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Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

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Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#71

Post by keyboardhitter »

the_cat_kittles wrote: post #26

i recently went on a little exploratory mission to see what the working explanation is for how the pores actually get blocked, and then swell. it sounds like the process, in super detail, is not well understood. from what i could gather, sebaceous glands get blocked, and the sebum they secrete starts to pool in the duct around the follicle, under the skin. the sebum creates an ideal environment for a bacteria called…

I do not know why you're being downvoted. I feel your comment added to the discussion of the article

I also learned recently that sebum production -- and inflammation -- are both complex mechanisms. As with most regulatory systems I wouldn't be surprised if they were linked in some way. But obviously I don't want to claim this in some hand-wavy way. Can you share any reading material you found when exploring the topic?

I have recently started Spironolactone for various PCOS symptoms, including acne vulgaris, so it's of interest to me

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#72

Post by throwaway863601 »

foxylad wrote: post #45
explorigin wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Try cutting out dairy. That made a dramatic effect for the better in me. Milk chocolate is probably the worst for me.

Totally anecdotal, but too much chocolate is what makes me erupt. And I prefer dark chocolate, so it might be the chocolate rather than the dairy. Eating a large bar of dark chocolate should differentiate, purely in the interests of science of course.

Chocolate is the culprit for me as well. Sometimes sugar too, but, not as frequently or as much as chocolate (but the acne seems subtly different from the chocolate one).

Out of curiosity, does chocolate have any other effects on you besides the acne? Like easier bleeding/blood thinning? Or other inflammation besides acne? It has more than one effect on me and I surely can't be the only one observing it.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#73

Post by kirrent »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

It's a useful reminder that incredibly smart people with amazing technical literacy don't necessarily have the same scientific literacy.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#74

Post by brucephillips »

t3rmi wrote: post #70
brucephillips wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just checked this out. It's a dermatologist. They offer benzoyl peroxide and salicylic acid, which are standard solutions. This is nothing special.

Read my reply below. The prescriptions are standard the pore unclogging/extractions and peels are the real differentiator. Oh yeah and the Diet restrictions.

This very little evidence that diet affects acne. I'm glad you found a solution, but food probably had little to do with it. Especially "greasy" food, which is one of the items they list on their website.

They also say that antibiotic solutions are a "myth", which is patently false.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#75

Post by throwaway9980 »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

Imagine that you could aggregate all the anecdotes shared on the internet. It would be fascinating to compare the statistical conclusions you could draw against accepted science.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#76

Post by lj3 »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

> Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals

Citation needed.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#77

Post by RobertRoberts »

autokad wrote: post #36
RobertRoberts wrote: post #32

1. When I was a kid, just getting a tan cleared up my acne. 2. Changing my diet helped clean up my acne (not eating junk food) 3. When I was a teenager, I got hurt really bad, and my father found me and had to take me to the hospital. I saw massive acne breakout on his face in less than 15 minutes. 4. When I got older and was less stressed about life, my acne went away. When I got a family/career/house and life stres…

i think there is a connection in there, but not quite sure where. I myself pretty much only ate junk food, although my diet was very low cal. i avoided the sun because i burned very easy, but I was outside a lot. i was always under a high amount of stress, but i never got acne or anything like that edit: by junkfood, i mostly ate cereal and lots of cookies/candy bars

I burn easy too, but it still helped. I know people that can eat what ever they want, and it won't affect their skin. And some people that avoid certain foods because it makes them break out.

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#78

Post by scarecrowbob »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

The idea of "hey, this strange thing worked for me, and I don't wholly understand all parts of the system but it seems to have some results" is pretty much the core of what "hacking" is, right?

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#79

Post by spelunker »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

I think this happens often around here on anything non-tech related. Surprise, being smart doesn't mean you know everything ;-)

Re: Acne Vulgaris: A Disease of Western Civilization (2002)

#80

Post by InclinedPlane »

cal5k wrote: post #48

I'm always amused/horrified by Hacker News comments on anything health-related. Herein lie a group of incredibly smart individuals sharing anecdotal evidence and folk remedies without a lick of irony.

Also anything science related.
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