleans your liver/blood and is said to help people with varies skin problems (including acne). I was wondering if you’ve ever heard of this supplement? (I’m a month into taking it and havent had a miracle happen yet but its said to take up to 6 months to see results)
Hi Jasmin!
I haven’t heard of it, but it sounds like a good one, as it would encompass both what the milk thistle/liv tox and the burdock root would do in one supplement. I say go for it.
Tracy,
Words cannot describe what you have done for me today. I have been using your blog as a resource for a while now, as I’ve been battling a mysterious year of aggravated acne in my early/mid 20′s. I’ve been stressed about making my diet perfect (tried every restrictive diet that’s suggested these days), and I’ve been exercising almost every day–all to no avail.
I was at my wits end and went to a well-respected dermatologist yesterday, who highly insisted that I take the antibiotic doxycycline for 3 MONTHS along with a topical retinoid and benzoyl peroxide to boot. None of this coincides with my strong belief in resolving issues naturally–but I was feeling desperate so I filled out the prescription. I didn’t sleep last night in anticipation of starting the antibiotics this morning, and I just knew (thankfully) I couldn’t get myself to go through with it. I searched your blog,and , sure enough, this article came up and entirely soothed my terrible anxiety about my failure to clear my skin. I feel so much happier knowing that the next option for me to try consists of these natural remedies rather than months of destroying my body from the inside out!
If this blog hadn’t been here I very well might have caved and undone all of the progress I’ve made on my healthy body over the years. Thank you SO MUCH for having this resource here for us. I’ll be starting the Estroblock/LivTox supplementation next week.
-Cheryl
Hi Cheryl, I’m so happy to hear this!! Good luck, I hope these supplements help you out!
Hi Tracy
I just had a quick read through this post and the comments and wanted to say how nice it is of you to reply to all these people with such detailed and considerate responses. It must have taken you ages.
Haha… I try my best
Thank you for noticing!
One of the side effects, which I’ve experienced, is sore breasts. Not fun.
Cutting out caffeine is a big one too as it causes a spike in cortisol which is the stress hormone. I’ve taken to calling a cup of coffee “a cup of stress” because of this. Coffee is liquid stress. Sad cause it tastes good!
Puppies are also a great stress reliever! But, on second thought, after taking care of two puppies then maybe not a PUPPY but a grown potty trained dog that doesn’t chew on wall corners anymore. Haha! Dogs are great for stress relief and it’s scientifically proven! Yay for doggies!
Love your blog, Tracy. Found it today and can’t stop reading! Keep up the good work!
Er, was referring to the vitex.
That’s one side effect I’ve noticed about Estroblock – no more sore boobs! That used to be my sure fire way to know my period was coming.
Also – yes…. dogs…. oh man, my dogs make me laugh and smile so much every day. I think they are outstanding for my health! haha
Hi what advise can you give me to treat acne during pregnancy? my acne is possibly due to inefficient liver. I am currently off dairy- for almost 3 months, off sugar and gluten (mostly ), off coffee, taking supplements, am taking fermented cod liver oil, juice f&v often…
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Esti,
I’m not sure that I have anything specific to add about acne in pregnancy (I mean beyond everything I already recommend on this site)… the best thing to do is just eat and lead as healthy a lifestyle as possible (which is also good for the baby), and don’t stress! At least you know it’s going to pass. What you’re doing sounds positive. Make sure you don’t do any mega detoxing or anything though (make changes slowly), as detoxing causes toxins to go to the fetus
Hi Tracey,
I’m going to buy estroblock, however, there are two different products: estroblock and estroblock pro. Which would you recommend?
Thanks!
Hi Paige,
I’m not sure exactly what the difference is. I just take the straight up Estroblock though
Hi, I was just wondering if anyone had had adverse affects from taking the Milk Thistle? I’ve been on a wholefood diet for 3 weeks; I started taking milk thistle about 3 days ago (capsule form – just one a day) and it seems to have completely blocked me up when I’ve been totally and shockingly regular since I started eating this way for my skin. I know it’s really meant to help the liver and therefore to help clear my skin, but I worry that if it’s blocking up my digestion that that might create more toxins than an unhelped liver would anyway. And it’s quite uncomfortable. I’ve totally lost my appetite cause I feel like I can’t possibly fit anything else in. Can anyone help??
