My days in the cosmetic world
I decided to write an article on the best foods for healthy skin. I always wanted to help people look and feel their best. However, this turned out to be somewhat difficult when I worked in the cosmetic and makeup commercial stores, a few years ago. Customers came to me with their problems and I advised as best I could the commercial products, they could use to help themselves.
(Photo: plantbasedeva.com)
But many of those people came back, looking for better solutions—often the product wasn’t as effective as they’d expected, or it aggravated their skin in some way. Even high-cost, premium cosmetics designed specifically for certain skin problems could fail to deliver!
I knew even then that sometimes a slice of cucumber or a honey mask would make all the difference, but at work, I could only recommend the items I had been told to sell. It was time for a change. I was convinced that lasting results could be achieved by improving skin health and using natural ingredients instead of commercial products.
My story
Of course, I had skin problems of my own, and the most persistent one was adult acne. I read every book and article on diet, beauty care, and skin health that I could lay my hands on.
Over time, I started seeing very positive results. I had changed my diet and begun to apply the most effective beauty recipes consistently, and my acne eventually disappeared.
It may seem like no big deal to you, but to me the change was miraculous. I had been struggling with acne for years and had tried all sorts of expensive treatments without success.
Finally, I had found a system that worked—and it made my whole body feel great! I realized that it was time to share all the knowledge I had gained, to give other women access to natural beauty solutions that actually work.
If there’s one thing that you take away from this article, I hope it will be the knowledge that our food choices affect our skin and health.
Eating fresh vegetables and fruits loaded with vitamins and minerals is one of the most effective ways to maintain healthy, beautiful skin. This article will provide all the information you need to know about what to eat and how to protect your skin, in order to naturally be the most beautiful you.
The Science of Skin
We all want to have naturally clear, glowing skin. Perhaps because the skin is the largest, and most visible, body organ, beautiful skin is one of the core foundations of our cultural perception of beauty. Great skin is an indicator of great health. Perhaps that is why there are so many products designed to enhance the skin.
Physical beauty doesn’t start at the surface, however. The skin has two layers: the dermis and the epidermis. The epidermis is the outermost layer of skin and the one that is most visible. Skin formation occurs in the inner layer, however, in the dermis. Blood supplies nutrients and oxygen to the dermis, and these nutrients are used by skin cells to repair and grow. As the cells mature, they are pushed to the epidermis, where the results of all the cell growth and repair become more visible. When skin cells are healthy, your skin appears healthy.
While cosmetic and skincare products can help protect skin and implement short-term effects to minimize the appearance of skin problems, they do not nourish skin or truly cure issues, as these begin in the dermis.
The nutrients that skin cells require are molecules that come from foods. What you eat directly correlates to the materials that your body has on hand to create and repair itself. To impact skin at the source, therefore, a nutrient-rich diet is necessary.
First steps to natural beauty
So, the first step to natural beauty . . . is to eat well.
Good nutrition doesn’t just affect the skin. It makes your nails and hair strong and shiny, gives a luster to your eyes, and can also improve your body odor (think about how you smelled the last time you ate too much garlic or had too much to drink)!
When the body receives quality nutrients in a sufficient amount, you can think more clearly, work more effectively, handle stress properly, more easily fight off disease, and better enjoy your life. Not only are all these attractive qualities, but they will improve your quality of life to an astounding degree—good nutrition will make you look better, and feel better, too.
Skin Features
Collagen and elastin
Along with a radiant glow, the strength and flexibility of skin are also strong indicators of health and youth. These are affected by collagen and elastin. Collagen gives the skin form and strength. When collagen weakens, as occurs naturally with age, the lack of strength in the skin forms wrinkles and sagging skin. Lack of moisture, environmental damage such as UV light, and frequent changes in weight can speed up this process. Elastin gives the skin flexibility and elasticity helps the skin to regain its shape after being stretched or pulled. It is weakened by the same factors as collagen, and its weakening is evident primarily in sagging skin.
Sebum
Sebum is an oily substance produced by the body. It lubricates skin and hair, keeping them soft and pliable. Although to some degree sebum production is determined by genetics and your stage of life, emotional stress and hormone imbalances can increase the flow of sebum.
