Hi,
I had 5 loaded doses of b12 injections which is stopped 2 weeks ago. My skin has broken out badly. I am aware this is a reaction caused by b12. But I want to know from people who have had these injections, how long does it take for the acne to go away?
I want to know only from people who got injections and not supplements.
Thanks in advance.
I had alot of these around loading mainly around my hairline mouth and neck .
Just keep them dry. Leave them alone
Mine took weeks to settle tgen a few came with maintenence injections.
As time goes on less and less .
Now very rarely i have tge odd one.
At the time I wad barely aware of them.
But was curious to what they were.
No marks have been left.
No scarring like you can get from. Acne
Hope the b12 is healing for you.
My spots came after my 2nd loading 6 injections (6 over 10 days 2 week break then a further 6 over 10 days) I never had acne or spots even as a teenager. It took a month or so to clear up. I'm on twice weekly maintenance now and this week it's back! On my chin and under my lips. Some have white heads some are raised bumps and a cold sore to boot!
Its been 3 weeks i stopped them. Still getting the big ones on my chin. its painful
Well I haven’t had this problem with B 12 shots giving me acne, however I am an esthetician that takes B12 injections. It’s likely that you’ve increased cell turnover and your skin is trying to keep up but can’t. I would not “leave them dry”, I would do a better job to exfoliate. Try a gentle cleanser and a moderately concentrated salicylic acid exfoliant. Then use a good moisturizer with glycerin. Try to avoid Hyaluronic acid and ALWAYS WEAR SUNSCREEN. When you’re in the sun. If you want a serum to combat scaring from the blemishes use niacinamide. In fact use it either way. Niacinamide reduces hyperpigmentation and tends to slow sebum production thus reducing breakouts. It’s also really great at helping vitamin C and E work more effectively. So gentle cleanser= Cerave, salicylic exfoliant = paulas choice 2% BHA Exfoliant, light gentle moisture = aveeno calm and restore oat gel moisturizer and skinceuticals makes the best serums but if money is tight bet the ordinary: niacinamide and zinc serum. If you don’t normally wear sunscreen try supergoop. They’re fantastic. Best of luck!!!
Thank you so much for all the suggestions. I am going to try all the products you have told and see if it improves my skin
Let me know how things go, try to stick to it for 60 days unless it worsens. If it worsens, stop using the exfoliant. See if it gets better then try an even milder exfoliant like azelaic acid. Sometimes you have to experiment because everyone’s skin is different. And don’t listen to anyone talking nonsense about a purge. There’s no such thing. If things are worse after 30 days the products are not working. Stop using them… put the products in a bag and make a derm appointment, take them with you… what’s going on could be a range of things including hormonal issues. Your skin is typically a reflection of your insides. And when breakouts occur and don’t go away after you’ve tried a mild treatment then it’s time to see a doctor. I’m only saying this because I know other esthetician are trained to call skincare reaction acne a purge… fortunately I did my undergrad in molecular and cellular biology and know that that’s a skincare myth.
All this acne started when i took b12 tablets of 1500mcg everyday for 2 months. My skin was perfect with 1 or two small acne on my chin just before my periods which was completely normal. The acne caused by b12 tablets went away in 2 months. I stopped the tablets and since I was still low b12, my doctor told I have to take injections and after 5 injections i started breaking out terribly which was 10 times more than that was caused by tablets. I did have acne in my teens which went away in a year. After which I never had acne. So I believe that there is no such hormonal issues and its all because of injections. Let me try everything you have mentioned and will pray to god that it works.
Thank you
Well I’m not saying it is necessarily hormonal as in female hormones and I believe you when you say it’s the B12. I honestly think you’ve increased cell turnover but… just FYI… B12 is used in the body in over 100 different processes in nearly all of the body systems. It definitely affects your hormones… which in turn, affects your skin and cell turn over rate as well as sebum and ceremide production. So it’s not hormonal in the sense of sex hormones necessarily but it could affect thyroid hormone or growth hormone blah blah blah I hope I’m not boring you. The intricacy and eloquence chemical cascades in living organisms are fascinating to me and I hope I’m not offending you.
Yes , it could be that b12 has changed many things in my body. It definitely increases the sebum production on the skin . My skin is 10 times more oily than it was ever before . I did a complete thyroid profile including the thyroid antibodies a few days back which came out normal. I had very mild pcos when I got an ultrasound done. But never had severe acne due to pcos because I always had an active lifestyle and consumed healthy food and my periods were very regular with normal bleeding.
