Get a bit of sunshine to clear away those pimples.
Despite what dermatologists say, sun can help to cure acne. Just off the top of my head I can think of four ways sun exposure helps with acne.
- Sunshine eases stress and makes you feel better. I’m sure you’ve noticed you feel happier on a sunny day than on a rainy day. Sun exposure triggers the body to release serotonin. Serotonin is known as the feel good hormone. Feeling better is good for your health, and thus also good clear skin.
- Increases vitamin D production. You get most of your vitamin D from sunlight. It’s produced in the skin when exposed to sunlight. Vitamin D is one of the most important vitamins for overall good health.
- Sun helps you sleep better. In Wake Up To Clear Skin (comes free with Clear for Life, but the sales letter might not show it) I mentioned that sun exposure is one of the most important factors behind a good, healing sleep. If you don’t get enough sunlight your sleep suffers. Poor sleep almost ensures you won’t get clear. Because sleep is such an important factor in permanently clear skin I wrote the Wake Up To Clear Skin report that shows simple ways to sleep better and optimize your sleep time.
- Kills bacteria. Sunlight kills acne causing bacteria in the skin. Some people say that UV light penetrates the skin and even disinfects the blood and helps to take the stress off from the liver.
Of course it would be wrong to say sun cures acne. Sun exposure is one of the elements of health and indirectly affects acne. And sun is just one piece of the puzzle, but it’s a piece you must have in place.
A word of caution about sunlight. Though sun exposure is good I don’t recommend you burn your skin. That’s still bad, causes skin damage and possibly aggravates acne.
How much sun exposure you need depends on where you live and the color of your skin. 15 to 30 minutes should be enough for most people.
I mean unprotected sun exposure. Without sunscreens. Those things are full of cancer causing chemicals and can make your acne worse by irritating the skin. Those things block the beneficial effect of sunlight and cause vitamin D deficiency. Derms recommend them because they ‘protect’ you against skin cancer.
Hogwash, I say.
Sun cancer rates have went through the roof along with sunscreen usage. And vitamin D slashes skin cancer risk by 70%. It’s crazy to think you can reduce your cancer risk by blocking the nutrient that prevents cancer and applying cancer causing chemicals on your skin.
Medical lunacy at its best.
Yes, overexposure can damage your skin. But you have antioxidants to protect yourself against that. And when you follow the diet I recommend in Clear for Life you’ll get so much antioxidants it’s almost impossible to burn yourself.
So get some sunlight. It helps with your acne and makes you feel better. This cartoon my Mike Adams explains the true nature of sunscreen and what you should do with them. Mike also has a good article about the sunscreen-cancer link here: Sunscreen Causes Cancer!
Image courtesy of Naturalnews. Original source: The Sunscreen Myth (comic)
June 16th, 2008 at 3:31 am
Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
I just want to share my situation.
I already know that the sun has a positive effect to acne. But here in the Philippines, the sun is terrible. I am living in a tropical country, and the sun shines even sometimes when it’s raining. The climate here is so hot and humid that’s why I feel more comfortable when it is raining. I prefer going out when it’s raining. Half-day of sun exposure will definitely result to uneven skin tone. That’s why I have no choice but to use sunblock.
I read that the sun is the cause at least 70% of skin aging (premature wrinkling, sagging, fine lines and brown spots). In my case, I grew up with a huge insecurity about what my skin looks like. I am so insecure about how bad my skin is. My skin has acne and the tone is uneven. I always dreamt to have perfect skin and after reading and verifying the harmful effect of the sun to our skin, I decided to use sunblock.
I am an 18-year-old guy and I can definitely say that I am not enjoying my teens. I usually opted not to attend parties or any social events that will expose my acne and acne scars, and there were several times sometimes that I didn’t go to school just to stay home so my classmates won’t see how bad my face is. When my classmates asked me why I was absent for several days I cannot say “It’s because I am so ugly I can’t face people.”
I am starting to have a healthy diet and I hope that someday, acne will be gone forever. I use sunblock to prevent my skin from aging. I always think that if during my teens I was not blessed with a good skin, perhaps in the future I may look younger because of my faithful use of sunblock. If I can’t look better now, maybe in the future I will be able to achieve clear and wrinkle-free skin.
I know that oxybenzone and avobenzone are absorbed by our skin and generates free radicals. But I have no choice but to use these ingredients as my skin is so sensitive that it would breakout when I use safer ingredients like titanium dioxide or zinc oxide.
