9 surprising facts your dermatologist wants you to know

What a good article!! Thank you so much, Joanna... ^_^

Might I add I noticed since I stopped eating a lot of processed preservative free food my skin gets better. I wish I had figured this out earlier in my teens, 20 s , 30 + on. I could have saved myself hundreds of dollars on acne treatments that worked half the time.

Thanks for the tips. It helps!

News to me...ELIDEL causes CANCER?? I use to spread it all over my face but mainly my forehead in the early 90's for a long time. It did help the eczema but what about the CANCER issue?? Anyone have solid information on this topic??? Yikes....! -- Chicago Girl

Very stupid article, it's common sense, unless you're a child or live under a rock.

Think4Ever,

I had the same problem you had (not the allergy)but the fact that the doctors I have seen treat me like I'm a patient on an assembly line. They never listened to me or what I had or say about how I reacted to prior treatments. THe last doctor wanted me to do an elimination diet. I told him I had been doing that for years with no success. He responds "well try not eaing these food (hands me a list) for two weeks and come back and see me and we will go from there. Again, I told him I have tried eliminating each and every one of those foods in the past Can't he test me for allergies or anything else. He says "do it for me. I would like to see you again in two weeks anyway." ARE YOU KIDDING ME...I am here now, and you've done nothing. Why would I pay to come back in two weeks. SIGH

re: #7 i also disagree like southern girl does. eczema can be cured (maybe not by western medicine standards), it can caused by yeast in the body which can be eliminated. there are also great products out there that heal! colloidal silver is one.

on the right side of my face in the middle part of the cheek, i get ingrowns. bad. It doesn't matter what type of razor i use, whether its new each time, whether i shave daily or weekly, it still happens. I've changed my diet o make sure i'm getting the right amount of everything. i'm 29 and have had it for 10+ years. its quite annoying. Anyone out there have any ideas (jokes aside)?

stay away from these doctors and keep your money. There is no magic beauty secret other than to wash your hands and then your face once every day and to avoid touching your face without "very" clean hands.

Eczema does not go away. Like the other posters said, you have merely severely curtailed the rearing of it's ugly head. I know, I've had eczema since I was a baby and it has never and will never "go away." Thank your lucky stars you found products you can use, very few people can break the cycle of causing flareups only because they refuse to stop using their precious Dove bar.

I wish the writer would have gone into more detail about diet and smoking. If you fill your body with junk, your skin is going to look like junk. Another trap - stress. You might be smoking to reduce stress, but it's only wrecking your skin more.

Clean up your diet and stop smoking. I don't want to hear "I can't go through that, it's too much work!" If it means enough to you, you'll do it. If you're a whiner, then you're stuck with it.

There is too a cure for eczema. Eczema is caused by candida and/or food allergy. Omit all cheese, sugar, wheat, yeast & processed foods from your diet & the eczema will go away. Once its gone, you may enjoy these foods in moderation unless you find that you are very allergic to one of them. it isnt a complicated cure, but it is very hard to do in our culture. good luck, may you itch no more! btw.. this is true, i had eczema when i was 20 & cured it with food.

I have problems with this article. For the sheer fact that patients are categorized as good or bad. If you give doctors that kind of idea from the getgo, then maybe that is why they can't seem to figure out how to deal with the issue. They put the blame on the patient instead of finding cures and answers to why the acne exists in the first place.

I have had an ongoing rash / acne ? on my arms for over 6 months now. Seen a dermatologist three times in that period and he really has not offered me solutions, but blaming me. I do not accept that as an answer. How did I put acne or whatever it is on my arm myself? Send me for some tests. Find fault with what I am using. Maybe it has to do with my skin type.

Personally I feel that dermatologists and doctors in general are a pretty lazy bunch. There is definitely a hierarchy between them and us. They have the medical degree, so we don't know jack.

That is unacceptable. The last dermatologist I had before this quack at least offered me some solutions as to what to use on my face to help with the acne i.e. what to wash with.