Do you suggest any particular tests that I need to do to figure out what b12 could have changed?
Well I’m assuming because they gave you a pretty heavy b12 regimen to start that you were very low or at least low normal. So you need that B12 and there’s not a whole lot that you can do about that. Pernicious anemia trumps acne. I highly recommend the niacinamide though. It really does slow the production of sebum. If that doesn’t work, the next thing that controls sebum production are retinoids. But they are much harsher and you really need to take it slow there. There’s a dermatologist I follow on YouTube for my clients with more pigmented skin because her channel is about treating pigmented skin. Her name is Dr. Vanita Rattan. She’s a UK based Dermatologist. She reviews a lot of products and makes many recommendations before you start trying just about anything. My worry with you is, you’re from India and I don’t want to assume too much but have assumed that you are fairly pigmented. Women/ people from India and south east Asia are VERY prone to hyperpigmentation. Hyperpigmentation can occur from both scarring, sun damage, and hormonal events. So whenever you have some form of inflammation in the skin you are much more likely to experience a kind of scarring via hyperpigmentation. A good friend of mine is Nepalese, has hormonal hyperpigmentation from when she was pregnant and is an esthetician but for 2 years now we’ve been working on her hyperpigmentation. It’s very difficult to get rid of. I’m trying to prevent that from happening to you since you said you are from India. I wouldn’t just start trying everything everyone recommends. For the reason I just mentioned. You could increase your skins sensitivity as well as your risk of hyperpigmentation. Watch some things from that doctor about it and listen to what she recommends. I actually posted in the comments of her most recent video about your particular problem and what I have recommended for you. She may recommend other and potentially better things for you to try. Im hoping she does a video about B12 related acne for skin of color. Check her out!
This happened to me too. My whole face broke out in tiny, under the skin spots and awful blackheads. Also got them on my back, arms and chest. Everywhere was congested and my skin felt like sandpaper! Thankfully it has massively calmed down now. I have an injection every 8 weeks and I take a daily high dose sublingual b12. My body is now used to it and the spots have gone - hooray. I would say it took a good 2-3 months for it to calm down. I had some excellent advice from an amazing beautician I found. She told me to stop using exfoliants and salicylic acid as it was making my skin make more oil to try to compensate. She recommended a skincare brand called Cinicare (the blue range). It’s completely revolutionised my skin. It’s not the cheapest but I use it religiously and it is transformed my skin. She also said daily sun cream is a must. I still gets some spots on my arms but I can cope with that! I hope that helps!
I am afraid I cant find Cinicare in India. Did the acne calm down by itself in 3 months or after using the cinicare products ?
Your skin is compensating for putting on salicylic acid? That’s what she told you? What Salicylic acid does is it breaks up the keratinized skin (a protective layer of dead skin) and it dissolves sebum which is a mixture of oils, sweat, ceremides etc. When you get blackheads it’s because your sebum has a thicker consistency and is difficult for your skin to expel that sticky mixture onto the surface of your skin or out of your pores. Same thing with pustules (pimples) only pimples typically result because of inflammation in or around your pores. Sometimes bc they’re clogged by the sebum or a thicker keratinized layer (caused by high cell turn over and I regular self exfoliation). Salicylic acid also has a pH of about 6.5. Which is very weekly acidic. As pH 7 is neutral…. And so is water… so did she explain what the skin is compensating for? Because I can tell you it doesn’t do that. Likely, you specifically may have been sensitive to salicylic, or the concentration in the product might have been too high etc. everyone’s skin is different. Reacts differently. And was the salicylic acid in your cleanser? Was it a toner? What was its full purpose? Because… cosmeceuticals are almost always a mixture of things… you have to know how and why they’re combined to understand how the product will work for you. Did she look at the concentration or other ingredients in the product you mentioned before switching you?? It sounds like she unsold you on a skincare line. Everything I told Nish12 to try is less than 25 dollars and is effective when used for the actual purpose of the product. I hate upselling. That’s why I personally don’t sell products. I do consultations where I analyze with a $5k machine that takes many different images with many different perspectives, and then I recommend products with varying price points so that my client can choose what best fits their budget. The reason I do this is because I don’t have a vested interest in sales of products, I have a vested interest in results for my clients. 65% of a typical esthetician’s income doesn’t come from treatment but from sales. I will admit. I’m slightly offended because instead of the rock solid advice a skincare professional gave Nish12, she’s willing to spend double and even triple the money on a skincare line at the recommendation of someone who had personal and in the science world we call it (anecdotal) success with a product. Although your skin issues may be similar your skin and it’s needs may be totally different. You may have different sensitivities, different pigments (yes it matters, when acne scars more easily in Pigmented skin in the form hyperpigmentation) etc etc etc. Your skin is as unique as your fingerprint. Which is why I recommended specific products… because I know they work, they’re gentle, and have recommended 1/2 the same products for my MIL who has Lupus and suffers chronic skin problems and is HIGHLY sensitive. It was a very measured approach.