June 16th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
I really enjoyed ready this because I have been on the fence about using sun block or not. I wanted to know if you had any more information about sun block or where to look for more information. I have a 3 year old little girl and she only seems to get rashes on her face and no where else on her body. I have tried 4 kinds already and none seem to sit well with her. It usually takes a 5 or so days for a reaction. I stopped using it about 4 days ago and tol0d my partner that I would look in to it. Is there any alternative for kids that is safe? I have problem skin, my mother does as well and the a lot of people in my family have eczema. Just wondering, thank Kathy. I really enjoy the Acne 101 emails.
June 16th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Kathy, I don’t use sunblocks so I can’t tell from personal experience. But Mike Adams posted some recommendations at his site. The link under the cartoon takes you to the page. The recommendations are at the end of the page.
Most likely the root cause of those rashes is internal. Possibly some allergies or nutritional deficiencies.
June 18th, 2008 at 2:17 pm
Thank you. I was thinking it would be allergies because I make her eat the best of foods that I can get and no junk food and no preservatives. I have also been on the fense about Sunblock for a little while now. Thanks Again, Kathy
June 18th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
This is a bit counterintuitive, but when you stop eating unhealthy foods (or never start eating them in the case of your daughter) they have much stronger effect than they used to have.
When you feed the body a poison (unhealthy food for example) on a regular basis it builds defenses against the poison. When you stop feeding that poison the body takes down those defenses. After that it’s much more ‘vulnerable’ to that poison again. In other words you get a much stronger reaction.
I remember one email I got from my customer. She had cut wheat out of her diet for 3 weeks. Then she decided to have a single slice of bread. Within 10 minutes her face was red with rashes and breaking out in cysts.
From a single slice of bread.
And people think bread is healthy.
July 7th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
[…] A bit of sunlight is essential for permanently clear and healthy skin. As I wrote in this post: 4 Ways sun helps with acne. […]
July 8th, 2008 at 2:44 am
True- I’ve realized i have really serious pimple outbreaks whenever I’m using sunblock…and my faces clears up -effortlessly- only after
I”ve STOPPED using them.
And to think there’s SO many cosmetic co.s hawking sunsreen products by playing on people’s insecurity with ads featuring fair flawless-skinned models. It seems even the mainstream beauty industry is not above using such means to achieve their objectives.
July 8th, 2008 at 7:37 am
this is so true about the sun. You hear from all the commercials and dermatalogy clinics that the sun is the worst thing ever especially for your skin and that you should avoid it at all costs, yet they don’t mind selling you crap that makes ur skin burn, peel, and bleached. I live near the sea but study away, and whenever im home and about having fun in the sun, my skin always looks healthier and feels better and unirritated.
July 18th, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Very interesting, I’ve never liked using sun block because it’s so greasy but then again I burn really easily having fair skin. I love being out in the sun too so glad it helps with acne (so long as I don’t over do it).
and thank you for taking the time to write this stuff, it’s the first time I’ve come across something which offers good clear advice not hidden behind premotions and expensive price tags. Will try green smoothies this week… see how I go…
August 3rd, 2008 at 9:47 am
There is one all natural sunscreen that does not have any of the harmful chemicals in it is from Dr. Mercola. The name of this 100% all-natural sunscreen is Natural Sunscreen. The formula used in this lotion was originally discovered as a secret recipe of the Acapulco natives.
In fact, each ingredient in this unique formula serves its own special purpose to nourish, protect, and moisturize your skin. One of those ingredients is GREEN TEA.
First, many studies show that green tea is a powerful antioxidant. Second, recent studies also suggest that green tea may help you reduce the appearance of skin damage from sun radiation. In short, green tea helps protect your skin’s cells by providing antioxidant protection.
Simply put, this highly concentrated lotion helps protect you by reflecting UV rays away from your skin. Plus, Natural Sunscreen is also water resistant, hypoallergenic, and:
FREE of chemical fragrances…
FREE of parabens (harsh chemical preservatives)…
FREE of nanoparticles (allows sunscreen to be more cosmetically appealing as it’s less visible, yet it remains on your skin’s surface)…
http://products.mercola.com/summer-survival-kit/
http://www.mercola.com
FYI: Mike Adams promotes Dr. Mercola’s products and website.
August 3rd, 2008 at 10:21 am
Thanks for the sunscreen tip.
Next time you could make it a little less obvious you work for Dr. Mercola. It’s ok to inform people about good products, but do it in a less spammy way.
Yeah, and skin doesn’t absorb nutrients from external lotions. It gets nutrients from what you eat, not what you put on it.
