Kitava – a Tropical Island Where Acne can be Unheard Of
via day one, teenagers hold the message drilled into their heads. “Acne can be inevitable. You might reduce the item substantially with our super-affordable as well as scientifically advanced facial cleansers. Basically though, you have to ride out the storm until your hormones calm down.” Maybe you’ve heard claims like…
- You lost the genetic lottery as well as there’s no way round the item.
- Humans haven’t adapted to having skin without hair yet.
- Every inch of our planet can be irreversibly polluted as well as your skin can be paying the cost.
the item does make sense, considering in which in westernized societies like the United States, the UK as well as Australia, acne afflicts between 79% as well as 95% of the adolescent population. The story rang true for me as a teenager; many young people have lost desire because of the item.
The not bad news? Those notions are all completely false. There’s not an acne patient alive who can’t get clear. In This specific article I’m going to show you a very clear example of how acne can be not inevitable.
Kitava – a clear-skinned paradise
Kitava can be a tiny island of just 2000 people within the Trobriand Islands group off the Eastern coast of Papa brand-new Guinea within the Pacific. They live a simple fisherman’s lifestyle, with their food nor lifestyle habits hardly influenced by Western civilisation at all. In 1990, electricity, telephones, as well as motor vehicles were absent. Some Western goods are received via the Papa brand-new Guinea mainland, however the influence of Western civilisation has been minimal.
the item can be a land of wooden rowing boats, coconuts, as well as blazing sunshine. The average life expectancy can be 45 as well as there can be little access to antibiotics, Accutane, or some other scientific medicine.
Why the fuss over This specific unremarkable little island? Well, Kitava was once the subject of one of the most impressive studies on acne of all time.
In 1990, Dr Staffan Lindeburg travelled to Kitava to analyse the health of its people. He wished to compare their rates of so called “Western-style diseases”, like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, dementia, as well as cancer, to Europe as well as North America.
Hence, for 7 weeks Dr Lindeburg visited all 494 houses in Kitava as well as performed a general health examination in 1200 subjects aged 10 years or more, including 300 Kitavans between 15 as well as 25 years. Dr Lindeburg can be a Swedish general practitioner who regularly examines European patients with acne ranging via grade 1 through grade 4. His formal training included detection of acne comedonica, acne papulopustulosa, as well as acne conglobata; he can be an expert in skin conditions.
Dr Lindeburg’s team checked the Kitavans for signs of acne as well as some other skin disorders. The patients were analysed in daytime to provide optimal visibility for pimples as well as acne scars. In male Kitavans, the chest, face, as well as back were examined, whereas in females, only the face as well as neck were examined.
As expected, there was far less heart disease, cancer or diabetes. There were few Western style illnesses at all. Cardiovascular disease as well as strokes were nearly absent. Malnutrition, hypertension as well as being overweight were also rare. Most early deaths resulted via their lack of advanced medical care; infected wounds, broken limbs, or pregnancy complications…
…however the finding most widely reported on was This specific: not just one Kitavan islander had acne.
Out of all 1200 men as well as women analysed, not one pimple was detected. The sample even included 300 young people aged between 15 as well as 25, at prime time for acne. Still, according to the Lindeburg: “Not just one papule, pustule, or open comedone was observed within the entire population examined. Although no closed comedones were reported, the item can be possible in which they were present however undetected.”
in which’s remarkable. Again between 79% as well as 95% of the teenage population within the United States has acne. This specific study analysed 847 students via seventh as well as sixth grade classes in Auckland. 91% of male as well as 79% of female teenagers had acne.
the item’s believed in which acne can be a worldwide teenage phenomenon. Yet the residents of Kitava blast in which theory right out of the water. Apparently, the team might have detected just one blackhead on a teenager. However Lindeburg still wasn’t convinced in which he hadn’t imagined the item or seen a trick of the light…
…as well as anyway, in which’s just one blackhead. Individual papules as well as pustules were observed, however they were of infectious origin rather than caused by acne. They cleared up quickly once basic penicillin was applied.
