Amber B., winner of our Ultimate Routine Contest. Working in the beauty industry, Amber had been exposed to many skincare brands. When it came to clearing up her stubborn acne, she turned to Perricone MD. She started with Dr. Perricone’s book, Skin Clear and started following the anti-inflammatory diet. To her delight, her acne started to disappear and her once red skin was much calmer. Now that her breakouts were under control, Amber wanted to work on her enlarged pores, oily skin and past acne scars and that’s when she found the Intensive Pore Minimizer and Intensive Pore Treatment.
Here are Amber’s Tips for keeping down the stress that can aggravate acne and sticking to the anti inflammatory diet.
1) Write a positive mantra on your mirror, the one you use most often. Even if you aren’t actively thinking, “I’m beautiful” your brain reads it and it releases positivity.
2) Keep dark chocolate on hand. This helps so you don’t slip up on pro-inflammatory candies and sweets, and you’re left with less guilt. Make sure the chocolate is more than 72% cocoa.
3) Buy a BPA free, sturdy plastic bottle, and fill with spring water. This will help you be more accountable for your water intake, and you’ll know EXACTLY how much you’ve had, and if you need to play catch-up!
5) Add a dash of turmeric to dressings, soups and veggies for super anti-inflammatory benefits. Turmeric adds flavor, vivid color, and taste to bland foods too.
6) Eating out-this one can be hard. Try and check the menu online before hand to be prepared and don’t just quickly order bad foods last minute. Ask for items without sauce or butter and salt and have them add herbs. Herbs are a staple of the anti inflammatory diet.
7) As for the Market: stick to the outside perimeter as much as humanly possible. Most of the fresh fruits, vegetables and non-processed foods are out that way!
8) If you have issues with family or roommates who live with you and don’t eat the way you do now, don’t let them sabotage you doing something great for yourself and your skin. Get your own little pantry. Keep all your snacks and munchies here, and perhaps have a fruit basket in it too 
10) HUGS! That’s right, hugs. They release endorphins. Endorphin’s make you happy and make you less stressed, less stress, equals more GLOW! Now get to huggin’-whether it’s a friend, neighbor, family or even your dog.
What are your tips for sticking to your healthy skin routine? Visit this page for more acne related resources.