Excessive sebum production results in greasy-looking skin, which gives the impression that your hygiene is lacking. It can also be downright annoying to have excess sebum on your forehead and hovering around your eyes. Furthermore, when sebum hardens and pore ducts become clogged, blackheads are formed, which can lead to acne. In order to help regulate sebum production, a skincare routine incorporating regular cleansing of the skin is an important aspect of maintaining natural beauty.
Skin types
There are six skin types: oily, dry, normal, combination, acne, and mature.
Oily skin has obvious, large pores, which can create a texture much like an orange peel. The results of excess oil on the skin include open and closed comedones, or bumps on the skin, clogged pores, and a shiny, thick appearance.
Dry skin has very small or invisible pores and is often rough to the touch. It is likely to have an excess of fine lines and wrinkles.
Normal skin has even pore distribution throughout the skin, a very soft, smooth surface, and a lack of wrinkles. Despite its name, normal skin is actually quite uncommon: most people have combination skin.
Combination skin displays areas of dryness and oiliness, has obvious pores down the center of the face, with pores becoming invisible or smaller toward the outer edges of the face. Combination oily skin, on the other hand, has a wider distribution of obvious or large pores down the center of the face and extending to the outer cheeks, although pores become smaller toward the edges of the face.
Acne can be considered as a skin type but does not necessarily accompany oily skin. Acne skin is characterized by the presence of numerous open and closed comedones, clogged pores, and red papules and pimples.
Mature skin often has fine pores, visible wrinkles, and broken capillaries. It often feels dry and tight, while the skin around cheeks and jawline tends to hang more loosely.
Whatever your skin type, you can learn what foods will help to combat the skin issues associated with it—and what foods to avoid.
Start Right Now
Your new healthy lifestyle can start right now. One of the first things you will have to learn is how to outsmart the multibillion-dollar food industry and make sure that your diet is full of nutrition and free of toxins and unnecessary chemicals.
Know What You Are Really Eating
Most of us don’t have enough knowledge about the ingredients in our food. If you’ve read any of my other articles, you know how important it is to ensure that you don’t put chemicals on your face. But even more importantly, you should avoid putting unnecessary chemicals into your body. Not only because food affects your skin, but because it affects many aspects of your physical and mental health.
Here are some simple tips to help you get started on better food awareness:
Keep a food diary
If you want healthy, better-looking skin for a lifetime, you’ll always need to be aware of the foods you eat.
Write down all you put in your mouth at least for a few weeks. When you are on the go, you can send yourself a text message to track information. If you experience an unexplained rash or sudden breakout, look back over what you’ve eaten recently, and this will give you a better sense of the cause.
Also keep track of what makes you feel drowsy or bloated, what prevents you from sleeping well, and what affects your digestion.
Learn to read labels
You should know what is in your food before you eat it, and how big the serving size is. As a general rule of thumb, avoid foods that have a lot of chemicals, include “natural flavoring,” contain trans fats, or have words you don’t recognize in the ingredients lists. If it’s not real food—don’t eat it.
Some good rules of thumb:
- Don’t eat anything that contains words you cannot pronounce, that contains partially hydrogenated fats, or trans fats or that contains corn sugar or high fructose corn syrup. These have been linked to a variety of health issues, including diabetes, obesity, and premature aging.
- Avoid enriched/fortified foods: if food has been enriched or fortified, it’s because something has been processed.
- Avoid bleached products. Would you eat bleach? Seriously. It’s poison.
- Avoid foods that are high in salt, as salt dehydrates you and causes water retention. Canned soups and vegetables and commercial salad dressings are foods that are surprisingly high in salt.
- Over time, you will find that it is inevitably healthier for you to make your own foods starting from healthy ingredients rather than eat foods that have been prepared in a factory and are designed with long-term storage in mind.
Throw out the junk
If you are able to go out shopping today and buy healthful foods to start your new, healthy skin diet, then take some time first to make room in your pantry and fridge. Throw out processed foods, foods with preservatives, and foods with processed flour and sugar. As they say—out of sight, out of mind. If you don’t keep it on hand, you probably won’t eat it.
