Avoid refined carbohydrates, chocolates to prevent pimples

Sydney, Dec 15 : Shun refined carbohydrates and chocolates if you really want to avoid pimples, according to a new study conducted in Australia.

The first randomised controlled trial on diet and acne in more than 40 years has established that a protein-based, low GI (glycemic index) diet could have a dramatic effect on acne symptoms.

GI is a measure for calculating the glucose level of the blood. A low GI diet contains foods that have a low glucose level.

"Diet has long been thought to be the cause of acne, with chocolate most often named as a culprit, but I was surprised how little scientific research had been done in this area," said Robyn Smith, who studied the affect of diet on acne for her doctoral thesis.

"My research found that a low GI diet significantly reduced acne lesion counts when compared with the conventional high carb, high GI Western diet.

"A diet designed to fight acne should contain minimally refined carbohydrate-based foods and include a wide variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, lean meats, fish and seafood," she said.

Smith worked with Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) Hospital's staff from the department of dermatology on the trial, which involved 43 teenage boys following two different diets over 12 weeks, said an RMIT release.

One group followed the typical western teen diet of refined and highly processed carbohydrate foods while the other group ate a more natural diet higher in protein and low GI foods such as whole grain bread, pasta and legumes.

"Those on the low GI diet reduced facial acne by 50 per cent, and showed improvements in their self-esteem and overall wellbeing," Smith said.

These findings have been published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.