Hi Hannah,
It’s possible for any supplement to negatively affect you since everyone is so different… if you are finding it is blocking you up, then you’re right – it’s probably not improving matters. You might do better with a different liver support supplement
Hi Tracy,
I could not find the specific Liv-Tox brand you mentioned, but I started taking the Liver Rescue 4+ (http://www.iherb.com/HealthForce-Nutritionals-Liver-Rescue-4-120-VeganCaps/19192) along with estroblock as you mentioned—and weird things are happening with my poo!!
Pretty much the day after I started this new regimen (only two total of each supplement spread out through the day), my poo started having a red tint to it. I tried to shrug it off as not being blood or anything serious…but then it continued to get worse. Just last night, the last poo I’ve had since starting this a few days ago, I could definitely see that there was light blood all through my soft stool, and even some small pink gelatinous looking guys. I’ve been searching everywhere for symptoms like this, and I can’t find any.
I’m just curious if this happened to anyone else? It also reminded me of something that you said came out during your dreaded liver flush? Either way, I’m honestly spooked and hoping that I’m not hurting my body :/. Let me know if you have any insight!
Best,
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl,
Yikes :/ I can’t say “yeah don’t worry about it” because I don’t know what it is. If it really is blood… usually it’s black if it’s from the upper intestinal tract, and if it’s from the lower intestinal tract, it might be red…. I don’t know what that tells you though.
Either way, I wish I could say what to do… it might be nothing to worry about, but it might not be :/ I’ve never heard of symptoms of blood in the stool because of supplements like this. It seems more likely it would be parasites being expelled from the liver, especially if they look gelatinous
The parasites might be possible–are they common? I went to the doctor today and he said that parasites are only likely “if you’ve been living in a tropical country” haha. He also took a stool sample and after visually confirming that it was blood, he came back later to say that the tests results came up negative for blood! I’m pretty confused. Milk thistle, or schisandra berry aren’t known to drastically change poo color, are they?
Sorry for hijacking your feed with my poo concerns! I just figure you’re the person to ask about this method
Thank you again,
-Cheryl
I think they’re a lot more common than is thought. “you only have parasites if you’ve been in tropical countries” sounds like typical narrow minded doctor speak! That’s probably what they were told in medical school, so that is their final answer
Anyway… google liver flukes and look at the images.
Also here’s my article about parasite cleansing: http://www.thelovevitamin.com/4490/parasite-cleanse-acne/
**Update**
Thanks for your response! Just to quell any fear I might have accidentally instilled in anyone about these supplements, it ended up being BEETS. Who knew they could stay in your system (and poo) for up to 5 days. Even the doctor was convinced it was blood until he did a test. I’m going to start this regimen again without fear. Haha…oopsie-daisies.
-Cheryl
ohhhh BEETS… haha. wow, I’m surprised there was enough beets in a liver supplement to turn your poo red.. well thanks for updating us!! glad it wasn’t blood!!
I’m about to give up
I don’t want to go back on the pill but I really don’t know how to fix this. I went to a naturopath and she gave me something to help my liver and I took all of those and I know that wasn’t the problem and she also gave me Indole 3 carbinol. I didn’t get a hormone test done she just assumed my hormone levels from the birth control pill (Aviane) that I used to take. Apparently it had a synthetic progestogen and she said it caused my estrogen levels to decrease as well as my progesterone but yet I’m still estrogen dominant…if that makes sense. I’m not taking anything to help me get my progesterone normal…will natural progesterone oil (progestelle) help? I don’t want to take it for the rest of my life though :/ I’m young, 19, and just want to fix this and be done. It seems like no matter what I eat it doesn’t get better or worse so I really don’t think food is the issue. I think it’s because my progesterone is low and that’s causing the breakouts by my mouth but they won’t go away. It’s been like 8 months now since I stopped taking the pill :/
Hi Maria,
I say try the vitex… Vitex is usually the most effective for women who need to raise their progesterone, as it helps your body naturally raise it. It works really well for people who have post birth control acne, as that is usually the imbalance women have after they go off it.
I tried Vitex and it gave me diarrhea (gross, sorry!) and my naturopath said she usually gives that to women in menopause and wouldn’t suggest it for me. I feel like I’m out of options and it’s expensive to make another appointment with her. Will maca root powder help in place of vitex?
