Healthy skin

I have a lot more time on my hands now that basketball is over. So blogging is back on the day?s agenda. I want to talk about a little something different today. This is a healthy living blog and I try to live all aspects of my life ?healthy?.

But first? we love all things eating so?

I made maple instant oat pancakes. This is a mini stack. I combined 1/3 cup Hungry Jack Buttermilk Pancake Mix with 1 packet instant Maple oatmeal and 1/2 cup water. Voila, 5 mini-tasty pancakes.

I topped every other pancake with either raspberry preserves or grape jam. These were so yum-o!

I also had two very happy (sunflowers are just a happy flour) mugs of joe.

I really wanted to talk about skin, mainly the dreaded acne. Blah! Do you have acne issues? I do. I?ve had different levels of breakouts since I was in about 5th grade.

I?ve tried it all. Proactive, Clearasil, cleansers before bed, cleansers in the shower, masks, toners, the list goes on. The only thing I haven?t done is gone to a dermatologist and taken pills. But my acne was never bad enough that I felt I needed to see a doctor. I was just annoyed, and sometimes embarrassed growing up.

I figured a lot of you have similar problems. So I wanted to share how I control my acne with normal-over the counter products.

Try different products until one works for you. I?ve used Proactive, Clearasil, Biore, etc. I finally just started at one end of the acne aisle in Target and started working my way to the other end. Finally I tried Skin ID after seeing a commercial on TV. I liked the quiz and the questions they ask on the site seem so relevant. I bought a two month supply of my custom treatment and it really worked! I used a cleanser in the shower (this way I don?t forget), medicated pads for when my skin was really oily and a cream at night.

I liked Skin ID, but the treatment had to be ordered. And it?s twice as expensive as the store products. I did some research and found out Skin ID is owned by Neutrogena. So I tried the Neutrogena acne product line from Target. The ingredients were so similar and I got the same results with half the price.

Once you find a brand that works? stick to it! Neutrogena is what works for me. So I supplement all my face products with Neutrogena products. I use other acne products by the brand like the Cleanser Mask and the Rapid Clear pads. I never use any other brand on my face.

Make Up. I either use Neutrogena foundation and concealer or I use a hypoallergenic version from Almay. Make up might be just as much a breakout trigger for your face as hormones. Try different brands.

Hormones. I still get broken out during that very magical womanly time. But my breakouts are so much better now. I take fish oil capsules which also help. Normally I wash my face with the cleanser in the shower, so once a day, then an acne cream after the shower and I use the rapid clear pads when my face is really oily. I also do a mask once a week. But during my womanly time I double up on the treatments.

Diet. Diet affects my acne so much. When I binge on bar food a few too many nights in a row, or indulge in cupcakes my skin screams Maren. I hate you! When I stick to my normal healthy-balanced diet my face is much clearer. It?s a great motivator to stay balanced and healthy with my eating.

Be patient. I tried most products for at least a month. Some acne problems will only be controlled by seeing a dermatologist. Mine luckily were not. I hope these help you!

How do you control your acne? What?s your number 1 tip and trick?