Prepare
Plan your meals ahead of time so you can make sure that you are receiving adequate nutrition every day and are not overeating. Check your pantry when you are thinking of the menu, in order to use the food you have. Then make a list and go to the store to get the rest of the ingredients you need.
Healthy Skin Diet
It is important to eat a balanced, nutrition-filled diet in order to have healthy skin. Go for a balance of protein, carbohydrates, and fats that leaves you feeling satisfied. Read on to find out about what ingredients you should seek out in your food and what to avoid.
Fats
Not all fats are bad for you. In fact, some fats actually have great health benefits. Your body needs healthy oils and essential fatty acids to maintain a soft, supple complexion, as fatty acids nourish and replenish skin. Without enough fat in your diet, skin can dry out, crack, and become more prone to rashes.
We all need a certain amount of fat to thrive, but you will feel better and look better if you avoid the types of fat that clog arteries and use instead the types of fat that provide your body with the nutrition it needs to function properly. In fact, the total amount of fat you eat doesn’t seem to matter if you are eating healthy fats and are not habitually overeating.
Stay away from:
Unhealthy saturated fat. This is fat found in animal products such as beef, pork, chicken, milk, ice cream, butter, and cheese.
Trans fat. This is manufactured fat used in the production of chips, crackers, cookies, granola bars, and pastries.
Omega 6 fatty acids. Eat-in moderation. Found in most animal products, this fat increases inflammation and can exacerbate many skin conditions.
All three types of fat can raise your risk of heart disease by clogging your arteries and boosting cholesterol production.
Instead, focus on incorporating unsaturated fat into your diet. Unsaturated fat is found in plant foods like avocados, olives, olive oil, flaxseed oil, salmon and other fatty fish, nuts, and natural nut butter. These fats can even help protect against heart disease by reducing cholesterol levels.
Omega 3 fatty acids are particularly good for you—they can help lower your risk of heart disease, depression, and more. They are found in fish such as salmon, tuna, and sardines, as well as in walnuts and flaxseeds. You can also benefit from alpha-linolenic acid, which is particularly effective at preventing dryness and irritation in the skin. Alpha-linolenic acid can be found in soybeans, tofu, flaxseeds, olive oil, and walnuts.
It doesn’t take a lot of fat to meet your dietary needs, just a little here and there. For example, you can top your salad with sliced almonds or avocado, dip your apple in a little bit of almond butter, or toss some pecans into your breakfast cereal.
Carbohydrates
As with fats, carbohydrates (carbs) are necessary for survival—they are your body’s main source of fuel. The key to a healthy diet is not to avoid carbs entirely, but to choose your carbs carefully.
Good carbohydrates
Eat healthy whole grains such as wild rice, amaranth, buckwheat, barley, oats, and quinoa.
Whole grains are high in fiber and are digested and absorbed more slowly than refined grains. They keep you fuller longer than the refined sugar and flour in cookies, crackers, and sodas. They also keep your blood sugar levels down.
Produce is an excellent source of carbohydrates. Try to eat a full spectrum (rainbow of colors) of produce every day:
Red: peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, apples
Orange: carrots, peppers, sweet potatoes, squash
Yellow: squash, peaches, corn, peppers
Green: cucumbers, celery, lettuce, broccoli, kale, Swiss chard, peppers
Blue and purple: blueberries, eggplant, cabbage, grapes
These will help ensure that your diet is full of antioxidants, which can help to protect against the production of free radicals in the body—this keeps skin from being damaged and makes you look younger for longer. To this end, particularly look for foods with:
Vitamin C: Found in oranges, kiwi, strawberries, kale, Brussels sprouts, red peppers, and broccoli.
Beta-carotene: Found in orange vegetables and leafy greens such as kale, carrots, romaine lettuce, sweet potatoes, cantaloupe, and spinach.
Vitamin E: Found in green leafy vegetables, nuts, avocados, and eggs.
Flavonoids: Found in berries, green and white tea, and onions.
Lycopene: Found in red fruits and vegetables, such as tomatoes, red peppers, and watermelon.
You should also avoid high levels of processed sugar in your diet; seek out sweet treats with natural, less processed sweeteners, such as stevia (natural herb sweetener), fruits, and honey. Even so, try to limit the amount of sugar that you intake. Sugar dehydrates the body and depletes you of Vitamin B, which results in dry, dull, acne-prone skin.
