People diet for a number of reasons — weight loss, looking a certain way, lowering blood pressure, or even having higher energy. A month ago I decided to go on an elimination diet to help with my skin condition.

Elimination diets are short-term eating plans that eliminate certain foods to determine whether they cause allergies or other digestive reactions, then reintroduce the foods one at a time to see which are and are not well-tolerated in the digestive system.

I have a common skin condition called eczema, which causes my arms, legs and neck to become rashy, itchy and red. I tried everything to make it go away. I used skin creams, soaps and unscented lotions — nothing worked.

My mom suggested the elimination diet to see if my skin reactions were food-related. I agreed, thinking I would be killing two birds with one stone — eating healthier while also finding out what caused the breakouts on my skin.

To begin the diet, I had to cut out all dairy, wheat, nightshade vegetables and corn products from my diet for 10 days.

Going from eating whatever I wanted to being cut off from some of my favorite foods was extremely challenging. 10 days doesn’t seem like a long time, but it really dragged on.

Walking into grocery stores was hard knowing I couldn’t eat over half of the food in there. Having to go to the Vegan and Gluten Free sections, where the food looked less than appetizing was a struggle.

As I continued with the diet, my skin and the rest of my body improved with it and it became progressively easier to go without what were previously my favorite foods.

After the trial time ended I discovered wheat and dairy caused my rashy skin. Knowing what I do now, I can cut back on the amount of wheat and dairy I put into my diet, allowing me to have clear skin.

While food may not always seem like the villain, changing your diet can really affect all types of health. I know it did for me.