I had acne since I was 21 I am now 27. I was pregnant last year and last year was the best my skin has been since I was 21. After I gave birth I went on the birth control pill not long after I have given birth I sadly started to spot alot again
. I wanted to know if you think it is hormonal acne since I was completely clear and I didn’t do anything to my skin. Like everyone when I was not pregnant I was taking this and that and using natural expensive products and still did not get results. I am tempted to give your way ago but I aint 100% sure if its hormonal acne… I was not on bpc for the past 2 years before I have given birth. I have acne on my chin, cheeks, forehead. I dont have acne on my jaw line, nose and side of my face, those are completely clear and its rare for me to spot in those areas.
Hi Van,
Well, acne is all kind of hormonal, and if your skin cleared up completely when you were pregnant than I would definitely say it was hormonal! However, it might not be the type of hormonal imbalance that is described here (estrogen dominance). However, my acne prone areas are chin (most stubborn), forehead (less stubborn), and when my skin was bad, around my smile lines on each side of my nose (which don’t break out anymore at all since getting rid of the severe acne). My cheeks have never been acne prone at all, and never has my jaw. But this still worked for me, so you never know! I would encourage you to give Estroblock and the liver supplement (and maybe the burdock too) a try, you might be pleasantly surprised.
I’ve read this article before, but this has been on my mind lately so here I am again. I’m starting to wonder if this is a problem for me. I’ve been healing my gut with a naturopath for months and seen huge, huge improvement. However, like you had, I have that last bit of stubborn acne that will. Not. Effing. Budge. It’s driving me nuts. I’ve eliminated all allergens and sensitivities and I don’t get the swollen, cystic spots that I used to get from food anymore, but I’m getting tiny little bumps on an almost daily basis. It just doesn’t feel fair. I LITERALLY don’t touch junk food EVER, I’m in great shape, and I’ve quit all my commercial skin care products. It’s made a huge difference…but where are these blasted tiny bumps coming from?
I’m going to ask my naturopath, but I have a hunch something is up hormonally. About four years ago, when I first started birth control, my skin improved tremendously despite not knowing about my allergies and digestive issues. It wasn’t perfect but it was a hell of a lot better than it had been before.
I’ve been on and off the pill through different courses of Accutane, and am still on it despite being off Tane for a good while now. Debating weaning off of it.
I wonder if something like this would work for me to knock down these last tiny spots. Any thoughts, Tracy? I’m curious how this sounds to you.
I should add that I’m also not a high-stress person, am lucky enough to love my job, sleep eight hours a night and so on. I really have no clue what else the issue could be.
Hi Kit,
I say try the Estroblock. It can’t hurt to try it and find out.
Hi Tracy!
I just recently got off the birth control pill yaz about a month ago since then I’ve had horrible cystic acne that won’t go away no matter what I try! It’s so frustrating I’ve become very depressed I don’t leave my house unless I absolutely have to and I’ve also developed many other not so pleasant symptoms:( when I was on the pill I had crystal clear perfect skin not even a breakout around my period I was also taking 50mg of spironolactone along with the pill. I decided I wanted to take a natural approach to clear up my skin since going on the pill was my reason to clear my skin. I’ve been on and off the pill for 15 years now. I never want to go back on it. I made an appointment with a naturopath but its not for another two weeks which seems like forever to wait while dealing with new cystic breakouts everyday! I have read about the estroblock and am wondering if I have cystic hormonal acne does that mean my estrogen levels are to high and my progesterone is to low? Will taking estroblock and vitex at the same time be ok? I’m currently taking evening primrose oil, zinc,omega-3,neem,Gaia liver support,milk thistle,probiotics,& a prenatal vitamin and seeing no results in clearing up my breakouts. It sounds like I’m going through the same thing you were and its so frustrating. Your skin looks amazing by the way I just hope I can get my perfect complexion back soon. Any advice would be appreciated!
Hi Sara,
Yes, I’d say try the Vitex, as it usually helps the most with a low progesterone state which is what usually is the problem after someone goes off BC.
Can I try the estroblock too with the vitex? I believe I have estrogen dominance and low progesterone.
Oh sorry, yes you can
The two will probably help you out. Although often they don’t work fully until a couple of months into taking them, so be aware of that
Tracy!
I’ve always had a muscular build, and have been dealing with vaginal dryness (symptom of androgen dominance) ever since my sudden non-stop acne breakout that started last year in my early 20′s. I’ve read online that DIM is also good for excess androgens, as well as excess estrogen, but I’m curious if you knew anything about it being used for androgens well?