Many fruits have excess sugar, as well, and so should only be eaten if paired with protein or healthy fats. These include apples, dates, grapes, pears, raisins, and watermelon.
Avoid excess gluten, as well. Gluten-free grains include quinoa, buckwheat, millet, amaranth, buckwheat, and wild rice.
Bad carbohydrates
“Multi-grain,” “100% wheat,” “wheat,” can still have processed flours in them; it is always preferred to choose options that specifically state “whole grain” or “whole wheat.” Refined grains don’t power you to the same extent that whole grains do; in fact, they are mostly transported to your fat cells for storage.
Of course, avoid excess sugars, for all the reasons discussed above. Watching your sugar intake might be more difficult than you think, however. Read food labels carefully: many breakfast cereals and flavored yogurts are loaded with sugar. Even many pasta sauces and other savory items have a lot more sugar than you would expect. Sugar can be labeled as corn syrup, maltodextrin, sucrose, and other words that end in “ose.”
Protein
Protein is crucial to build and repair your muscles, red blood cells, enzymes, and other tissues. Furthermore, protein helps to stimulate collagen production, which in turn keeps your skin looking young for longer.
Ideally, this protein should come from plant foods, like beans, nuts, and veggies, rather than from animal foods. A small number of nuts (1 handful a day) can serve as an excellent protein source, as these are rich in vitamins B and E, zinc, magnesium, potassium, and copper, as well.
Excellent sources of protein include:
Almonds, goji berries, green leafy vegetables (like spinach, kale, green cabbage, arugula, Swiss chard, etc.), hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, avocados, barley, millet, quinoa, black beans, black-eyed peas, chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, natto, navy beans or peas, broccoli, brown rice, flax seeds, kale, oatmeal, spinach, walnuts, and sweet potatoes.
Try to minimize or avoid animal-based protein such as meats and whole dairy products; these are loaded with fats that clog the arteries. Plant-based proteins, on the other hand, are rich in fiber and as a result, do double duty when it comes to meeting your dietary needs.
This is not to say that you should avoid dairy entirely, as it is important to find natural sources of calcium—especially for women. You might want to avoid dairy, however, if you have persistent acne. Try almond, soy, and other kinds of milk, instead. You can also get calcium from collard greens, kale, spinach, okra, broccoli, almonds, figs, mustard greens, turnip greens, cabbage, Bok choy, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds.
The Best for Your Skin
After you have a healthful diet as a strong baseline, there are some additional considerations that will really boost your skin’s appearance.
The combination of magnesium and vitamin C is particularly vital for collagen production. It can be found in foods such as spinach, whole grains, almonds, cashews, brown rice, lentils, kidney and pinto beans, and avocados.
Copper helps collagen growth and can be found in whole grains, legumes, cherries, and prunes.
Zinc supports the production of elastin tissue and can be found in kidney beans, lentils, and eggs.
Glycemic Index
The glycemic index measures food according to how fast the food item’s carbs get broken down into sugar. The speed of carb breakdown affects your blood sugar levels and, in turn, your general health, energy, and weight. Everything you eat gets broken down into glucose (sugar) for your body to use as fuel. It travels throughout your body via your bloodstream.
Foods high on the glycemic index are broken down very quickly, causing your blood sugar to spike sharply. Food with a low glycemic index, on the other hand, is broken down more slowly, so your insulin will increase low and slow.
Ideally, you should select foods that are low on the glycemic index. Too much sugar can make you feel nervous and jittery. Furthermore, sugar reacts with collagen and elastin to decrease firmness and elasticity, leading to the formation of wrinkles and stretch marks.
You should also consider the glycemic load, which ranks food according to the glycemic index in terms of serving size, or density of carbohydrates.
It will be handy for you to print or buy a glycemic index cheat sheet of the most common foods for you to consider when you are making your grocery list and planning meals.
Here is a helpful glycemic index and glycemic load for more than 100 foods.
Healthier Foods Decisions
In your cupboard, replace the following items with their healthier counterparts in order to more easily make healthy food decisions:
Instead of:
White rice, canned veggies, fruits canned in syrup, peanut butter, margarine, soda, white bread, and white pasta.
