[binya]

Such a simple question, yet no one has ever been able to answer it.

I have never ever had acne in my life. My skin has always been crystal clear. Then several months after I began taking Adderall, I started to break out. I'm 22/female so this isn't "normal". I instantly knew it was the Adderall without hesitation. I have an excellent skin care routine..in fact I have always been down right obsessive about proper skin care. I take vitamins and fish oil, I drink plenty of water, I eat healthy foods with omega 3, don't smoke, don't drink alcohol, and I've tried everything from over the counter acne creams- to prescription acne creams like Differin Gel. NONE of those things have cleared my skin up. I'm currently using Benzoyl Peroxide which is known for being excellent on acne. Two weeks of using Benzoyl Peroxide so far, and still no end to my breakouts.

I've heard that Adderall causes acne because it causes you to sweat. I don't sweat, nor is my skin oily. Then I heard that Adderall dehydrates you, which causes you to break out. Well I drink tons of water, and I avoid caffeine. So needless to say there is no dehydration problem here. So I'm sitting here still baffled as to what on earth is making this drug give me acne. NO ONE knows a damn thing... there isn't even a factual website about it.

I always knew this pill could cause breakouts. But in my mind, I would just use an acne cream, drink more water, eat well- and boom my acne would clear up. Never did I imagine that Adderall would cause this seemingly incurable acne. I totally understand why drug abusers would develop this problem. They aren't eating enough, they aren't sleeping enough, and they are forcing tons of harmful drugs into their bodies constantly. I am not a drug abuser. I am on a normal dose. So my skin problem makes no sense. Especially when you consider the fact that I have done almost everything known to man in order to treat this.

I'd like to hear others explain why Adderall causes acne...or any stimulant for that matter. And please not the typical "Adderall is poison" type of response. I want to know actual scientific reasons as to why stimulants cause acne. If not that, an educated guess as to why you think it causes skin problems.

[Dan Halen]

Many people are concerned with adderall causing acne even at early stages of their prescription. Nothing in Adderall causes acne, but a false sense of awake/ alertness is a side effect and actually what it is meant to do. Your body is getting tired and wants to recover while you sleep/rest. What happens is your brain is so alert and awake that it disregards what your body is asking of it (nutshell). Your skin is also needs this time to recover so you could be depriving your body of rest and not even know it. Lack of sleep also causes inflammatory cytokines which is a main reason acne occurs. So the breakdown is...Adderall does not directly cause acne, but since it provides your brain with a false sense of being well rested and alert you could be destroying your skin without knowing it. Being hyperactive while on adderall can cause you to sweat/stress, dry your skin out, and ultimately make your skin produce too much oil and cause acne. To really see what i mean, try taking your prescribed amount a hour before bed and see how much fun trying to get to sleep is. The effects in that nature are very similar to cocaine/methamphetamine giving the drugs like Adderall (amphetamine) Concerta and Ritalin (amphetamine derivatives) their street name of Baby, Kiddie, or Diet Cocaine.

[Psychmajor]

so i have heard about benzo's also being used for ADD (less addictive but still hard withdrawls) if you would rather be tired all the time. also i cannot remember the name but there is an acne medicen that is considered the last resort for getting rid of acne. it comes in a box and you cannot get preg. on it or you can have issues with your baby. (its brand name starts with an A im pretty sure and generic for sure starts with a C...)