Thanks for all if your support!!
Hi Claire,
Well, I don’t know specifically about androgens, but I do often hear that women with PCOS do really well with DIM, and PCOS is generally an androgen dominant condition. I don’t think it would hurt to give it a try.
Hello Tracey/ everyone
I managed to get a hold of some estroblock in Australia but seem to be experiencing some kind of initial breakout. Just wondering if anyone has experienced the same thing and when did it calm down?
Love,
Ness xox
Hi Ness,
Interesting – I never experienced an initial breakout with it, not sure about anyone else?
Hi Tracy
My estroblock should be here any day I’m so excited to try it! I will keep u posted on my experience on it. You said you noticed results within 2 weeks? I’m also seeing a naturopath tomorrow keeping my fingers crossed that it goes well xo
Hi Sara, I wouldn’t say two weeks… I think it took at least over a month to really notice a big difference. Some people do see results within two weeks though
Hi Sara
x
Your story on this issue is so familiar.
I am 26 years old and the last 2 years for my skin have been awful. This was at a time when I was actively changing my lifestyle for the better (early 20′s were very toxic!). I work out 5 times a week, have recently changed to a pescetarian diet (will induldge on the weekends on a meal with chicken or red meat and a dessert and a glass of wine). But I am very strict Mon-Fri, with only organic produce, lots of juicing, Hemp, spiralina and I live a relatively stress free life (no constant worries) and I take 2 caps of Evening Primose at night, and was taking Angus Castus Berry caps. With all of these healthy habits, I still get very large pimples on my cheeks. I have been told that is area is specific for liver. So I will try Budrick root or Milk thistle as you suggested, But can you suggest anything else? I feel great, but my complexion does not show this! My skin looked better when i was living a toxic lifestyle and it causes me self esteem problems. I do wear make up to work daily, but not lots and I cleanse at night with only water and an organic natural exfoliator. So i am at a loss what else i can do! Your input will be helpful. Thanks for the great info
Hi Tahlia
I know exactly how u feel! My self esteem is pretty much non-existent right now. It sounds like your eating very healthy and taking good supplements. As far as the big breakouts on your cheeks that’s related to lungs, colon and stomach. The forehead is liver. You could have a problem with candida. Have you ever been on birth control pills or antibiotics? You may want to look into the candida diet and get on some different herbs also. Oregano oil, grapefruit seed oil, coconut oil is very good for this too. My face also looked amazing while living a toxic lifestyle, eating whatever I want, drinking alot of wine or beer and my face never broke out, but I’m guessing that was the birth control pills keeping my skin clear. Look into the candida diet it’s very strict and it’s very hard to be on it but it may help with those breakouts on your cheeks! You may want to try putting apple cider vinegar on a cotton ball and put it on your face after cleansing it. Do u take zinc or vitamin A? You can drink wine without sulfites but I wouldn’t recommend it while being on the candida diet. Also there is a candida cleanse you can do its by renew life. I can also send u goods to eat and foods to avoid while on this diet. I hope this helps! Anymore questions feel free to ask
Hi Sara
Just wanted to update you on a few things…
Since I posted I bought myself some Viridian Dandelion with Burdock Extract capsules. I take one daily, along with 2 x evening primose rose and 3 x QUEST ACIDOPHILUS PLUS 120C. I am also using Sukin Organic skincare as a cleanser and 100% aloe vera as a moistriser.
I stocked up on all of these items in one shop, and since then i have only had 1 pimple (side of my head!) My skin has cleared up and i have had no new pimples pop up at all on my cheeks. I did not even have a breakout on my chin when i had my period… So i am not sure what has exactly worked, or if its a combination of all these things… I am even stricter on my diet also. No meat (am having seafood 1 a week). I have cut out desserts on the weekend. I had a few easter eggs (maybe explains the 1 pimple on the side of my head!).
But I wanted to share this with everyone… as i never thought my skin would clear up… Everyone will be different, but maybe some of these things may help other people.
I do have a few scars and redness still, but with summer coming up i do hope that some vitamin d will bring a new complexion for me
Forgot to add- That I am only drinking bottled water. i am an australian living in London and do think that the tap water here is of a really bad quality compared to Australia. Also drinking lots of herbal tea- Rosehip, Nettle, Pau d’arco.
