This is Real Questions and Real Answers, the section of my website where I select certain emails that I feel are relevant and good pieces of information for the rest of my readers to read. I spend dozens of hours every week reading and answering questions, comments, or concerns that you guys have and personalize advice the best I can. (Don’t worry, other than the occasional first name, not much else is revealed).

So if you’ve emailed me within the last week (or sometimes longer =), check this article out! Your email is probably in here!

Rachel Writes:

Hi, Ray

This is rachel, and i wanted to know if you had any time to give me some advice.
I’ve been taking fish oil supplements for about 3 weeks along with milk thistle which i was already taking. i’ve actually seen some improvements in my oiliness and spots around my forehead and chin. But oh dear, my cheeks? They haven’t budged.

I’m 13 and have suffered from acne for about half a year? I know, it doesn’t sound like very long at all but I want to get rid of it as early as possible, I don’t see the point in waiting around. Anyway, my cheeks used to be oh-so-beautiful, not inflamed, red, and covered with papules like they are now. It really effects my confidence.

I also have sensitive skin, and I’ve been using some salicylic stuff (2%?) For quite a while, haven’t seen any improvement with that.

I wanted to know, is it possible to suffer from Rosacea at such an early age? My cheeks don’t itch or burn, they’re just usually very warm and give off a red glow. I thought it might be hereditary, but I’ve looked at both my parents & my siblings who have grown out of acne and none of them look like they could have rosacea. I’m kind of worried if I do have rosacea, since it only gets WORSE with age. :S Is it even possible to suffer from rosacea AND acne vulgaris at the same time? Also, I’ve never seen any blackheads (only faint grey dots on my nose) but I’ve got plenty of whiteheads to go around.

My dad said he used to eat 5 oranges a day and it really helped him clear up his acne, :S, should I just wait it out? I mean, it’ll have to go away eventually, right?

I’ve been really careful on my diet too, you see, I used to eat all the junk in the world since It would be virtually impossible for me to gain any weight at all! But now I’m being really careful with what I eat since of my skin condition. Also, could the red cheeks be caused by something that I’m eating? This will sound silly but I’ve seen one of my biggest triggers for red cheeks has been sitting in front of the heater Are there any foods that cause red cheeks?

Also, about the kefir. There isn’t any available in any supermarkets here in Australia. And, I don’t even know if we have health food stores?

If you can help me or at least reply, please do.
kind regards, rachel.

BTW I love your site and understanding acne has really helped me.

THankyou!=

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Hi Rachel,

Glad you’re a fan of the website. Don’t eat 5 oranges a day by the way, that’s way too much sugar. It’s a great source of vitamin C but it’s also a ridiculous amount of sugar which will end up aggravating your acne if it’s a potential problem.

Because you’re only 13 years old, your body is going to be going through a lot of changes within the next few years. There’s been a lot research done about how acne may be associated with growth, sexual development, and hormonal levels, but it’s great that you’re getting a head start on taking care of your body. And that’s why you also have a great head start on the rest of us. If you start taking care of you body early, you won’t have to deal with what happens “after” you get acne because you can try and completely avoid getting terrible acne before it even happens.

That’s great that you’re stopping with the junk food. But remember to get adequate amounts of calories and nutrients because you’re still growing. Limiting intake of food at this age would actually end up hurting you more in the long run so be healthy but don’t starve yourself.

The red cheeks are most likely due to genetics but if your parents had acne, you most likely will too. You probably aren’t allergic, but you may want to check with your family history to see if there’s anything that your family has been allergic to in the past. As far as I know, there aren’t any foods that cause red cheeks. Try eating healthy, getting adequate nutrition and good rest and see if that helps with the redness. You can start with the HTCYA Step 1 HERE.

When it comes to kefir, try low sugar yogurt for now. Hope that helps and keep learning!

-Ray

**********************************

Hi Ray,

Thanks for a great and detailed article on how to treat acne scars. You really did an incredible job. After cutting down on milk, sugar, carbs, sodium and soft drinks (including coke zero) plus eating more fibers, yogurt, drinking green tea and get more sleep, my acne problem has really improved. I still got 1-2 new cystic acnes every 2-3 weeks, but I don’t think there is anything more that I can do. These cystic acnes takes around 2 weeks to heal ( I put on 2.5% benzoyl peroxide cream every night ) but the scars will stay there for months. So I am really trying to find a good products to help fade the scars.

