Everyone wants perfect skin. After all, it’s the bodies biggest organ, and everybodys going to see it. Beautiful skin also does its job much more efficiently, eliminating waste, digesting food and transporting nutrients, which can leave you much healthier, as well as much prettier. I’ve always thought that it was something you had or you didn’t, and you couldn’t change it, but recently I visited a dermatologist who gave me some simple advice on how to improve my skin. It worked! So here are my 7 steps to perfect skin for you...
Photo Credit: janinehealy
Having too much acid in your diet is very bad for your skin and is surprisingly easy to do. Vinegar, alcohol, margarine, mustard, pork, beef, salmon, yellow cheeses, pickles, nuts and rice all contain high levels of acid, and these are very common foods. You don’t need to cut them out though, simply moderate them to enjoy no more than three a day, if you can. You can also neutralize them by adding more alkaline foods to your diet. Peppers, broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, lemons, limes and wheatgrass are all alkaline, and are fairly easy to include in a meal.
Photo Credit: Gigi & Big Red
While you sleep, your body produces and releases a hormone called Melatonin. This hormone protects against DNA damage, and also nourishes the skin. A recent 12 year study on monkeys showed that those who did not consume too many unnecessary calories produced more Melatonin, which meant their skin was in a better condition. However, the study also showed that starving yourself and having less than the recommended number of calorieswas equally as bad for Melatonin production, and the skin looked visibly older and in much worse condition, so don’tcut your calories down completely.
As well as regularly moisturizing your skin on the outside, which will keep it looking and feeling great, make sure you moisturize it from the inside. Eating foods that contain good fats such as Evening Primrose, Omega 3, oily fish, etc. Omega 3 is particularly good for the skin, and is found in most nuts and green vegetables, and is even proven to improve skin conditions such as psoriasis, rosacea, dandruff andpremature ageing!
Photo Credit: *Tuvy*
Your skin won’t look vibrant and healthy if it isn’t getting enough sleep. Quality sleep in a dark room is needed for Melatonin production, and without this, your skin won’t be properly nourished, or repaired. If you need help getting to sleep, try including more milk, cottage cheese, and yoghurt in your diet.
Think about what you apply onto your skin directly. It used to be a common saying that using any skin products was better than none at all, but this isn’t the case anymore. Products that contain Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) destroy the skins protective barrier, and can cause allergic reactions and irritations. It’s much better to spend a little more on abeauty product that really will nourish your skin and make it glow, as you’ll get much better results!
Getting sunlight is essential to health, but continued exposure to UVA and UVB rays can be very damaging to the skin, and this kind of damage becomes visible from a young age. UVB rays have been linked to skin cancer, and UVA rays can lead to deep set wrinkles and skin dehydration. Scarily, UV rays are reflected by sand, wind and snow, and can penetrate windows and thin clothing, so you are more exposed then you think. To combat this, weara hat as much as possible. Not too much into hats? Carry a cute umbrella instead!
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I’m always shocked by the amount of people who don’tuse sunscreen as they should. Being fair and very pale, I’m wearing factor 50 before the snow has gone most years, to stop myself from burning. A flash of the sun and I can look like a lobster, so I make sure my skin is protected at all times! Most people aren’t as careful though. Get into the habit of applying a SPF 30 minimum in your daily routine, and you are giving your skin some protection against the UV rays even if the sun isn’t shining.
I already do a few of these steps, but I’ll definitely be taking a look at my diet and the ingredients of myfavourite skin products! After all, healthy skin is happy skin, and it’s one part of your body that everyone is going to see. Have you got a tip for looking after your skin? Please share it with me!
Top Photo Credit: voguemarie