And i do apologise I have been writing Sara, when I meant Tracy
Hello, do you know anything about spearmint tea and oily skin? I have many side effects that would say I have high testosterone(extra facial hair, hair on neck, oily skin, hair on belly, late periods(every 2 months) and I get irritated and angry really easily) I should get my hormones check to know for sure but I am 99% sure I have it. I was wondering if I do start drinking it, it won’t “mess up” my hormones, will it? My hormones are already messed up from stress and my oily skin seems to be making my acne worse.
I have another question about my digestive system. I know there are many options and articles you have written and I really like them but I am really scared to try them. I have read that drinking apple cider vinegar with water will help with your digestive system? If you have any info on that, I would be grateful. Thank you Tracy! I love your blog, I can literally read it over and over again!
Hi Eva,
I have heard spearmint is great for androgen dominance, but I haven’t studied it in depth enough to say at this time what the potential side effects are, if any.
As for the digestive system, what makes you nervous about trying the suggestions? For many apple cider vinegar does help you to digest your food better. I can’t say if it will be a miracle, but it seems to be for some
Can you take Vitex while menstruating? I have found conflicting suggestions in my research on this question.
I’ve heard a lot of conflicting things too, so I don’t know for sure, but I am leaning toward saying that you can take it while menstruating
Hi Natalie,
I was diagnosed with low Progesterone by my amazing naturopath and she prescribed me vitex. She made a point of telling me to take it throughout my cycle, unlike the natural progesterone I’m taking from Wild Yam which I’m supposed to stop when I start menstruating because it is much stronger than vitex. Who knows if this is proven or not, but she seemed very adamant about telling me this.
Hope this helps!
Hi Tracey, Thank you for another great article! I’m wondering if you have any experience or opinion on home saliva testing kits.
I think they are actually a good option for saliva testing, although I’m not sure if they help you interpret the results at all. Not saying they don’t, I just don’t know.
Hi Tracy! I finally got in with a naturopath for hormone testing and iGg. (Appt is tomorrow.) I’ve been taking an herbal supplement with chaste tree berry. I’m going to ask the naturopath, but do you have any idea if I should have stopped taking it before getting the saliva test? I’m really hoping this appointment answers some questions and points me in the right direction. I’m 35 and this is just so frustrating.
Thanks!
Hi Nanco… hmm.. I actually don’t know how these supplements would affect a saliva test. Ask your naturopath and maybe let us know what he/she says
Hey Tracy,
I live in Brazil, and im suffering from hormonal acne after quitting the birth control pill. I want to try vitex herb, but here in Brazil i could only find the herb to make the tea. Do you know how much and how many times i have to drink the tea everyday? Have you heard about vitex tea?
Thank you, and i love your blog and your youtube channel (: you are awesome!
Hi Kat, sorry I’m not sure about the tea dosage. I was actually just informed that in Europe, vitex is only known as “Agnus Castus” .. maybe see if they have it in supplement form under that name?
Oh my god!!! I read your article and wanted to fall on my knees crying with relief. Relief that there IS something I can do about Gs acne “mask” I get once a month. It takes my pimples sometimes two weeks to clear up after my hormonal flare ups. I have clear beautiful skin for about 8 days out of the month. The rest of the time is spent with starting a flare up, the climax of the flare up, and the slow recovery of the flare up post period. It’s depressing to be 34 years old and have this happen to me. My face looked better 10 years ago. Rarely any acne. I can’t thank you enough for posting this. I am starting an estroblock regimen tomorrow. I’ll check back in a few months. THANK YOU for sharing this!!!!!
