What not to do if I have acne?

The biggest mistake you can make when you're trying to get rid of your acne is trying to wash the acne off of your face. Blackheads and acne are not dirt that you can simply wash off. When you use detergents, cleansers, alcohol wipes, antibacterial creams, you are literally destroying your microbiome on the surface of your skin.

Your skin contains millions of microbes that act as a barrier, which is involved in your immune system. When you remove that layer of good bacteria, you lose the bacterial diversity. In turn, this increases the inflammation on the skin—it can even cause acne.

This is also why one of the side effects of antibiotics is acne. Acne involves the sebaceous glands. These glands secrete an oil called sebum. Acne is essentially inflammation of these glands with excess amounts of sebum as well as pus and bacteria formation.

Acne comes from high levels of androgens, which are hormones. Your androgen levels spike when you're a teenager. In turn, this causes a problem with your sebaceous glands. What causes excess levels of androgens? Insulin. High levels of insulin can throw off your hormone balance. The cause of high insulin is a high-carb diet.

If you cut the carbs out, the acne will go away. The healthy keto diet and intermittent fasting are the two best ways to promote healthy insulin levels. Try going keto, and let me know how that works for you in the comments below.