Elana Finkel Posted February 4, 2018 Share Posted February 4, 2018 So I’ve just completed 30 days of reset, following the original Whole30 reset plan. I’m experiencing lots of subtle and not as subtle positives: more energy in my workouts, better attitude and mood at work, more energy at work throughout the day, great sleep (wasn’t an issue before though), greater self confidence and so on. Weight loss wasn’t much (1-2 lbs) but definitely slimmed down in my waist and belly. So I’m obviously stoked! However, one of the items on my list of “I hope to see this improve...” was my facial acne. At first (in the first 10 days) it did get better and then it got way worse. I was reminded of my hormone changes. Then it got better again! Then around day 22, i began to breakout in a new area of my face: my eyebrows and temples. This has not subsided. I’m frustrated. Acne on my cheeks continues. Should I begin my reintroduction or continue another 15 or 30 days to see what else might happen? for the record: medical doctors have never been a help with my acne and only ever prescribe me the laundry list of either antibiotics (bleh) or various topical. Neither have provided any relief. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elana Finkel Posted February 4, 2018 Author Share Posted February 4, 2018 14 hours ago, Elana Finkel said: Should I begin my reintroduction or continue another 15 or 30 days to see what else might happen? The reason I ask is that I’m reading the Food Freedom book and she mentions that with reintro’s one thing to watch for is skin reactions. Well how can I if my skin is still not spectacular? And why isn’t it? Sounds like most people do get good skin results and that’s what Melissa repeatedly mentions in her book, this “glowing skin” that comes with Whole30. I want glowing skin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Z Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Elana, I had a similar issue where my skin broke out with HORRIBLE acne about 10 days into the plan. I was surprised because I wasn't eating sugar which is the usual culprit for my breakouts. I eventually started avoiding nuts and nut butters, which helped some, and then I found out that high-histamine foods (including nuts) can be the cause of skin problems, so I cut them all out and since then my skin cleared up beautifully, which is a friggin' miracle. The low-histamine approach also means avoiding tomatoes, spinach, citrus fruits, processed meats, eggs, fermented foods, etc. I'm not really rigid about vinegar and pickles, and I do fine with duck eggs rather than chicken eggs. Anyway, I thought maybe this approach could help you too; I think it's worth a try! Here's the Whole30 low histamine food list: https://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-shopping-list-histamine.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABee23 Posted February 10, 2018 Share Posted February 10, 2018 I'm eager to hear the responses to this! I've been having the exact same issue and decided to stay on a bit longer hoping it would clear up before I started reintroducing foods. One of the reasons I was most eager to do Whole30 was for skin issues, but it has never been so bad and all new places on my faces that I never have breakouts! I'm not sure what is making it worse, but in general I haven't increased my intake of the foods people tell you to avoid - though potentially eggs. But I've definitely gone through seasons of eating lots of eggs without this result. It feels pointless to do the reintroductions if there is no way to identify what is causing issues. I'm on day 35 and I'm not sure how long to hold out while things only seem to be getting worse. I know every body is different, but it would at least be encouraging to hear of this happening to people and then it getting better! All I hear are the normal detox "my skin got bad in the first couple weeks, but by day 30 looked amazing!" So I'm right there with ya, Elana! Curious what you decided to do and far as reintroducing foods! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmcbn Posted February 10, 2018 Share Posted February 10, 2018 Can you give us a run down of what a few days worth of food has looked like for you @ABee123? It would be impossible and/or presumptious to comment otherwise.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABee23 Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Sure thing @jmbcn! Here are a few days from last week: Breakfasts: Spinach/turkey bacon/sweet potato fritatta + a fruit (typically grapefruit or berries) (ingredients also include coconut milk and nutritional yeast and other spices), or sweet potato hash with onion, homemade sausage, peppers, and egg + fruit Lunches: Mexican Tuna boats (as laid out in the whole30 cookbook) + carrots, or spaghetti squash/broccoli bake (ingredients also nutritional yeast, coconut milk, butternut squash) + pineapple Dinners: Pesto chicken (made with olive oil, basil, walnuts) and brussel sprouts/sweet potato, or chimichurri chicken drumsticks with homemade ranch and kale salad with olive oil and oranges I haven't broken up with my afternoon snack which often includes a banana + handful of almonds or an egg For cooking I am using avocado oil, some coconut oil, and olive oil. I've been careful with all my ingredients to make sure they are whole30 approved. I will say I think I could be doing a better job making sure my veggies are the correct portion (especially at breakfast). Any other thoughts on what I could do to improve, nutrition I'm missing, or if I'm eating things that occasionally cause issues in some people? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABee23 Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Oh, I've also been drinking lots of black coffee... more than I should for sure which is around 3 cups a day. That's not new though, but still not the best habit! And there are definitely days I realized I didn't drink more than a couple glasses of water by the time the workday has ended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Z Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 ABee23, I've noticed that citrus (a histamine) makes me break out. I suggest cutting out the grapefruit, pineapple, oranges, and any other citrus you've been eating and see how your skin does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABee23 Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Oh, good to know! I will definitely try that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna Z Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 Don't forget to also cut out the nuts and bananas (both forbidden on the anti-histamine approach)... and let us know how it goes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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