Yay! I hope this info help you Sara
I just found your blog and it’s amazing how beautiful you and your skin are…which i hope will be me one day.I had clear skin all my life until age 23 when i began breaking out and it’s been ups and downs till now at age 30.Almost a year ago i found Fran Kerr’s video on youtube recommending vitex for hormonal acne and decided to try it since my cystic acne was mostly on my chin and jawline but had a fairly good amount of acne on my cheeks too.I’ve faithfully taken vitex for 11 months and have not gotten clear skin except for when i reached the 3 month mark and now my acne is at it’s worse.I initially began taking 3 vitex pills a day but within the first two weeks i was throwing up whatever food i ate, so i dropped down to 2 a day and within 3 months my face was clear.I reduced to 1 a day as recommended and within 2 weeks of doing that i began breaking out again so i bumped it up to 2 a day and have been taking 2 pills a day religiously for 11 months,instead of 1 as recommended on the Nature’s Way bottle, but my skin has never gotten clear,if anything this month has been the worst ever with severe and very painful cystic breakout on my chin,jawline and cheeks.I think maybe i am overdosing on the vitex and it’s causing more harm than good to me but am too terrified of dropping down to 1 a day beause of how bad my skin broke out when i tried dropping down to 1 after 3 months.I just began adding a zinc supplement with a daily multivitamin to the vitex but my cystic acne is horrible now.In fact i want to stop the vitex completely and try estroblock,milk thistle and burdock root as you suggested.Do you suggest i stick to the vitex for a few more months or try the estroblock combination? I am extremely desperate and have been in tears over how bad my skin is.I don’t know if it helps,but i am not overweight,drink only water and plenty of it,avoid processed junk and fried food(eat only home cooked meals),do not drink sodas or juices,avoid sugar and dairy completely and have tried all sorts of facial regimen to no avail.Please let me know what you think because am at a loss:(
Yikes Rani! Doesn’t sound like vitex is for you. I would definitely say stop it and try the other three instead. Good luck lovely xo
Thank you so much for your quick reply! And am so glad you just said what i was thinking about the vitex because i began thinking i was just imagining things or wasn’t being patient enough.I will definately stop and order the other three.Thanks for helping us other acne sufferers out there!
This is probably the most enlightening artical regarding the treatment of horomonal acne! I was diagnosed with endometriosis 3 years ago (estrogen dominant condition) I immediately started taking vitex to help balance out my horomones so I never really had to deal with a breakout ever! fast forward two years later I graduated college got a career got into the mut of chaos and stress and stopped taking vitex. At that point, my skin condition went haywire especially after taking a cocktail of lovely birth control pills meant to alieviate the symptoms of endometriois (but in reality they did nothing but actually worsen my horomonal balance), I didn’t go a day without a cyst erupting on my face. It is disgusting, annoying and definitely emotionally draining (ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU’VE NEVER HAD ACNE AS A TEENGAER). I came across some of my college photos and my skin had looked so clear back then, I remembered that I was on the vitex supplament to help with PMS at the time, at that point I knew that in order to get my skin back to th eway it used to be my horomones need to get balanced again. I immediately went to Whole foods and bought a bottle. I swear within 2 days my GIGANTIC CYSTS, NASTY OILY skin reversed. One month later and skin is still perfectly clear and scars and red marks are fading (PHEWW) That took a whole freakn year to figure out. Btw this is coming from the person that had tried everything to cure those nasty acne cysts, I even went on Spiro (the anti androgenic blood pressure med, because I had thought my problem was the extra androgens which increased due to a BC pill I was given)……..WRONG! Spiro was a major disaster, and so was every BC pill I was given (BC mess with your horomonal balance and increase estrogens, which is a bad idea if you are already estrogen dominant) Saw palmetto did nothing it actually aggrevated my breakouts, I tried guggul, tumeric, stiniging nettler and nothing. I saw that you had suggested burdock root as a liver cleansing supplament, the liver is especially important in maintaining horomonal balance however estrogen dominant folks needs to be careful with the herbs they experiment with. Burdock root is a phytoestrogen so it may actually aggrevate the conditions of those that have endometriosis, fibroids etc…. I suggest taking a mixture of gentian and buplereum (tincture form) this herbal mix is excellent in helping detox the liver, and best part is that it is not aphytoestrogen. Cheers to clear skin again!
Thanks for sharing your experience Nat!
Most certainly. cystic acne is traumatizing, I wish that more people related acne to maintaining good hormonal balance; I promise if more people did they would never get on accutance. It is a matter of finding the right herbal supplement which does the trick. Btw you look fantastic in the photo that you posted, who can tell that you suffered from acne, you don’t have a trace of it left whatsoever. Kudos.
Hi Tracy,
I was thinking of trying DIM, calcium d-glucarate, and probiotics for hormones and acne. Can you please suggest any chewable, liquid or powder options? I can’t find anything except capsules and tablets of the DIM and calcium d-glucarate.