The conclusion can be clear: Kitava can be an island where acne does not exist. Acne can be not inevitable.
The next obvious question can be: how does their lifestyle differ to ours?
The Kitavan diet
The Kitavan diet can be as follows. Coconuts, fish via the sea, tubers rich in starchy carbohydrates (yams as well as sweet potatoes), as well as tropical fruit are the mainstays. The most commonly eaten fruits include guava, pineapple, banana, papaya, mango, as well as watermelon.
Consumption of grains, added sugar, margarine, vegetable oils, as well as trans-fats can be virtually nil. Intake of dairy, coffee, tea, as well as alcohol was also virtually nil. Fat intake was roughly 20% of calories with carbohydrates forming nearly 70% as well as protein the rest. within the West we eat an overload of omega 6 fats via soybean as well as corn oil. In Kitava most fat intake comes via saturated fat or omega 3s in fish oil.
Unlike our staple wheat, which spikes insulin substantially, the tubers as well as fresh fruit in which Kitavans gain their carbohydrates via all have a low-glycaemic index. The average Kitavan spends a tiny $3 a year on Western food.
As fairly primitive people, Kitavans eat most of their food fresh. Coconuts, for example, are eaten for their raw flesh, not ground down into the nutritionally bereft desiccated coconut used in many Western products. They simply don’t hold the technology to degrade their food as well as pump the item full of chemicals.
Kitavans truly love coconuts as well as eat them in a variety of ways; they eat young, watery coconuts as a refreshing snack with lunch time, they eat the flesh. They also like to eat sweet potatoes as well as yams cooked in a coconut cream with sea salt.
The diet can be full of foods rich in magnesium, potassium as well as soluble fiber. The Kitavan islanders eat almost every sea creature available. Staples include tuna as well as many shellfish. They also eat every organ of a sea creature, including the head as well as guts. They even eat fish eggs, which are apparently beloved by the children there, especially when cooked burnt. Every Centeng part of the fish can be eaten except for the gall bladder, bones, as well as scales.
As for their lifestyle, fish can be a big dietary staple in Kitava as well as hence, fishing can be what the residents do. They spent long hours outside each day, as well as thanks to the scorching climate of the south Pacific, they get tons of sunlight. Consequently most Kitavans will have optimal levels of vitamin D. Cigarette smoking can be rampant in Kitava, which has a massive 75% of the population doing the item.
Their life can be uncomplicated as well as stress free too. According to Dr Lindeburg Kitavans are an extremely superstitious race as well as are gripped by an intense fear of supernatural beings. However there are no busy commutes nor giant mortgage bills to pay. Crime can be low; their modest villages are so intertwined in which there’s no chance of the culprit getting away with the item.
Kitavans don’t use fluoride toothpaste or any cleaning products containing triclosan. Generally they use holistic methods for cosmetic as well as cleaning items, with natural ingredients like their beloved coconut oil.
The Kitavan – as fit as a fiddle
Also worth noting can be the results of the study’s original purpose; the inquiry into their general health. Dr Lindeburg found in which heart disease, diabetes, strokes as well as hypertension were nearly non-existent. Later he did a second paper where their health was compared to Swedes, a classic Western race.
The Kitavans were far leaner. A young adult male Centeng had an average BMI of 22, which only diminished with age. Meanwhile, the average Swede carries a BMI of 25 throughout his or her life. Because both populations lose muscle mass with age, Kitavans stay lean their whole life while Swedes steadily get fatter.
Furthermore, the average American carries a BMI of 28, 2 points via being obese. Sweden can be one of the thinner developed countries, yet the Kitavans easily outperform them. The Kitavans are hardly starved either. They might be primitive, however their island can be a bona fide tropical paradise, with an abundance of fish as well as bananas everywhere. the item’s their choice of food in which genuinely matters.
