Your skin is your largest organ. It covers and protects everything on your body. How you treat it is incredibly important to your health. However, the skin is one of the most unappreciated organs, and one that I used to totally take for granted, slathering products full of toxic chemicals on it day after day.
I’ve since learned that many of those big-name skincare products were making my problems worse! It’s better to keep your beauty regimen simple and use natural techniques to fight wrinkles, eczema, acne, and other skin issues.
There are some simple healthy habits you can do that help your skin glow from the inside out. Instead of slathering on expensive lotions and potions, add each of these to your regular routine and watch you skin get its glow back!
#1 Eat fermented food
The average American diet is full of refined carbs and chemical food additives, coupled with residues from plastics, pesticides, and antibiotics from factory farms – all of which destroy healthy bacteria in the gut. You see, not all bacteria is bad. In your gut, you want to have good bacteria to fight off bad invaders.
An imbalance of healthy gut bacteria can show up in your skin, in the form of acne, eczema, rashes, or other ailments. When you get balance back, these skin issues can improve dramatically and your skin will glow from the inside out.
Fortunately, you can easily increase the amount of good bacteria in your gut simply by eating fermented foods. The bacteria found in fermented food is likely more varied, and more easily assimilated in the body than what you can get from most probiotic supplements. Adding these foods to your diet restores healthy bacteria in your gut, which can help improve your skin (and other health benefits as well!)
Fermented foods like kombucha, kimchi, and yogurt are inexpensive to make at home. It can be as simple as making homemade sauerkraut with just cabbage, water and salt. You also might want to try store-bought organic miso paste or tempeh.
#2 Dry brush your body
Dry brushing from head to toe rejuvenates the skin and stimulates the lymphatic system. It helps make skin glow and keeps it soft without needing to use very much moisturizer. Dry brushing has also been known to improve the appearance of cellulite (temporarily), increase circulation, and unclog your pores.
It’s like a spa treatment, without the expensive spa! You only need to do it about three times per week to see the benefits.
Do this technique with a large dry brush before you shower on completely dry skin. In small circular motions, brush your skin starting at your feet and move up towards your head. Dry brush your stomach last.
After you’re done brushing all of your skin, hop in the shower and use a mild natural soap to cleanse your body. After showering, moisturize with organic sesame oil, olive oil or coconut oil mixed with a little bit of organic body lotion.
#3 Stop eating refined sugar
Eating refined sugar (the white stuff) makes us age faster than we should and destroys the look of our skin. In a process called glycation, sugar molecules attach to collagen and elastin, two proteins that keep skin looking young, and create Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs). AGEs weaken your skin’s support structure and lead to lines and wrinkles.
Refined sugars processed from cane, corn, or beets, such as table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup are the baddest of the bad. These sugars have been chemically stripped of their minerals, so when you indulge in these sugars, you get no nutrition and your body becomes more acidic. Because these sugars are devoid of minerals, they are acid-forming causing inflammation – which leads to skin disorders.
Instead of processed white sugar – use natural sweeteners that don’t cause this skin-wrecking inflammation. These include dates, coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup, or monk fruit.
#4 Get more sleep
They don’t call it “beauty sleep” for nothing. Your skin cells renew themselves while you sleep, at almost double the rate as during the day. This is when your skin is repairing itself from the stressors of the day. During deep sleep phases, growth hormones rise in the body that help repair damaged cells and rejuvenate the skin, fighting the aging process. As you sleep, the hydration in your skin is replenished, which plumps it up, hiding fine lines.
When you don’t get enough sleep, not only does your skin not get to properly repair itself, but it doesn’t recover moisture – which leads to dry skin, visible wrinkles, and bags under the eyes. Lack of sleep also causes your cortisol levels (a stress hormone) to rise, triggering inflammation in the body. This inflammation can make skin look dull, and acne, eczema, psoriasis and other skin issues may start to pop up.
Aim for getting 8 to 9 hours of quality sleep each night. To help you get a good night’s rest, turn off the electronic devices and avoid big meals at night – and make your bedroom cool, comfortable, and quiet as possible. Your skin will thank you in the morning!
#5 Add collagen to your diet
Collagen is a unique protein that plays an important role in our skin as we age. It’s naturally found in the skin, ligaments, and connective tissue throughout your whole body. It functions like a scaffolding that supports our skin, keeping it nice and smooth.
As we age, our body’s collagen production slows down and research shows that collagen in your skin drops by about 1% every year. Seems small, but this means that by the time you turn 40, you’ve lost more than 30%!
You can start turning back the clock by eating collagen-rich foods. Cutting-edge research suggests that getting more collagen into your system can promote youthful looking skin by supporting skin elasticity.* Collagen fights the signs of aging by helping to maintain the skin’s youthful tone, texture, and appearance.*
This is why I make sure to eat a collagen-rich diet by adding Truvani Wild Caught Marine Collagen Powder to my breakfast.
One of the best ways to add Truvani Collagen to your diet is to mix it in with your morning coffee or tea. You won’t taste the powder. It’s virtually tasteless and dissolves smoothly without clumps in cold or hot water.
Of course, you can also blend it into your smoothie, oatmeal, yogurt, and more. I love adding it to whatever I’m having for breakfast. It’s now become part of my morning routine so I don’t forget to take it.
Get special launch pricing on Truvani Marine Collagen Powder here.
I hope these tips help your skin shine bright and radiant! As it turns out, beauty does come from the inside – literally. Because when you’re healthy, you feel great about yourself. And when you feel better, it shows.
If you know anyone who would love some skincare tips, please share this post with them!
Xo,
Vani
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Originally published on foodbabe.com
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