Honestly speaking , I never had a skin care routine before. My skin never needed it. It was good on its own . I used a gentle face wash and a moisturizer and a clay face mask weekly once. I really don't know what works for my present skin condition. I am just going to start with whatever u told and give it some good time , since it's affordable and later move on to products which others suggested if it's really necessary.
I will just keep all the information I get here and try one by one and figure what's working and what's not .
I have never tried anything mentioned on this thread before ,be it salicylic acid, niacinamide or the expensive skin care routines suggested by others.
So instead of trying everything at once, I would try one by one and give each one a good time to see if it really works.
Ah that’s a shame as they are really good. I just had a quick look and there’s a website called Skin City which looks like it might deliver to India. Apologies - I didn’t spell it right - it’s Cliniccare. I do think it has made a massive difference, however the sandpaper-like spots my chest and back went away and I didn’t use the products on that so I think it’s a combination of my body getting used to it and the products. I also bought one of those light therapy masks (just a cheap one from Amazon) which I used every day (red and blue light) when it was really bad. I definitely think the key it to keep your skin hydrated. Garnier do a blue sheet face mask which helps too but not sure if they’re available in India.
Again, I hope this information helps. I do remember how upsetting it was when this happened to me but it all went away almost as quickly as it started so don’t lose hope. You just have to find a regime that works and stick to it. If you do end up finding clinccare then send me a message and I’ll let you know which ones to buy.
UNITY DERMA MEDICAL PVT LTD, This distributor has Ciniccare products. Can you tell me which products helped you? It might cost me a bomb but if its worth investing, I will
This is an update on the acne that was caused by B12 injections. So the acne cleared up in 8 months that was cause due to 5 B12 injections i took in the month of July 2021.
I did not follow any skin care routine. It got worse during 4th month and later started getting better and finally cleared up now. It was an aggressive cystic acne breakout all over my face.
Finally I am able to look into the mirror with no active acne. Of course the scars will take time to heal.
This update is for anyone going through the same situation. Please be patient . It will take a lot of time but do not resort to accutane, anti biotics or any other form of medications since they have a lot of side effects.
Thanks for following up! I am currently 2 months post B12 supplements that have completed ruined my skin. When did you notice your skin starting to clear up? Hoping I won't have to wait the 8 months, but worth it if I don't have to go on antibiotics/accutane. I definitely have been considering it since I am so depressed over it!
Supplements as in tablets or injections? if you have taken tablets, it will clear up in 2-3 months.
if its injections, it will take 8 months depending on severity.
Do not get depressed. It is not a permanent side effect. Trust me
Thank yo so much! I just took supplements (tablets), thankfully! It did a lot of damage though 
I am guessing mine will take 3 months, since I am almost at the 2 month mark. Definitely encouraging that it does get better! Trying not to let it effect my mental health so much
Have your acne gone now?
hi nish, nice to meet you. I went to a dermatologist as I was going through the same thing and was not sure what was going on. Spots on my face, then my condition was getting worse. They prescribed me with saycillic acid aswell with a serum. After two weeks she then told me to use benzoyl peroxide face wash. My skin has broke out like terrible. I have never ever had acne in my life and I'm not sure if these products just reacted with my skin extra bad. What should I do?
B12 injections and acne?
Reaction to b12 injection, acne?!
B12 deficiency, due for injections next week, seen it causes acne. Need urgent advice please! 
HOW LONG BEFORE MENTAL HEALTH SYMPTOMS CLEAR UP WHILE USING INJECTIONS? 
