Skin Care From the Inside Out

If you want to keep your skin looking radiant, then you should know what you put in your body is as important as what you use on your skin. If you have a good skin care regimen in place that's great, but it's only half the battle. The other half will not only make you look better, but feel better as well. So what is an anti-inflammatory diet?

The condition of our skin is a good indicator of our overall health. It's not often you see a sick person with great skin. An anti-inflammatory diet is rich in good common sense foods. I've discussed these in detail in earlier posts, but I have to drive this point home because it is that necessary, not only for beautiful skin but for your overall health.

Proteins are the building blocks necessary to maintain good muscle tone. Without good muscle tone you will see more sagging. Some of the best proteins to eat are wild salmon, white chicken, turkey, lean read meats, and egg whites. Make sure to eat them oven roasted, BBQ, baked etc. not fried. Okay, so protein is great for tone and less sagging, so what's next?

Healthy fats. That's right, I said healthy and fat in the same sentence. Our skin and our bodies need healthy fat to be at their best. healthy fats will add glow to your skin helping to keep it soft and supple. Healthy fats are found in foods such as raw almonds, fish, extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed and avocados. Add these to your diet in moderation and you will feel and see the difference.

Antioxidant rich foods/carbohydrates are important as well. Healthy carbohydrates are necessary to fight free radicals as they boost our bodies ability to produce more collagen. Collagen depletion is one of the main reasons we wrinkle and lose elasticity, resulting in older looking skin. Antioxidant rich foods also help fight the damage from sun exposure. Some of these foods to include in your diet every day are blueberries, blackcurrant berries, blackberries, strawberries and cranberries. These foods will help keep your skin looking younger and healthier.

Drink your water, at least 8 glasses a day. And no, coffee, soda, juices, diet drinks are not the same. Caffeine will dehydrate your skin, juices deliver too much sugar and soda....well soda offers nothing you need.

I don't believe in taking a ton of vitamins. I believe a healthy diet is much more beneficial. There are three vitamins I do take every day. I take 1000mg Omega-3 Fish Oil, 500mg Vitamin-C Soft Gels Tabs, and 100mg CoQ10. The fish oil adds the healthy fat mentioned above to keep my skin soft. Vitamin-C fights free radicals and the CoQ10 energizes at the cellular level keeping cell turnover happening on a regular basis.

As always check with your doctor before taking any supplements as these can interfere with some medications. Now go have yourself a healthy meal and a big glass of water.