Hi Tani,
I’m not really aware of any cheweable, liquid or powder options of those supplements off the top of my head. The Estroblock DIM that I take is like a powder in a capsule, and you could open it and put it in water or something. I have no idea how it tastes. Calcium d-glucarate, I don’t know. For probiotics, I know that BioKult is a powder in a little capsule that you can open and put in water, and it doesn’t taste like anything
How do you feel about high doses of vitamin A? My naturopath gave me vitamin A for acne and some other supplements. The vitamin A has 25,000 IU and I’ve been afraid to take it. She checked with me to make sure I’m not sexually active or anything cause it can cause birth defects if you get pregnant. I mean she did give it to me so does that mean it’s safe short term? It just makes me nervous. I’m been reading that it’s toxic in high doses. But could it be worse than accutane?
Hi Maria,
Hmm well, yeah, I do think high doses of synthetic Vitamin A are pretty sketchy. I am not aware if it’s worse than accutane, but .. yeah. It’s definitely concerning, especially if she told you it would cause birth defects.
Natural occurring Vitamin A is much better for you and much safer at high doses, especially when regulated by Vitamin D with it. That’s why I recommend the fermented cod liver oil/butter oil supplement from Green Pastures http://www.thelovevitamin.com/3452/fermented-cod-liver-oil/, because it has both of these natural vitamins in a whole foods form. Grass fed liver is the other best way to get natural Vitamin A… you could eat liver, or I believe you can get dessicated liver capsules if you wanted, although it’s much more expensive
I’m getting Estroblock next week. I was wondering if any women would be interested in starting a “support group/progress log” to talk about our journeys? Post here if you are, and we can figure out a way to get in touch. Thanks to Tracy for this space, and all of your invaluable advice, research and support!
Well it’s Thorne Research Vitamin A. I don’t think they’re synthetic. You can look at it here: http://www.thorne.com/Products/Vitamins/All_Vitamins/prd~A97.jsp
I think it’s the high vitamin A that makes accutane work so well.
I’ve been taking Estroblock for about 2 1/2 months and my acne has gotten worse. I never used to get acne in between my eyebrows and forhead but now I do. Its all on the right side of my face too. Do you think I should stop taking it or wait it out more? I know these things take time to work but I don’t want to continue taking it if it’s not working…
Hi Ally,
Sorry Estroblock isn’t working out for you. It’s hard to say if the worsened acne is actually due to the Estroblock or just some other thing, but I think by now if you’ve seen no improvement at all then it’s safe to say it’s not really doing anything for you. How many per day were you taking?
Hey!
Okay so first off, I am so happy I stumbled upon this website! I really want to start, but I am a little confused on what to do. You mentioned a bunch of different things, so if you could help me fully understand, that would be great!
You mentioned taking these:
DIM, Vitex, Liv-Tox, Milk Thistle, Burdock Root, and Estroblock.
Are they all the same thing just different types? (minus the Liv-Tox which is for the liver, right?)
I was thinking of taking DIM, Vitex, and Liv-Tox all together, is that safe?
Thanks for clarifying!!
Hi Tisha,
DIM and Estroblock are the same (Estroblock is a very good brand of DIM, the one I use and highly recommend). Liv-tox is milk thistle mixed with other liver support herbs. Vitex and burdock root are separate ones.
And yes, you can take DIM, Vitex, and Liv-tox all together. Be careful with vitex though, most of the time it has no side effects and only positive benefits, but for some people it can cause some side effects. Just be aware of it so if you experience them, you can quit and they will go away.
Tracy, I am still nervous about taking Estroblock, but I am so frustrated with my skin! I was thinking of just taking Estroblock and nothing else with it, will that help? I am also nervous because I am only 21 and I wasn’t sure if it safe to be taking at such a young age? Also my last question, if I take it and my skin begins to clear up, can I stop taking it? Will my acne come back and get worse??
Thank you!!
Hi Tisha,
I can’t say how much Estroblock alone will work for you specifically. You just have to try it and see. There’s no reason you should be worried about it due to your age… you’re an adult, and it only helps your liver metabolize estrogens, something it does anyway, you are just giving it a big boost. As for can you stop taking it? I don’t know. I’m still taking it. Fran Kerr stopped taking hers and her skin stayed clear after. I can’t say what will happen for you… the acne might come back after you stop it, but it definitely wouldn’t get worse
Hi Tracy,
How long did Estroblock take to work for you? When did you notice results?
thanks,
Janet
I’d say between a month and two months!