Which exfoliating ingredient (AHA, BHA or others) do you recommend ? How about skin whitening ingredient (Hydroquinone, Kojic acid or others)? I really want to find exfoliating and skin whitening products to help fade my acne scars.

Thanks for everything,
Chris

*********MY RESPONSE**************

There’s a lot more you can do! Don’t forget adequate nutrition, even if you have to supplement. You can find out more about that here in the HTCYA Step 1: Normalizing Hormonal Level where I talk about EFAs.

They do take about 2 weeks to heal though I have secrets where I can make even the worse pimple completely disappear in about a week, INCLUDING the acne scar.

When it comes to whitening, I used to use it but now I don’t anymore and find that I don’t really even need it. But with exfoliating, I think that you should do it regularly. I typically exfoliate maybe once or twice a week now. But at one point in my life I was exfoliating almost every 2 days. A recommendation? I don’t have one yet. I want to be careful about what I recommend. But when I do have one, don’t worry Chris, I’ll be sure to let you know =)

-Ray

**********************************

I have a question. I just bought some Kefir today..and I thought I would mix MILA( product made from the CHIA seed, containing the proper balance of Omega 3 and 6′s) ..into my Kefir. But then, I remember Ray said to not eat the Kefir with a fiber supplement because you wont absorb the nutrients. I know MILA has a lot of Fiber, so..should I eat them separately?

-Summer

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Hey Summer,

It’s okay to eat kefir WITH fiber as long as it’s not a fiber “supplement.”

So it’s fine as long as it’s natural fiber or MILA has a lot of fiber as long as it’s not a fiber supplement. This being said, if you don’t know whether or not it’s a fiber supplement, it’s best not to mix them for now.

-Ray

**********************************

Hi Ray, Love your site. Found you on Youtube last night and can’t stop reading all your insightful info.
I’m 34 and still have acne as well. (Sucks) Recently I’ve been eating a mostly vegetarian diet and raw if possible.

Not sure if you’e tried Chia. ” Cha Cha Cha Chia” (remember the fun loving pet you can watch grow) . Love this stuff. it’s said to have lots of fiber and Omega 3 (even more than Flax) You should try it.

Have you tried Konbucha? I’m wondering if Kombucha has similar properties. I make my own. The process is similar to making Kefer.

Thanks again for the great Blogs.

-Susan

*********MY RESPONSE**************

I’ve never tried Chia. I’ve seen the Chia pet commercials for it though =)

Konbucha? I think I might have tried it before. But you know Asian cultures, when I was young, what my parents put on the table, I would eat. A lot of the times I couldn’t even pronounce the names, let alone remember them.

Just remember to be careful of sugar because even if it is healthy, if it contains loads of amounts of sugar it might end up setting you back. If it doesn’t, it should seem safe. If I were you, I’d run a test trial: drink it everyday for 2 weeks and see how your skin and body reacts.

Let me know how it goes!

-Ray

**********************************

I paid for leo kiesen’s book and received nothing i don’t understand how to acess the contents, i’m quite confused, do you think it works?

i tried to buy your audio cd but it’s not available, since many links are not working, I was wondering how could i get acess to the information, english is not my native lenguage so reading is much easier than listening, anyway I would like to obtain al the information no matter what it costs.

tank tou for your attention

-Renato

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Leo Kiesen’s book is an excellent book and I definitely learned a lot from it. That being said, it’s very, very detailed and I definitely understand when you say you’re “confused” because the book is confusing at times. He’s got a lot of great information, he’s got some information that I disagree with, and he’s got some information that’s just WAYYY out there. A lot of people have said that he’s on the extreme side.

It may work for some people, but I find that for most people, his methods are a little “too much.” That’s why I’ve created this website to sort of give the “conventional” or 21st century way of doing things.

This is JUST an example but sure, you could move out to the woods and build a log house to get away from society and it’s corruption. But most people probably don’t want to do that.

But basically it’s the same with most of the information out there in the world. The information is out there, there are various forms of it in books, online, with your friends, from dermatologists. A little bit here that you can use, a little bit there that you can use, some over here that you heard but shouldn’t listen to, some over there that you may have read that is absolute nonsense.