Choose:
Wild or brown rice, fresh veggies, fresh fruits, raw almond butter/cashew butter, hummus, sparkling water with fruit slices, quinoa crackers, and zucchini pasta.
Over time, you will come to appreciate the alternatives just as much as, if not more than, you once enjoyed the less healthful choices.
Eating Organic
The majority of conventionally grown fruits and veggies at the store have been treated with a range of pesticides, and many have been genetically engineered, which may have negative effects on people.
Organic produce, on the other hand, is grown without the use of most chemical pesticides and herbicides and is not genetically engineered. Organic livestock is reared without the use of antibiotics and growth hormones and generally fed an organic diet of grass or grain.
Eating organic drastically reduces your ingestion of toxins, which in turn means a less stressed body, a better functioning waste filtration system, and a more beautiful appearance. And you will feel great, too!
Organic foods also tend to have better flavor and more nutrition than conventional foods, meaning that you get more satisfaction and nourishment for your money. This is particularly important to keep in mind, as organic foods tend to be more expensive than non-organic foods.
There are three classes of organic foods:
“100 percent organic” foods are made only of organic ingredients. These have the official USDA organic seal.
“Organic” foods contain at least 95% organic ingredients. These also have the official USDA organic seal.
“Made with organic ingredients” foods contain at least 70% organic ingredients. These foods do not have the USDA seal and are not technically completely organic.
If cost is a concern for you, you can still improve your health by buying certain, high-toxin foods in organic, while buying non-organic options for other foods whose conventional grow techniques are less harmful.
It is important to get the following foods organic:
Apples, berries, green beans, lettuce, tomatoes, cauliflower, bell peppers, celery, collard greens, cucumbers, grapes kale, lettuce, nectarines, peaches, potatoes, spinach, squash, and strawberries.
Source: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty_dozen_list.php
Or basically, any food that is exposed to the air when it is growing. If exposed to the air, non-organic foods are exposed to pesticides and chemically treated soil.
Relatively safe non-organic foods include:
Asparagus, avocados, bananas, cabbage, cantaloupe, eggplant, grapefruit, kiwi, mangoes, mushrooms, onions, oranges, pineapples, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, and watermelon.
Source: http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/clean_fifteen_list.php
And particularly anything that has an external skin or shell that you do not intend to eat.
You may want to consider purchasing the following in organic, as well:
Milk or dairy products, meat, poultry, and eggs.
Non-organic processes for these products include hormone and antibiotic treatments that may adversely affect your health.
Read the Labels to Avoid Chemicals
To avoid chemicals, it is not always necessary to look for the organic brand but to check the label. Don’t eat foods with the following ingredients, as these are particularly harmful to your health:
- Artificial colors (FD&C blue, etc.), artificial flavors (monosodium glutamate / MSG), artificial sweeteners (aspartame, acesulfame K, sucralose, saccharin, and high-fructose corn syrup / dextrose, as well as sugar alcohols such as sorbitol, xylitol, and mannitol) and artificial preservatives (ascorbic acid, calcium propionate, disodium EDTA (retards spoilage), nitrates/nitrites (prevents growth of bacteria), and sodium propionate (prevents growth of mold).
You can also help to rid yourself of toxins by eating cleansing foods—those that help to flush out your cells and detoxify your body. By removing these toxins, we keep our skin clear, youthful, and radiant and reduce inflammation and skin ailments.
Cleansing foods include:
Garlic, lemon, chamomile, dark leafy greens, and ginger.
Eating “raw” is another option for someone looking to imbibe the most nutrients. Raw foods are those that haven’t been cooked over 40 °C (104 °F) to 46 °C (115 °F). Because they stay at a low temperature, raw foods are nutrient-rich and therefore more filling.
On a raw food diet, you will experience increased energy, find it easier to be at your ideal weight, enhance your mental clarity, have better physical, mental, and emotional balance, and just feel better all around.
Protecting Your Skin from the Sun
Sun exposure can do extensive damage to your skin and age you more quickly than anything. It delivers UVA rays, which penetrate deep into the skin causing discoloration, wrinkles, and skin cancer over time. It also delivers UVB rays, which can cause a painful burn that not only damages skin in the short term but has been linked to certain skin cancers.
