zinc for acne in young pre-teens?

[Gwenny]

My dd just turned 10, and since the age of 9, she has started to have acne.  Lately, it's kicked up a notch with about 10-15 little whiteheads scattered in the T-zone.  It's starting to make her self-conscious, especially since puberty started early with her and her friends have never had a pimple.  She washes her face with Dr. Bronner's castile soap morning and night, but other than that, we haven't tried anything yet.  I've heard of chelated zinc for acne, but I don't know if you can use it on a girl this small.  I've never seen it recommended for children, only teens.  She's 5'1", but a very slim 75 lbs. 

 

Any other suggestions?  I strongly believe in diet impacting our skin, but I think her diet is pretty good.  We have no milk in the house and she only has a little cheese a couple times/wk.  She eats an insane amount and variety of fruit (it's one of the only snack foods I allow), and she eats a variety of vegetables.  My own acne is terrible right now, so I wonder if it is something in our diet.  I recently stopped BC, so I thought that may be it, but I'm not sure.  At about the same time, I also started following the Eat to Live diet, so maybe it's our nearly vegetarian lifestyle?  I've read zinc is more difficult to get on a vegetarian diet.

 

Fish oils?  DHA/EPA from algae?

 

I hope someone out there has a solution.  I'm concerned that if her skin is acting up like this at only 10, what will it be like when she's a teenager?

[Jean in Newcastle]

Ds16 takes zinc for acne and is dairy free. Since he started both at the same time it is hard to say if one works more than the other but it has made a difference.

[sparrow]

I briefly gave zinc to ds, but I never felt comfortable with it because it can affect testosterone production and ds is in puberty.  He's making enough as it is!

 

May I suggest using a different soap? I have found Dr. Bronner's to be *extremely* drying to my skin, even it it's very diluted.  If she is drying out her skin with the Dr. Bronner's, she may be producing more oil, which can lead to more acne.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

I would consider 10% benzol peroxide gels and salacytic (sp?) acid creams ans washes. My ds has been using successfully.

[AK_Mom4]

One thing people often overlook is that after washing the skin (especially with a drying soap like Castille), you need to moisturize to help the skin heal. I would have your dd start putting moisturizer on after the wash. We use Cera Ve here because it is so gentle, but you can use any good moisturizer and start to see results.

[OrganicAnn]

I would consider 10% benzol peroxide gels and salacytic (sp?) acid creams ans washes. My ds has been using successfully.

 

10% Benzol Peroxide is the only thing that has worked for me over the years (benzol peroxide is often 2% and that just doesn't do it).    Salacytic acid just makes my face shiny and red.

 

While I think a poor diet might impact the quality of your skin, I don't think a good diet will do away with acne.    For me it is brought on by hormones, since it is usually around my period.   

[Gwenny]

Sparrow, it never occurred to me that Dr. Bronner's is drying.  My own skin is so incredibly oily, that it would take something phenomenally drying to change that.  I've heard that harsh products can cause the skin to overproduce oil but even when I went through a phase of only using water to cleanse my skin, it's still super oily.  Until recently, my dd never washed her face (sad, I know, but she hates soap), and it was still oily.  What's a good, gentle, very natural cleanser?  I'll look into the Cera Ve for moisturizing.

 

I'm avoiding benzoyl peroxide because from using it myself in the past, I know that it bleaches fabrics.  I worked hard on her quilt and pillowsham and I'd rather not risk ruining it.  Maybe we'll try to salicylic acid first.

 

I'm going to use myself as a guinea pig with the zinc.  I picked up a bottle and see if helps me first.  I'm wary of using on her because of her size and unknown dosage.

[sparrow]

Sparrow, it never occurred to me that Dr. Bronner's is drying.  My own skin is so incredibly oily, that it would take something phenomenally drying to change that.  I've heard that harsh products can cause the skin to overproduce oil but even when I went through a phase of only using water to cleanse my skin, it's still super oily.  Until recently, my dd never washed her face (sad, I know, but she hates soap), and it was still oily.  What's a good, gentle, very natural cleanser?  I'll look into the Cera Ve for moisturizing.

 

I'm avoiding benzoyl peroxide because from using it myself in the past, I know that it bleaches fabrics.  I worked hard on her quilt and pillowsham and I'd rather not risk ruining it.  Maybe we'll try to salicylic acid first.

 

I'm going to use myself as a guinea pig with the zinc.  I picked up a bottle and see if helps me first.  I'm wary of using on her because of her size and unknown dosage.

 

I know many people swear by Cetaphil and the dermatologist I saw as a teen recommended Basis, but through years of trial and error, the soap that works best for my skin is the white bar of Dove. I have a reaction if I use anything else and my face looks sun burnt.