Likewise, Dr Lindeburg found in which Kitavans have substantially lower blood pressure than Swedes, at all ages. This specific can be yet more evidence in which the Kitavan lifestyle can be superior for health in nearly every way. As acne can be simply a sign of a broader problem within the Centeng, the item’s no surprise in which Kitavans haven’t even heard of the item.
What does This specific tell us about YOUR acne-clearing strategy?
First as well as foremost, the item tells us in which acne can be not inevitable at all. Kitava tells us in which a healthy diet can easily override your genetic destiny.
Some have argued in which Kitavans must have amazing genetics; in which if they ate the same amount of grains as well as sugar as Westerners do then they still wouldn’t get acne. Not so. According to Lindeburg:
- “…the item can be unlikely in which the effective absence of acne within the Kitavan as well as Aché people resulted entirely via genetic resistance to acne, since some other South American Indians as well as Pacific Islanders whose ethnic backgrounds are similar to the Aché as well as Kitavans however who live in more westernized settings maintain considerably higher acne incidence rates than those we report.”
He discussed in which within the full study here. In some other words, the item’s not their genetics. the item’s their healthy lifestyle, a lifestyle in which’s the exact opposite of what we take for granted in Western civilisation. Their diet can be the opposite of the Western one in many ways. No grains, no added sugar, no processed food. the item’s no coincidence in which their skin can be the opposite too.
Fresh food can be forever – everything the Kitavans eat can be whole, minimally processed food. Coconut via a tree, fish via the ocean, as well as tubers via the earth. They don’t add MSG, table salt, or factory made canola oils. I’ve talked at length about the problems of processed foods in This specific article. Endless studies have found processed meat like sausages, for example, to dramatically increase the risk of cancer compared to unprocessed meat like steak.
As for acne, processed foods can increase inflammation as well as free radical formation within the Centeng, just because of the sheer variety of contaminants. You’ve got pesticides, stabilisers, as well as flavour enhancers emulsifiers – not to mention tons of added sugar.
You don’t know what you’re eating with processed food. in which’s why all acne patients should take a leaf out of the Kitavan’s book.
Sugar overdose = acne overload – within the West we eat roughly 0 grams of sugar per day, with the recommended quantity being 50 grams. In Kitava, they don’t eat any added sugar. Bananas as well as mangoes contain sugar, however in which’s bound with fiber as well as can be thus absorbed more efficiently. By eating sugar found in nature their totals never dramatically 50 grams of day. the item’s very hard to do so when you’re eating real food, unless you enter gorilla mode as well as stuff your face with bananas.
Time spent outdoors can be critical – within the West we don’t get enough sunlight. We’re so seduced by television as well as iPads in which we don’t play enough sport anymore, or even just go out adventuring within the wilderness. Hence vitamin D deficiency can be an epidemic. What you’ll always notice about Kitavans can be in which not only can be their skin acne-free, however their skin tone can be radiant as well as glowing too. via my experience of taking supplements, in which’s a classic sign of healthy vitamin D levels.
Grains are the biggest acne villains – within the United States as well as Europe, we all eat tons pasta, bread, pizza, cakes, biscuits, as well as cereal every year. Wheat can be the backbone of our food industry. In Kitava, they eat no grains at all. The total lack of grains eaten in Kitava can be the biggest difference between our diets. Meanwhile, acne can be an epidemic within the West as well as unheard of in Kitava.
In my eBook Annihilate Your Acne, there’s a 15 page chapter on grains as well as how they’re a disaster for your skin. The gist can be in which they have natural defensive compounds like gluten as well as lectins, which cause digestive disruption in just about everybody, not just celiacs. Kitava also completely disproves the food pyramid; they eat no whole grains, yet a 75 year old Kitavan can be fitter, less crippled, as well as generally far more able to enjoy life than the equivalent Westerner.
