Each year,
Americans spend billions trying to
maintain youthful looking skin. Annually American’s spend approximately one
billion dollars on anti-wrinkle creams alone! With all of this money being
spent, it is clear that there is a great need for reaching and maintaining more
vibrant, youthful, and smooth skin.
The problem
with this is that most of these creams and solutions are filled with synthetic
and toxic ingredients. Most commonly found commercial brands contain synthetic
chemicals that act as hormone disruptors in the body, which lead to hormone
imbalances and a mile-long list of potential symptoms and problems.
However,
when you take care to purchase truly natural, “clean,” and high quality facial
care products, free from toxic ingredients, you are helping to boost the health
and appearance of your skin. These natural forms of creams boost the moisture,
elasticity, and vibrancy of your skin but without any of the internal damage
caused by synthetic chemicals.
But, if
you’re looking to maintain or improve the state of your skin, you’re going to
get the most powerful results when you combine proper, high quality facial care
products with proper nutrition and lifestyle habits.
When you
combine proper nutrition and lifestyle habits with your “clean” face care
products, you are working to prevent or treat the internal cause of the wrinkles and aged skin. Wouldn’t it make more sense to
prevent the problem in the first place rather than merely trying to keep it
from getting worse? Below we will look at one of the main internal reasons for
wrinkles and aged skin and how to take the steps to maintain a youthful
appearance, naturally!
There is a
fancy term for a process involving sugar that goes on in the body, and it’s
called glycation. Glycation happens naturally in the body as is part of the
aging process that we all go through. When we ingest sugar, particularly sugar from
the refined and processed forms, a chemical reaction happens inside the body where
the sugar molecules attach themselves to protein molecules (or fat molecules)
without an enzyme involved to moderate. When this happens, the molecule formed
is essentially a ‘rogue’ molecule that is known as an advanced glycation
endproduct, or AGE, which is quite the appropriate acronym!
When this
process (which is normally driven by an enzyme) happens without the enzyme
present, normal metabolic functioning is disrupted and the sugar, instead of
being used for energy, combines with protein or fat molecules and produces an
AGE. These AGE molecules can cause a number of health risks and undesirable effects,
including wrinkles and droopy skin.
When we eat
too much sugar and glycation occurs, we are basically caramelizing, or
‘browning’ and hardening, the body’s tissues. Foods that are cooked at high
temperatures to be browned or made crisp also contain high amounts of AGE
molecules. This same process happens in to the tissues of the body. The same
effect that AGE molecules has on browning and hardening the cooked food has a
similar effect on our skin, just at a slower rate. Basically, consuming AGEs is
associated with higher oxidative damage to the cells. This oxidative damage is
directly linked with wrinkles and aged skin.
But why are
AGE molecules so bad? Essentially, these ‘rogue’ molecules disrupt the normal
function of the metabolism and of proper cellular functioning. These disruptive
molecules change both the shape and the function of the tissues in our body.
They harden cells and lead to stiffness. In time, all of this oxidation and
hardening of the proteins in the body lead not only to decreased functioning
that causes disease, but also damages internally the tissues and cells of our
skin, which manifests in the form of wrinkles, droopy skin, and poor
coloration.
There are
two proteins that are found in abundance in our skin who have the role of
helping keep the skin youthful, and they are collagen and elastin. These two
proteins are particularly prone to the effects of glycation; when they are
fused with the sugar molecules, they become weak and less able to do their
jobs. When these proteins that are responsible for keeping our skin looking
firm, plump, and vibrant aren’t able to function well, the result is going to
be aged, wrinkled skin.
While too
much sugar in any form can and does lead to AGE molecules, the more processed
the sugar (or processed carbohydrate) the worse the effect. For example, eating
too much sugar from a highly processed donut will produce more AGE molecules
and oxidation than getting too much sugar from fruit. While too much fruit
still floods the bloodstream with sugar, there is also fiber, vitamins, and
minerals being provided to help lessen the impact on the bloodstream. Processed
sugars on the other hand not only spike the blood sugar more strongly, but the
processed ingredients also lead to more oxidative damage.
It is
important to know that consuming too much sugar or foods that are high in AGE
molecules (chips, crackers, grilled foods, or other foods cooked at high
temperatures) lead to a number of health problems that are significantly more
important than wrinkles, such as heart disease, kidney problems, loss of vision,
and arthritis, to name a few. Taking care to avoid AGE molecules as much as
possible will help prevent a lot more than wrinkles!
The main
take-home message if you want to have beautiful, youthful skin, is to greatly
reduce your intake of sugar from all forms. Not only will doing so treat the
cause of the problem, but will also have a number of other positive results to
your health.
Aside from
minimizing your sugar intake, there are also some key tips to naturally
reducing wrinkles and maintaining healthy skin:
1.
Avoid
smoking (smoking is one of the highest forms of free radical, oxidative damage
to the body)
2.
Avoid
unprotected sun exposure (and use natural sunscreens for protection)
3.
Consistently
stay hydrated with sufficient amounts of clean water
4.
Maintain
nutrition status (nutritional deficiencies don’t allow the cells to function
correctly or to protect themselves from oxidative damage, leading to impaired
skin)
5.
Decrease
stress
6.
Get adequate
amounts of sleep and sleep on your back, face up
7.
Consume plenty
essential fatty acids from whole, fresh foods
8.
Consume an
abundance of natural antioxidants from vegetables, healthy fats, fresh fruits,
and whole grains
9.
Avoid
chemicals, toxins, and pollutants as much as possible, all of which cause
inflammation and oxidative damage
10.Use
natural face products such as moisturizing lotions to aid in keeping the skin
hydrated and nourished
Product
lines like Sodee Naturals are the best choice for your facial care products,
as they use pure ingredients, where the additives are natural and plant based
rather than the common conventional products that are full of damaging
chemicals. It's important to take care of your skin on the inside and on the
outside!
About The Author
Bree West
Bree West is
a nutritionist, personal trainer, and coach. She has two Bachelor’s Degrees,
one in Exercise & Wellness from Brigham Young University and a second in
Holistic Nutrition from Clayton College. Bree’s main priority is helping you reach your goals and live the life
you desire by combining proper nutrition, fitness & mindset habits. To
reach more people, Bree created Smart
Body & Mind, a website
passionately dedicated to the three areas nutrition, fitness & mindset.
