This means that sooner rather than later, the positive effects of the antibiotics generally run out. The next choice is either take another strain of antibiotic, one which the bacteria hasn't learnt to adapt to yet, or realize that antibiotics are never going to be a long term solution to your acne.

      I personally spent close to 2 years taking 3 different types and strengths of antibiotics; tetracycline, erythromycin and minocycline. The tetracycline worked very well after 1 month, and then 2 months later, it suddenly became ineffective. So I got about 2 months of clear skin using tetracycline.

      The other two antibiotics strains weren't nearly as effective - they never produced totally clear skin, and the poor results they did manage didn't last very long...

      Remember, the entire basis for antibiotics being a good treatment for acne is that they destroy the bacteria that causes acne - Propionibacterium acnes. Yet this bacteria is found on everyone's skin, not just acne sufferers. There's more though...

      Conventional dermatologists concentrate their efforts on destroying this bacteria when treating their patients. And as said before, the results are often very positive at first, but when the bacteria mutates to be invulnerable to the antibiotic, it becomes apparent that antibiotic treatment has limited use in acne treatments.

      There are actually negative side effects to taking antibiotics, which unfortunately dermatologists don't recognize. The most harmful being candida - which is an imbalance of bacteria and fungi in the body. This causes problems in the long term, and is actually why people often find their acne gets a lot worse after antibiotic treatment.

      The other main acne treatment prescribed by dermatologists is accutane. This is a vitamin A type drug, and is supposed to be the holy grail of acne treatments. But as with most drugs, the results aren't always as stated on the packaging...

      With that said though, accutane does often produce good results for a few months, but then the effect runs out. And with the side effects of accutane being so potentially harmful, is it worth taking it?

      Accutane is prescribed for those people with more severe forms of acne, cystic acne and more stubborn acne that doesn't respond to antibiotics or the typical topical treatments (covered below).

      I can state that accutane did clear my acne - for a limited time. But after a few months of clear skin, the acne came back - and this time it was angry.

      Cleansers are often taken for acne, and I took many of them. I can honestly say that for someone who had stubborn chronic acne, these cleansers did nothing to clear my skin. I wish that putting a cream or gel on your face is going to work, but chances are it won't work for anyone with chronic acne.

      You've probably heard of BP right? That's Benzoyl Peroxide. It's a topical cream that you apply to your acne, which is supposed to be an effective acne treatment...

      Well, there is a "slight" problem with BP - it produces free radicals (which attack healthy skin cells) and has a similar action to unprotected lengthy sun exposure. So this means benzoyl peroxide causes premature ageing of the skin, and is linked to skin cancer.

      You might say that it is odd that dermatologists prescribe BP to their acne patients, who are evidently having enough problems with their skin as it is!

      There are plenty of "over-the-counter" cleansers you can try for your acne.

      They commonly contain an ingredient called Salicylic Acid. Now this acid causes the shedding of skin cells to become more rapid, which tries to prevent oil from building up in skin pores and follicles - and thus help reduce breakouts.

      That's the theory at least. In practice, salicylic acid, as found in the most popular acne cleansers available commercially from chemists, supermarkets and even online, is woefully ineffective for anything but the most mild cases of pimples. - certainly not enough for moderate or severe acne.

      Salicylic acid is a chemical that works as a chemical exfoliant - shedding dead skin cells to allow quick growth of new cells. Yet from the feedback I've received from those on my program, salicylic acid-based products actually worsened their acne condition...

      ...And I hate to tell you this, but if you're currently using a salicylic acid based topical, what you are using is actually a toxic substance. The effects of using it in the long term are probably damaging for your skin, and this accounts for why many acne sufferers see their acne becomes worse after a few weeks of using such a skincare product.

      With all this "debunking" of conventional acne treatments, you might think that I have an axe to grind. Well, not really, I'm simply describing my experiences based on years of suffering from acne, and years of research into the condition and possible effective treatments.

      There is just so much information on acne out there, both good, bad (and ugly), and it does take a while to find out what's what in the world of acne treatments.

      I wouldn't want to leave you with no alternative acne treatments, so try this. It's worked for myself and many others:

      Try changing your diet to one that is anti-inflammatory! An anti-inflammatory diet is one where the food you eat does not produce hormonal imbalance. With hormonal imbalance being the root cause of acne, by avoiding the foods that cause hormonal imbalance (aka inflammation), you can effectively stop your acne breakouts in a relatively short period of time.

      "But I've heard diet has nothing to do with acne?"

      Although there is a study from the 70's that suggests acne is not caused by food, this test was poorly designed and does not stand up to the scientific standards of today. Yet, unfortunately, most dermatologists cite this old and outdated study as the reason they don't investigate diet as an acne treatment.

      Once you've studied and experimented with natural treatments and diets for many years like I have, you soon learn that the so-called experts can be, and are quite often wrong.

      In fact, if you want a sure way to treat your acne successfully, there is no better approach than to make some simple modifications to your diet. And this is the basis for the program.    

      You can start this new acne program here.