Here in this article, it states it should take a couple months to clear up. So what is the explanation for not being able to wear sleeveless tops in yoga class for over six months?

Unacceptable. Acne is hereditary as is rosacea and eczema I am sure also. Stop looking at patients like we are the bad ones and maybe explain to us better ways to wash, better products to use, etc. At the very minimum diagnose what type of skin we have so we can know how to deal with it.

I find that a lot of times estheticians are much more helpful then dermatologists and that truly is a sad thing. They don't go to nearly as much medical school is my understanding.

Quality practitioners should not be blaming patients for something that is beyond their control. That is the whole point of seeking treatment in the first place.

I for one have to once again shop around for a new dermatologist who doesn't think he is so beyond actually treating me for my conditions and getting paid for his time. It's frustrating to be honest.

Not everything is even known about acne. Ugh! How horrible that people are categorized as "good" or "bad" patients. No wonder we can't get decent care.

Oh yeah and I have had acne all my life and never gotten it treated for good. I am now in my early 30's and still dealing with the stuff. It is hereditary in my circumstances. That much I know.

Now how can you fix my genes? That is something worth shelling money for.

I'm 50 and have never been to a dermatologist. I doubt I will EVER waste my money on one either.
BTW does this black spot on my nose look funny to you?

I struggled with acne as a teen. First my parents wouldn't even let me go see a dermatologist. They were like "It'll be better when you grow up" but that never happened so we went to a dermatologist. The dermatologist really know a lot more than you. He prescribed creams like Differn, and if that didnt work, the last course of action is Acutane (known to cause birth defects in women and cause liver damage). yes my liver got a little screw up so the doctor took me off the medication; however, my acne is significatly better. in fact, i dont have a single one right now =D.
oh yea, proactiv doesnt work very well according to most dermatologists, so dont use that crap.

The people who make the cosmetics have made people feel ugly, not all who think they are ugly need help, in fact there are a lot of very beautiful people who are ugly to look at but there beauty comes from within.

I love my dermatologist. - I wish she accepted my insurance and charge a little less, but I trusther judgement and respect her ability. I was misdiagnosed once by a GP who said I had something awful. I was SO FREAKED OUT and UPSET. While I was in the dermatologists office for something else, she told me that I had simple yeast at the corner of my mouth from my new night guard. She gave me medicine, told me how to clean the night guard (toothpaste is not enough) and I was cured. The GP was totally wrong. I recommend you see an expert whenever you have a skin related problem.

This article is silly. If my doctor 'wanted me to know' something, he'd tell me, not some blogger, hoping I'd read it online. Plus, real doctors have no difficulty being frank with patients, and saying what needs saying. All this blog does is offer years-old recycled health advice, claiming doctors really want you to know all of it.

Another way for doctors to get your money..

well the fact is our skin is one of 3 components of our immune system, blood, saliva(digestive tract), skin. Most skin disorders including acne and psoriasis, etc are the manifestations of proteins and possibly other compounds in the body that the body cannot process therefore they are expelled through the skin. This is the case with food allergies that are also closely aligned skin issues. Our radiated non raw food chain kills most of the HSO(Homeostatic soil organisms) and MSO that our body needs. Add to that all of the artificial coloring, flavoring, and preservatives, our bodies have a hard time processing compounds it was not meant to. The answer is not your doctor, but getting to know your body it's deficiencies ie enzymatic deficiences, mineral deficiences, electrolyte deficiences etc. Take as many supplement as you can afford, probiotics, potassium, keep the body ph non-acidic. Get a live blood study done, it looks at your live blood and provides much more info that the bs blood test at your local Insurance owned healthcare facility.

Most doctors, including dermatologists, know nothing about health. All they know is either drugs or surgery, neither of which changes the cause of the problem. Most skin problems are caused by diet, and drugs, such as cosmetics, deoderant, etc. The Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine, Rory Freedman, Alicia Silverstone, Michael Klaper, M.D. and Joel Fuhrman, M.D. will help you eat healty so you won't have to go to a doctor for drugs or surgery.