Certainly, you should wear a natural safe sunscreen (containing titanium dioxide and zinc oxide) on all exposed skin whenever you are outside or near a window (that includes in the car!). However, there are foods you can eat that will help protect you from the sun, as well.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants neutralize free radicals, turning them from unstable particles that damage healthy cells to stable particles that are harmless.
If you eat foods with minimal antioxidant benefits (dairy products, meats, and processed foods), your body can’t recover from free radical damage as quickly and efficiently, and you will have more wrinkles, discoloration, and sun damage. Furthermore, these foods have been shown to increase inflammation, which can make sun damage even worse.
If you load up on antioxidant-rich foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, you will provide your body with the weapons it needs to fight the signs of aging and protect itself from UV rays. By eating foods filled with antioxidants, you also provide extra UV protection to your body.
Eat foods with high amounts of selenium, zinc, magnesium, copper, and iron. A wide variety of fruits and vegetables in the full spectrum of colors. Red fruits and vegetables are particularly effective. Raw cacao powder, green tea, and apples, as well.
Foods for Specific Skin Problems
Now that you have a good idea of the basic diet and lifestyle for maintaining healthy skin, there are some specific foods and choices that you can incorporate into your diet to help alleviate certain skin issues like aging and acne.
Anti-aging
To fight the signs of aging, eat the following fruits, which are naturally low in fructose and provide a powerful boost of antioxidants:
Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, oranges, lemons, limes, and tomatoes.
To help lessen the appearance of wrinkles, especially those around the eyes, eat green and yellow vegetables, including peppers, squash, and green beans.
Acne
You can greatly reduce your acne by altering your diet. In part, this is because many of the foods that we eat as a matter of habit actually can cause inflammation, which contributes to acne.
If you wish to reduce your breakouts, therefore, it is important to reduce your consumption of foods that cause inflammation while increasing your consumption of foods that calm inflammation.
Furthermore, to the extent that some acne is brought on by stress, eating a healthful diet that nourishes your body will help you to avoid physical stress from malnutrition and your healthy body will help you to cope better with mental and emotionally stressful situations.
In other words, a healthful diet can help to attack the problem of acne (and other inflammation-related skin issues such as eczema) from multiple sides.
To help reduce your breakouts avoid the following:
Refined sugars and flours, processed foods, foods high on the glycemic index, milk and dairy products, high fructose corn syrup, sugary sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks, and processed cold cuts meats (salami, sausages, ham, etc.). Instead, cut your own sandwich meat from roast turkey or roast chicken breast.
Do eat:
Foods that are low on the glycemic index, zinc-rich foods (like pumpkin seeds and lentils), omega 3 fatty acids, and probiotics.
Foods containing omega 3 fatty acids are a natural anti-inflammatory that will help reduce your skin’s reactivity and decrease acne breakouts.
Zinc is a natural anti-inflammatory, as well, and topical products containing zinc can be excellent for acne. Eating a diet that includes the daily recommended dose of zinc, vitamin B3, copper, and folic acid has been found to clear up acne problems.
By changing your diet in this way, you should see calmer skin and no new breakouts within a few days. By the time a month has passed, you should see smoother and clearer skin.
Foods for Stronger and Healthier Hair and Nails
Hair Strength
If your hair is limp, prone to breakage, or appears dull, you can improve its appearance by eating foods that will provide nourishment.
These include foods high in cysteine, such as:
- Egg yolks, red peppers, garlic, onions, brussels sprouts, oats, and broccoli.
- And foods high in silicon, which include:
- Whole grains and cereals (oats, barley, brown rice), spinach, and lentils.
As well as foods high in iron and zinc, such as:
Spinach, coconut, cashews, pecans, pumpkin seeds, cherries, dark leafy greens, blackberries, red-colored berries, and onions.
Itchy, Dry Scalp and Dandruff
When a flare-up of dandruff occurs, make sure to wash hair in order to remove excess oil and dead skin. Do not over wash, as frequent shampooing can cause dryness that will irritate the scalp. Probiotics are great and focus on low sugar, low-fat diet.
