The Low Carb Conversations with Jimmy Moore and Friends that I participated in is up, and if you get the opportunity, please take a listen.

Since we only had a half an hour for the podcast I didn't have the opportunity to elaborate on the topic of acne as much as I would have liked, and I really didn't delve too much into my own "Low Carb Story", only enough to tell how I got started down this road to renewed health and vitality. It was probably a good thing Jimmy knows how to keep control of his topics, and rein in the guests should they start to go astray of the main conversation (not that that happened...I kept control of myself, ha ha!). Plus, it gives me material for a blog post. A win-win situation all around!

If you listen to the podcast you know that I stated I had never really had an issue with acne. It's true, I have been blessed with pretty much blemish-free skin, except for a few eruptions here and there since adolescence. Everything I have ever read from people who have had acne and gone on a low carb eating plan has indicated to me that it does indeed help with acne, and many other skin issues. But what happens if you are low carbing, or following a Paleo or Primal lifestyle and you get zits anyway? Could the diet be to blame?

A few months ago, a friend of mine, who had then recently started a Primal lifestyle, messaged me, telling me that she was experiencing acne outbreaks on her forehead, nose and chin, and asked if I thought she should cut back on the copious amounts of saturated fats she had been consuming. My gut instinct told me that it wasn't the fat, but I knew she was worried because one of the things conventional wisdom has beat into our heads over the years is that eating a fatty diet can cause acne.

I replied to her asking how much dairy she had been eating and if she had been eating any fruits that may have caused an allergic reaction. Sometimes allergies manifest themselves by way of skin outbreaks. She replied telling me she wasn't having a whole lot of dairy all the time, and that she hadn't eaten any unusual fruits that she hadn't been eating before her lifestyle change. But I had also remembered that she had mentioned in earlier conversations that she was supplementing with B vitamins, and that made me remember that sometimes when one over-supplements with B12 and/or B6 it can cause acne outbreaks of the tiny little whitehead looking bumps my friend experienced. I messaged her with the information and she also said that in addition to her B vitamin pills, she had been drinking a popular beverage that was also loaded with B vitamins. Like magic, after she stopped the supplementation, the acne disappeared.

As for the rest of my low carb story that I didn't talk about...I am thankful to have started my journey on Atkins. It lead me down the path to discover what was really good for my body, mind, and soul. I don't "do Atkins" anymore. I have discovered that a more Paleo template of eating works best for me, gravitating more toward Primal on most days. I keep experimenting all the time with what foods make me feel the best and how I react to them. Since we're all different self-experimentation is the only way to know for sure what you will thrive on. Perhaps in my next post I will explain why this lifestyle change is so important to me personally, and why I want to help spread the word that conventional wisdom about food and health needs a major overhaul.