August 8th, 2008 at 12:19 am
First I’d like to say thank you for your website and advice. I will read it much more.
I ended up getting into some of the hype.. I tried the acne free in 3 days… I’m not acne free… but outta all the procedures/products that was the cheapest with some effect.
Anyways, I just found it hilarious that the person spammed mercola’s website… in a such obvious, zero personal comment way.
I mean it’s simply pasted from Mercola’s website… I find some of mercola’s stuff suspicious but am still curious to try…
I live in Japan right now, I love going to the beach but I hate getting uneven tan, burn or tan lines….
I hate arm tan lines too, so I’m thinking of wearing long shirts if I can’t go full body onto the beach…. Wonder if the array of japanese sun block has anything that isn’t deadly.
Thanks again, hope to post more soon.
September 16th, 2008 at 5:50 am
There are many ways things people can do to “help” with their acne, but to get rid of acne, you have to target the cause.
I read on
http://campusacnetruth.org/html/acne_defined.html that the root cause of acne is the excess production of sebum which clogs the pores and leads to acne.
In order to effectively treat acne at the source, campusacnetruth acknowledges that you have to consider the differences in the skin of guys and girls. According to their information, the skin of guys is much thicker and guys produce more DHT which produces more sebum.
I myself have had a lot of trouble with acne while my sister had tremendous success in treating hers. This leads me to believe that the reason for that must lie in the fact that guy acne is different than girl acne.
Anyone else find similar information??
September 17th, 2008 at 4:49 am
I have recently noticed that like sunscreens, most acne treatments contain potentially harmful ingredients like parabens. Parabens are really preservatives, they have no effect in treating acne…they are simply their to prolong shelf life.
Except they do more than prolong shelf life. Parabens have been banned in Europe due to links to certain types of cancer.
Ever since I heard that one, I’ve been checking the ingredients in everything I buy for my skin.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:37 am
Alexander,
There’s no need to make a fuss about the differences between men and women. When it comes to acne they are irrelevant.
The root cause is always in diet and lifestyle. Symptoms in men and women may be different, but as you fix the root cause the symptoms will take care of themselves.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:39 am
Good point Melody.
The Environmental Working Group has put together a good database on chemicals used in personal care products. It may not be 100% up to date, but it’s still a good source to check out.
You can find it here:
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
September 29th, 2008 at 2:04 am
Seppo,
It’s important to fix the root cause, but it’s also important to make sure that you do it in a way that addresses the need of each sex separately.
For example, because a guy’s skin is 25% thicker they need a treatment that is perhaps a little more powerful or that can at least be absorbed 25% deeper. But maybe such a treatment wouldn’t be healthy for a girl’s skin which is 25% thinner.
Also, the root cause has a lot to do with hormones. I don’t think anyone would argue with the fact that hormones in a male and hormones in a female are very different.
September 29th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
Alexander,
If I may say, you still look at things from a fixing point of view.
It’s true that males and females a different creatures. Anyone who has ever been in a relationship can say that : )
But my point is that it’s not your job to fix these things. Your body does that. The only thing you need to do is to support it with good diet and lifestyle.
Those are the real root causes of acne, and, I think, other health problems also.
And you cannot talk about hormones without talking about diet and lifestyle. What’s on your plate and how you live your life affects your hormones.
So when I talk about fixing the root cause of acne, I don’t see the need for different recommendations for men and women.
October 6th, 2008 at 4:40 am
Alexander,
Don’t worry, I’ve heard the same thing. I’ve been hearing and reading a lot recently about how gender can affect acne.
Have you ever wondered why infomercials always show only girls in their before and after pictures??
October 31st, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Sarah,
I have wondered the exact same thing sometimes. Rarely do you ever see a man on an acne commercial. I have also heard the same thing about gender and acne. It sparked some interest in me and I decided to do some research.
There is a new product out called CTRL, and it is specifically designed to have 2 separate treatments for men and women. It is definitely something I want to look into because it doesn’t have any harmful chemicals in it. Which is really appealing to me.
November 9th, 2008 at 2:30 am
Thanks Thomas!
I just checked out the website for CTRL:
http://www.ctrlacne.com/
As I read through the website, I noticed some other appealing things that I felt are worth noting:
1.) it uses salicylic acid (not benzoyl P) which is good because it is more effective and less irritating
2.) it’s 2 steps, so it’s easy to handle in your daily routine
3.) it doesn’t contain potentially dangerous parabens, which is refreshing
Good find!