Come Off Milk and Keep Acne Away

Posted by acnetips

The link between cow’s milk and acne has long been controversial. Way back in 1924, a doctor, Albert Hoge, wrote in the Journal of American Medicine about one of his young patients developing acne after his mother forced him to drink cow’s milk. It’s certainly true that many people develop and allergy to milk, causing skin rashes as well as disgestive disturbances.

More and more scientists, doctors and nutritionists are convinced that cow’s milk can cause acne. This seems to be borne out by a study published in 2005 where researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found that people who drank three or more cups of milk a day were 22% more likely to experience severe acne compared with those who drank less. Interestingly they found that skimmed milk was more likely to cause acne than full-fat milk.

So, why should drinking milk cause acne? It has been suggested that drinking milk and eating dairy products originating from pregnant cows exposes us to an unnatural level of hormones. These hormones contain estrogens, progesterones and androgens which are metabolized by our bodies, eventually causing overproduction of oil in the sebaceous glands – one of the causes of acne. Futhermore, pesticides, herbicides, fertilisers and hormones are added to milk.

What we know is that at least 85% of teenagers suffer with acne and what do teenagers love to eat - cheese pizzas and milk chocolate. It’s an almost impossible taks to get teenagers to give up dairy products, but if they are suffering with acne then it’s worth them eliminating dairy for a while to see if it clears up.

Of course, milk is a great source of calcium, therefore it’s vital to replace it with other calcium rich foods.Some suggestive alternatives are given here:

Replace cow’s milk with calcium enriched soy milk. I would certainly recommend that you buy organic soy milk.

If you have a craving for cheese then don’t despair, try a non-dairy version made from soy. Try sprinkling it on your home-made pizzas - you won’t know the difference!

Do you love desserts? Give soy yogurt and desserts a try.

For chocolate addicts try dark chocolate. Dark chocolate is much healthier for you than milk chocolate as it contains antioxidants. Don’t get too excited though, dark chocolate contains a lot of fat and calories, so limit your consumption.

Make sure you eat plenty of dark leafy green vegables which are rich in calcium such as kale, spinaches, collard and turnip greens. Other foods rich in calcium include broccoli, brussels sprouts, sesame seeds, almonds, tofu, salmon and sardines.

If you thank that milk and dairy products are the culprit, then eliminate them from your diet for a fews weeks to see if it makes any differences. Make sure you replace dairy with other calcium rich foods.

Cow’s milk is not the only trigger for acne, so if you want to know more about acne and treatment, please make sure you take a look at my Clear Skin Guide website.

Tags: acne and allergies, acne and allergy, acne and treatment, Acne Causes, acne treatment, causes of acne