Longer, Stronger Nails
Feeding your nails the right foods can prevent chipping, cracking, and breaking.
Foods to focus on include those filled with biotin and silicon, as these have been proven to strengthen the nails as they are formed.
Foods rich in biotin include the following:
Broccoli, almonds, walnuts, egg yolks, cabbage, and Swiss chard.
Foods rich in silicon include the following:
Green beans, spinach, and lentils.
Tips to Maintain Healthy Skin
Just follow some general guidelines for healthier eating.
Pay attention to portions and serving sizes. If you go to a restaurant, a good rule of thumb is to eat half and bring the other half home for lunch the next day.
Read labels to find foods that are low in calories, trans fats, saturated fat, and sodium.
Don’t confuse “fat-free” or “sugar-free” with calorie-free or healthfulness; many fat-free foods are plenty high in calories because they make up for the lost fat by adding sugar, and many “sugar-free” foods have added chemicals to make up for the lack of sugar.
It is best to prepare your own foods to contain a reasonable amount of real fat and natural sweetener, rather than buying processed foods, in order to avoid this dilemma.
Eat slowly. A good goal is to allow one complete sentence to be spoken between mouthfuls. This is why it is best to converse over dinner if you have the opportunity. When you eat too quickly, you don’t taste as much and don’t feel as satisfied.
Cut out sweetened beverages, both regular and diet, such as sodas, sweetened teas, fruit drinks, and energy drinks. Regardless of calories, the ingredients in these drinks increase the risk of being overweight. Stick to water and unsweetened coffee and tea.
Go easy on the booze. Alcohol stimulates your appetite, so be particularly wary of having a drink before your meal. Instead, request that your drink be served (or serve yourself a drink) with dinner and enjoy it while you eat, to avoid overeating.
Eat regular meals. If you skip meals, your body can easily trick you into overcompensating by eating way more than you would have otherwise.
Tips to Maintain Youthful Glowing Skin, Weight Loss and Health
- For breakfast, start the day with a green juice or smoothie. Your health will improve dramatically.
- Eat lots of fresh vegetables and fruits (preferably raw when possible and eat them first; you will feel fuller and healthier).
- Consume dairy, poultry, fish, and meat moderately, preferably organic (2x/week).
- Eat raw seeds and raw nuts (a handful a day).
- Eat whole grains (unrefined) and beans.
- Choose low mercury seafood: Salmon, shrimp, clams, light tuna, scallops.
- Be careful with high mercury seafood: Swordfish, mackerel, albacore, yellowtail tuna.
Conclusion
I hope that this article has inspired you to examine what you eat—if not for the sake of your appearance, then for your general health and happiness.
For your general health, try and follow these tips. These will go a long way toward ensuring that you have a healthful diet.
- Eat more raw fruits and vegetables. It is even better if more of these portions are veggies, rather than fruit. Try and vary your servings to be a different color (red, orange, yellow, purple, green).
- Avoid pastries, jams, sugary coffee drinks, processed juices, and sodas.
- Drink at least 1 ½ liters of water a day.
- Eat meat, fish, and dairy products the least possible, preferably organic and grass-fed.
- Half of your plate should be covered in vegetables.
- Cook with coconut oil.
- Steam your vegetables for only a few minutes to preserve more nutrients.
- Avoid fried foods and barbecue. Long cooking at high temperatures creates carcinogens, which are toxic substances linked to cancer.
Get started
Taking these easy basic steps will be your first step toward a healthier, more beautiful you.
Once you get started, you might find yourself wanting to get more into the nitty-gritty of eating a whole plant food diet, juicing, or adding amazing superfoods to your daily menu. If so—go for it! You will be surprised at the difference, not only in your appearance but in all aspects of your life.
You can also clean up your beauty products and swap your skincare, with two of my favorite brands, Miessence and Living Libations. I have been using these two brands for years and love them. Check them out!
I hope this article provided you with effective tips to take care of your skin and health.
Stay healthy,
Eva
*This post contains affiliate links.
References:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsweek/Glycemic_index_and_glycemic_load_for_100_foods.htm
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322986
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/eat-your-way-fabulous-skin