What can you use? What should you stay away from? Who really knows what they’re talking about? Heck… what makes sense? =)

It’s up to you to decide.

However, I’m still working on my audio CD and turning everything into a program where you can just drive and listen in your car or on your iPod. It’s going to have all my most popular articles in it, all the most important information you need about acne, all the main steps of the regimen, what to eat, what you’re probably doing right now what to do, what you shouldn’t do, everything. =)

I’m even thinking creating a section just about “post” acne or what happens AFTER acne that nobody talks about. Because a lot of people don’t just go on to be “normal” right after they have clear skin. It sometimes takes people months or years to even realize that their skin is okay now. Because there’s a lot of emotional hurt that people suffer through with acne, it’s not like you just suddenly wake up and it’s like those 2, 3, 10 or 20 years with acne didn’t exist and you’ve never had acne before.

If that happened, if when we had clear skin, we suddenly became emotionally normal like we never had acne before that would be great. But sometimes self esteem takes a blow, it may happen consciously and you may know that your self esteem was directly affected from acne. Other times, people get clearer and then they start asking themselves, “my skin is clear, how come I’m not confident yet?” or “Why don’t I feel great yet?”

It’s traumatic for a lot of people, at least it was for me, and it took me some time before I adjusted.

So don’t worry, about the CD, I haven’t produced it yet so I haven’t run out of stock yet. =)

-Ray

**********************************

So… HOW does one alkalize their blood? I don’t actually see the method to do this in the above step. :/

-Cory

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Well… it’s not done yet. =)

-Ray

**********************************

HI Ray,

first, thanks so much for what you’re doing!
My question is about step 3…now I know the link aren’t working yet, but I wondered if you could give me some information on how to clean my bowel. I’ve been doing your acne regimen for about 4 month now and haven’t got much improvement so I concluded that my bowel need to clean itself before I get beautiful skin. I would realy appreciate if you could give me a hint on how to do it!
And thanks again for everything you do! Your awesome!!

-Vince

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Ooo… Okay, I’m gonna get working on Step 4 right away. But for now, a good overall thing to work on for bowel cleansing would be to eat foods that are high in fiber. Constantly have fiber on a regular basis and that will help clear out your bowels. Don’t forget to stay away from foods that are clogging and will set back the bowel cleansing process like:

-Milk
-Cow Dairy Based Products
-Gluten
-Trans Fats
-Too much Saturated Fats

-Ray

**********************************

Hey Ray,
When I tried to click on the icon links for “alcohol and acne”, “carbohydrates and acne”, etc., it did not work. Did anyone else have this problem? I’m looking forward to reading those articles. Thanks

-Jessica

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Sorry, I will do my best fix that within 1 week!

-Ray

**********************************

So helpful!! Thanks Ray! I had no idea walnuts were safe to eat, I thought all nuts had a more omega-6 than 3.

-Kami

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Walnuts are “safer” to eat Kami. They still do have a lot of omega 6 compared to omega 3 =)

Actually, I take that back =(. It’s a sad face that walnuts are high in omega 6 “relative” to omega 3

-Ray

**********************************

Hi Ray,
You and your site are awesome! This is like the best site about acne ever. I mean, there’s so much information I’ve never even read anywhere else. And believe me, I’ve read a lot of information about acne… Anyway I’m gonna follow these tips starting this very moment. By the way I did happen to have a good laugh here and there, so thanks for that too. Uhm… yeah I guess that’s what I wanted to say.

Keep up the good work!
Amanda, from Holland.

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU! =)

-Ray

**********************************

hi ray im ernawati 15 y.o… im an acne suferer… i really don’t understang about ur blog.. don’t u have indonesian blog… i really need ur help to clear my acne… please reply me..:(

-Ernawait

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Alright, everyone who reads this. This sucks. English is not Ernawait’s first language but he recognizes good content here.

I’ve emailed him and back and recommended that he try a translating software or Google’s website language translator. If that still doesn’t work and you can relate to Ernawait’s dilemma, I hope we can speak in person and maybe you can try my personal acne coaching. At least this way I can explain it to you in different ways if you don’t understand what I’ve written online, I can show you pictures of things that I have at home, etc…

Sometimes it’s easier to see and listen than to read. Not everyone is a visual learner, there are kinestic and auditory learners too. Make sure you know what’s best for you.

