Love Your Skin from the Inside
If you are starting to notice your skin aging a little more quickly than you’d like, go inside. There are a myriad of choices you can purchase for topical use but the key is to support your skin from the inside out to get the best results.
Here are some key factors and ingredients to focus on:
Hydration:
I know this sounds basic and we all know how important it is to drink water. But is your body actually absorbing the water? There is a difference between consuming water and ensuring your cells actually absorb it. If your skin is dry, this could be part of the issue. A very simple way to ensure proper hydration is to do our Water Drinking Challenge.
You might be surprised at what you learn!
Food Recommendations:
Here are my favorite dietary suggestions to optimize skin integrity:
High intake of naturally occurring minerals (greens, squashes, sweet potato, etc.)
High intake of naturally occurring vitamins (grass-fed meat, organ meats, pasture-raised eggs, colorful vegetables, etc.)
Quality proteins (grass-fed beef, free-range poultry, wild-caught fish, etc.)
High intake of antioxidants and plant compounds (berries, seed, culinary mushrooms, medicinal mushrooms)
Healthy fats (avocado oil, olive oil, palm oil, fat from grass-fed beef, wild-caught fish, quality fish oil, etc.)
Probiotic-rich foods or a daily probiotic supplement
These are the items we should keep to a minimum or eliminate in a healthy skin diet:
Excess refined carbohydrates or sweets (to avoid an accumulation of AGEs)
Fried Foods
Hydrogenated Oils (margarine, packaged chips, and crackers – read the label!!)
Refined oils high in omega 6 (canola, corn, soy, sesame, grapeseed, sunflower, etc.)
Anything that promotes digestive sensitization (if you are bloated, have gut pain, or cramping, etc. after certain foods cut them out!)
Alcohol (+illicit drugs) – Major liver stress here
Omega 3 Fatty Acids:
Essential fatty acids are ‘essential’ to consume or ‘supplement’ because your body doesn’t have the enzymes to make them. Omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are called polyunsaturated fats because they have many double bonds (poly=many). Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are crucial to skin function and appearance. [research] Both dietary and topical supplementation with EFAs can have profound effects on the fatty acid composition of the skin.
Most women (and anyone eating the standard American diet) do get enough omega 6 but are lacking in omega 3’s….and balance is key. The goal is 4:1 but most are at about 16:1 thanks to the delicious muffins, cookies, and the seed oils in processed foods. [read more here]. We want to get more of the anti-infammatory omega 3s to support the skin.
Know that it’s difficult to get clean sources of omega 3’s because our fish and animal protein contains mercury and other toxic metals. Hence this is one of the baseline supplements I recommend for women no matter what their age.
Some of the best ‘oils’ for skin are borage, fish, Leutin and Zeaxanthin.
Borage Oil is believed to decrease inflammation, hydrate, and restore dry skin, reduce eczema, thwart hair loss, alleviate aching joints, and aid in balancing hormones.
Lutein and Zeaxanthin work as supportive antioxidants in your skin. They can protect it from sun damage and may help improve skin tone and slow aging. [study]
Collagen:
As you age, your body makes less and less collagen. At the age of 20, your body makes about 1 % less each year. So if you are 50, you are making 50 % less than you were at 20!
Let that sink in.
But know that silica can help slow that decline. Silica is an important mineral that when at optimal levels, will help replenish your collagen stores faster. If you are taking collagen powder or drinking bone broth (rich on collagen), be sure you are getting silica from somewhere to ensure your body is absorbing and using the collagen optimally. Silica is like a ‘glue’ that bonds colllagen to your cells. Silica also helps your body to detox any metals that could be impacting skin health. Know that in our world today, we are very likely bogged down with metals. When it comes to supplements, quality matters. In the case of silica, natural bamboo is best to maximize absorption.
Vitamin C and Vitamin D + zinc
Vitamin C is a master antioxidant and plays an important role in many body functions, including the skin. It works as an anti-inflammatory and mops up free radicals. Some studies even show that taking vitamin C internally will prevent sunburns. You can read more research here.
Vitamin D in the skin can support anti-inflammatory actions and tissue repair, with researchers suggesting it may play a helpful role in sunburn healing. Hopefully you’re already taking this if low. But also know that vitamin d is considered a hormone and our hormones work as a symphony. We don’t want to randomly take too much and so it’s important to get tested. You’ll have to ask your Dr. or Naturopath to test for vitamin D levels because it’s not a standard lab in Canada as it is in other countries.
However, you’ll want to be careful taking zinc or vitamin d without knowing if you need them! Zinc can throw off copper levels and Vitamin D is also a hormone and taking too much may also lead to other imbalances. Test…don’t guess!
Liposomal Glutathione:
Glutathione is a master antioxidant that supports liver health, our main filtering organ. Glutathione offers support by quenching free radical damage and mobilizing toxicity and heavy metals. Our modern day life has made the job of the liver hard and it can become bogged down with too much to do. You’ll need to use this for 3-6 months to see a difference. But know that this is also working on a deeper layer of health by getting rid of toxins!.
Also, consider using clean products to reduce the number of chemicals and endocrine disruptors! I love the app Yuka for scanning and finding clean products.
Or make your own using high quality essential oils!
Below are 2 options that I’ve used with clients successfully! You’ll love them!
While I don’t like making general recommendations for supplements, I know people are just buying anyway and so I’d rather you get quality options.
Always remember we are all unique! So be sure to work with someone to get targeted support. :)
Check out my coaching program here.
References:
Recent advances in the anti-aging benefits of phytoestrogens