I just wanted to add something to the vitex discussion that I’ve discovered based on my own experiences with it and some research that I’ve done. If your periods are irregular, then vitex will probably have very positive effects on your skin and will help regulate your period. However! If irregular periods are not a problem for you, then DON’T take vitex, because it can actually do more harm than good. In my case, my periods have always been very regular but after taking vitex for a month I developed spotting for almost a full week before I made a connection between it and vitex and stopped taking the supplement (spotting has never, ever been an issue for me before). Once I cut out vitex, the spotting went away.
My suggestion for those who get hormonal acne but have regular periods would be to take dim; so far, I haven’t had any issues with it and my skin is looking great!
Nice, thank you for sharing your experience with these supplements Hannah
Hi Tracy!
My skin was doing pretty well this past month. However, I was still struggling with tons of clogged pores and blackheads as well as with a bit of acne along my neck and jawline and around my mouth. I figured it was hormonal so I decided to take Estroblock (three pills a day); I got two cystic spots a few days before I started taking it. It’s been almost two weeks now, and my acne is getting steadily worse
. My mom thinks it’s the pills that are making me break out but, like I said, I had begun breaking out before I started it. Can DIM cause/worsen breakouts? I don’t know what to do now, I was doing so well (physically and mentally) and now I feel very discouraged and sad. Should I stay the course? I should add that I work in a very stressful environment. I’m also taking some other supplements; I don’t know if this would cause side effects.
Hi Lorena,
Well definitely nothing is impossible, but I think this supplement generally doesn’t cause side effects like that. The fact that you started getting the cysts before you started taking it makes me think it’s not that. Plus, the Estroblock probably hasn’t even really kicked in, it can be a few weeks to even a couple months to see significant changes. Sorry to hear you’re going through this
I stumbled across this site two months back when desperate for something to help my breakouts…I started Estroblock, Vitex and Milk Thistle and have to report that has worked WONDERS! I was almost at whits end, I’m 36 with 3 kids so it felt crazy to be breaking out like a teenager all the time. Thank you so much for your research and for sharing with everyone, I’ve passed this onto others with the problem and plan to share it with any of my 3 girls should the time come that they have the same problems.
Yay Lorene!!! SO AWESOME!!! I’m so happy for you
I think you’re right; I’ll finish up the bottle and hope for the best. I think I had higher hopes, since Fran from High on Health said that people can expect to see results in two weeks; however, I should have realized that Fran is already much healthier than I am and didn’t have much acne to deal with. I started taking the cod liver oil as well, I hope that helps too.
I am going to start taking vitex and cod liver oil any suggestions?
Hi Tracy,
It’s Caitlin…I did the April 1st Candida Cleanse. I recently ordered Vitex, Estroblock, and Liv-Tox. I keep rereading this article, but am still confused if these are three different supplements, or am I doubling up on something?
My skin is really struggling right now…partially because I have gradually gotten away from the cleanse diet…and I am feeling hopeless. But, I am prepared to get back on track with the diet and want to start this supplement regimen, too.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks,
Caitlin
Hi Caitlin,
yes they are three different supplements, and you can take all of them! Good luck with the supplements, I hope they work for you
Hey Tracy!
After finding out I had a mild version of PCOS, I started a wonderful hormone-correcting regime given to me by my naturopath, consisting of vitex and wild yam-derived progesterone. While it regulated my periods, my acne only improved slightly, and at my checkup, my naturopath decided to prescribe me Oregano Oil in addition. This is where the magic happened.
As my acne had hit all of the sudden while I was traveling overseas, my naturopath said that I might have gotten some type of bacteria. I guess the bacterial infection was compounding with my PCOS symptoms, and it really did a number on my skin–continuing to worsen over the course of the whole year.
Now, finally, I am totally clear aside from some tinies now and then! I thought I would let you know how much the oregano oil helped me, as I haven’t read anything about it specifically on your blog yet (though I haven’t looked too far!)
Thanks again for this wonderful resource. I wouldn’t have found out that I have PCOS at all, if it wasn’t for your website encouraging me to dig deeper.
Best,
-Cheryl
Hi Cheryl!
I’m so glad to hear you found something that works for you! Yes it goes to show that there are just so many different reasons one could get acne, and all these things working together. It makes sense if you had some kind of bug/bacteria/something that oil of oregano would push you over the edge. It’s kind of like the candida thing… hormones are one part of it, but something like that might be another part of the story!