-Ray

**********************************

hey man i need some help in here…. well i’m 16 yrs old i hv acne nd i’m willing to do anything to clear up my FACE!!!! well i want u to give me a diet ESPECIALLY DESIGNED 4 me, i wanna know wat i can eat in the morning, after noon, evening and @ night…. but i also dont want to loose weight…. i started to eat better 2 months ago i stopped eating fast foods, dairy, sugars, oils breads nd all that crap but i want you to give me a DIET especially 4 me cuz i really dont know WHAT to eat… PLZ HELP ME….

-Jairo

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Hey Jairo,

I’m working on the acne free diet section and will get it up as soon as I can so check back regularly (the majority of it should be fixed within the next week or so)

I actually don’t have the time to customize each person’s diet individually on my website. But if you really would like to do something especially designed for you, you can check out my personal acne coaching and we can set up something for your body type and acne specifically.

Please email me at HowtoClearYourAcne@Gmail.com. Thanks

-Ray

**********************************

dear ray,

my name is joseph and i am a 16 year old kid who used to have a lot of bumpy pimples on my face and i really mean a lot! i have been on two prescriptions and have been using a face wash my dermatologist recommended for me.

my acne has cleared up alot and my face is very very smooth, but as you already know, there are alot of red/brown spots remaining on my face and it has been like this for probably a month already and nothing is seeming to work to fade them away. not the prescription or anything. i started using aloe vera gel today and did a lime facial to see if it will do anything but i doubt it. please help me! i would highly appreciate it

-Joseph

*********MY RESPONSE**************

Hi Joseph,

Congrats on the success!

You’re going to want to exfoliate to get rid of the scars and red/brown marks left over on your face. You can find out more about that in an article I’ve written about Acne scars and marks here.

-Ray

**********************************

Hey Ray (:
Thanks For The Reply.
Could you help me with something?
I want to know, if rain causes pimples? :/
Because I’ve heard people say this and now I’m afraid to go out into the rain! haha
Thank you.
Tony.

*********MY RESPONSE**************
Hey Tony,

Don’t worry, rain doesn’t cause pimples. You can go out in the rain, just remember to wash your face after because natural rain can be dirty!

Thanks for writing in!

-Ray

**********************************

A quick ending message…

Ray Wang. Your "Personal" Acne Coach

Fact 1: In Los Angeles, California, a Registered Dietitian makes between $49,262 – $67,742 a year to give advice about diet and nutrition.

Fact 2: Even just keeping this website running and my internet costs me money out of my own pocket every day.

Fact 3: I spend many hours of my own day writing, recording, and designing this website in order to help acne sufferers and the acne community when I’m not in Nutrition Graduate School or at work.

Fact 4: HowToClearYourAcne.com is done completely without pay and without outside help (I do everything myself). This is information and experiences that I’ve compiled from more than the last 10 years of my life that I’m offering in order to give back to the community.

Fact 5: I could really use your help; there are over 6000 pageviews from you out there week, you are legion, you are mighty, $20 from each you and that would be huge (I’d actually quit my job now and devote all my time to helping acne sufferers if that happened =) Even just $1 from each of you and HowToClearYourAcne.com would be doing much better.

So please, if you’re a regular reader, please consider itif you enjoyed my article, had a hearty chuckle, learned something, or just want to encourage me to quit my job and dedicate ALL my time to helping people clear their acne and have clear skin, please subscribe and consider CONTRIBUTING! I could really use your help. =)

-Ray

Related posts:

1. RQRA #24 Q&A: The Longest Acne Routine E-mail I’ve Ever Received… And I Answered it!
2. Real Questions Real Answers: Can Kefir Help Cure Your Acne?
3. RQRA #27 Q&A: DO NOT TAKE ACCUTANE! Danny’s Acne Story.
4. RQRA #30 Q&A: How To Clear Your Acne Summer Heat Questions
5. RQRA #26 Q&A: Thanks for Helping Me Clear My Acne Ray!
6. RQRA #25 Q&A: Vitamins, Kefir, Acne, & Why Aren’t Your Links Working?