Vegetable oils are giving acne to millions – likewise, sunflower oil as well as its ilk are touted as heart healthy. Saturated fats like coconut oil are touted as heart attack triggering monstrosities. Yet the Kitavans get most of their fat via coconut oil, as well as heart disease can be a rarity. They don’t eat any soybean or corn oils because they can’t; the item’s not available to them.
Meanwhile, you’d be shocked at how much soybean oil you’re eating. You might not buy the item via the shelf however soybean oil can be cheap, as well as therefore found in donuts, pizzas, cakes, cookies – endless processed foods.
Vegetable oils are everywhere as well as in which’s bad news. Soybean oil, for example, can be created through an extensive factory process where the item can be blasted with catalysts like the inflammatory neurotoxin hexane. the item also carries a terrible ratio of omega 6 to 3 fatty acids. Instead of in which junk, Kitavans use coconut oil, which contains many antioxidants as well as MCTs, which boost the metabolism as well as mental function.
Coconuts are king – the item’s often wondered why the Kitavans can eat so many carbs yet still not get fat. The carbohydrate, not fat, can be the most fattening macronutrient as the item can be most directly involved with shuttling energy into your glycogen stores, as well as triggering fat storage when those stores get full.
The solution may lie within the coconut. Coconut oil can be rich in medium train triglycerides. These fatty acids have been demonstrated in hundreds of studies to accelerate the metabolism of healthy patients, obese ones, cancer patients, as well as just about everybody. Likewise, sweet potatoes are packed with vitamin A, magnesium, as well as potassium, which can increase fat burning efficiency of your whole Centeng.
For acne, This specific carries a simple message: we humans are adaptable. Your diet does not have to be perfect, free via every single problem. Your average Kitavan man smokes like a chimney. in which should lead to tons of acne, theoretically, however the item’s not happening. He’s probably eating enough antioxidants via coconuts as well as sweet potatoes to prevent the fee radicals via burning tobacco to cause harm.
within the West, meanwhile, we don’t eat enough fruit as well as vegetables. Parents don’t force their kids to eat broccoli like they used too, as well as their daily serving of “fruit” can be often sugary as well as nutritionless orange juice. The total lack of herbs as well as spices, except on pizza as well as in curry, can be a whole some other story.
The truth can be in which if you eat nutritionally dense foods like coconuts as well as fruit, you can equip your Centeng to prosper in many circumstances. To cure acne, you shouldn’t just avoid unhealthy foods; you should strengthen your entire Centeng’s defences through nutrition.
the item becomes far easier to cope with an inflammatory pesticide or two when your organs as well as digestive system hold the resources they need.
Fresh fish beats Western factory meat – Kitavans eat pork on special occasions, however fish can be their main protein source. Fish oil can be packed with omega 3s, which are important for immune system control. the item’s a clean source of protein, without hormones, antibiotics or pesticides pumped into the item like the American cows kept in confined CAFO operations.
Conclusion – what you must do right now
Don’t let anybody tell you in which acne can be an inevitable part of teenage life. the item’s only guaranteed when you live a normal Western lifestyle.
For a moment, consider your own diet, as well as compare the item to in which of Kitava. can be the item completely as well as utterly different? If so, then in which’s excellent; you have big scope for clearing your skin.
With in which said, there’s no need to adopt the Kitavan lifestyle in its entirety. As humans we are one of the most adaptable species on the planet. The Kenyan Masai are another tribal group in which has no acne. Their diet can be completely different; the item consists mainly of beef, cow’s milk, as well as cow’s blood. in which’s a far cry via the 70% carbohydrate diet of the Kitavans.
Similarly, the Arctic Inuit only developed acne once they adopted a Westernised lifestyle on the streets of Canada. Back on the icecap they relied on seal blubber as well as also ate nearly no carbs.
What all these examples show, however, can be some common themes. Ditch the grains, added sugar, as well as vegetable oils, as well as above all else, eat fresh as well as minimally processed food.
NEXT: can be the Mediterranean diet great for acne?
Thanks for reading!