Have you ever heard the popular phrase “You are what You eat”? Whether you like it or not your diet will reflect on your skin. Eat healthy food, and you will look healthy. Eat junk food, you won’t be looking good. That is why it is important to know the right foods to eat for clear skin. This article will help you get on the right track of skin care, because it is not all about using creams and products; the most basic skin care begins by eating right.
First you should know that a diet for the overall health of the body is the best place to start, and in most cases that is enough for your skin, unless you have a deficiency of some type. But there are certain foods you must eat in order to keep your skin looking healthy, young and radiant.
Start by cutting junk food. People who eat junk food gain weight, have a pasty complexion and even bad hair. I know it is hard at first, but you can start little by little, always walking towards your goal. And please, don’t get into yo-yo diets. By gaining and losing weight constantly, your skin will stretch, and then remain saggy.
Fluids
Fluids are essential to our skin diet because they help moisturize the skin. Experts recommend that we should drink 6 to 8 glasses of water throughout the day, but don’t fall in the trap of drinking the 8 glasses in the morning, you should rationalize them and drink them in a natural way.
Don’t replace water for coffee or sodas. Caffeine is a diuretic (tends to increase the discharge of urine). Reduce your intake of coffee or tea to a maximum of 2 per day. Also don’t drinking too much water 2-3 hours before going to bed to avoid morning puffiness and skin stretch.
Alcohol is bad, avoid it at all costs if possible.
Essential Fatty Acids
Also called EFAs, they are obtained from food, because our bodies can’t produce them. There are two classes of EFAs: Omega 3 and Omega 6. For our skin Omega 3 is the one we need.
EFA’s should account for a 15% of our calorie intake, and can be found on:
* Sardines
* Tuna
* Salmon
* Nuts
* Seeds and their oils (ground flaxseeds)
* Prawns
* Soya beans
Reducing the intake of saturated and processed fats is very important if you want the EFAs to work. These fats cancel its effects.
Antioxidants
Antioxidant nutrients protect us from infection and can prevent us from degenerative diseases such as cancer or heart disease. These nutrients are found in Vitamins A, C, E and some B complex vitamins; and minerals selenium, manganese and zinc.
Antioxidants play a key role destroying free radicals (electrochemically unbalanced molecules that are produced within our bodies by chemicals, too much sun exposure and stress). Free radicals damage collagen, and collagen is what keeps our skin elastic.
We can find antioxidants in:
* Berries
* Black grapes
* Brazil nuts
* Broccoli
* Carrots
* Cherries
* Chestnuts
* Hazelnuts
* Kale
* Raisins
* Papaya
* Peas
* Peppers
* Prunes
* Spinch
* Sweet potatoes
* Tomatoes
Iron
Iron is used for the formation of hemoglobin. A deficiency in iron brings anemia, and this shows up in our bodies by a pale complexion and dark circles under the eyes. Iron is best processed from animal food but can be found also in some vegetables. The best sources of iron are
* Red meat
* Seafood
* Liver
* Eggs
* Spinach
Vitamin A
Vitamin A helps in the formation of new cell, this keeps our skin supple and is vital for our eyes and hair. If you are lacking of Vitamin A, your skin will be dry and flaky. It is manufactured by our bodies from beta-carotene and can be found in:
* Whole milk
* Whole butter
* Liver
* Oily fish
* Eggs
* Dark orange vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash)
* Dark green vegetables (broccoli, spinach, kale)
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant, essential for the production of collagen (the elastic tissue in our skin that declines with age). Every time you are smoking, under stress or under too much sun exposure, your are draining vitamin C from your body, so it is best to avoid these situations in excess. Vitamin is found in:
* Citrus fruits (orange, lemon, grapefruit, lime)
* Tomatoes
* Potatoes
* Papaya
* Broccoli
* Brussels sprouts
* Black currants
* Kiwi
* Strawberries
* Peas
* Cauliflower
Vitamin E
Another antioxidant, Vitamin E has a powerful action against the damage of free radicals. This vitamin helps our skin retain its moisture, and a lack of it brings premature wrinkles, pale skin, acne, easy bruising and slow wound healing. Vitamin E can be found in:
* Vegetable oils
* Nuts and seeds
* Peanut butter
* Wheat germ
* Whole grains
* Avocados
* Sweet potatoes
Vitamin B complex
Keep your skin moist and smooth with Vitamin B complex. It releases energy from food for skin metabolism. This can be found in:
* Milk
* Oily fish
* Poultry
* Red meat
* Offal
* Eggs
* Bananas
* Soya beans
* Whole grain
* Wheat germ
* Peanut butter
* Fortified breakfast cereals
Beta-carotene
Beta carotene is the plant form of the vitamin A, converted by our bodies. It protects us from the aging effect of the sun and can be found in:
* Dark green vegetables (spinach, broccoli, watercress)
* Orange fruit and vegetables
Selenium
Perfect for protection against free radicals and to counter dry skin. Selenium along with vitamin E support the immune system. Found in:
* Cereals
* Meat
* Offal
* Seafood
* Eggs
* Cheese
* Brazil nuts
* Whole grains
* Mushrooms
* Beans
* Molasses
* Wheat germs
Zinc
Zinc is another mineral vital to the immune system. It manufactures collagen and speeds up healing in our bodies, included skin. A deficiency produces stretch marks, a dull complexion, white spots on fingernails, dandruff and stubborn blemishes. Zinc can be found on:
* Seafood
* Red meat
* Cheese
* Brewer’s yeast
* Whole grains
* Mushrooms
* Offal
* Eggs
* Turkey and nuts
As you see there are many components in our diets that can help our skin. Instead of making yourself a diet just for skin care, make one that works for the health of your overall body, and then, if you find a deficiency you will know what foods you need to eat to keep your skin clear and good looking. It’s all about balancing your diet.
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15Dec
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26Jul
As a fitness professional, I’m always amazed (and puzzled) with the conflict people seem to have with losing weight, yet they refuse to stop eating junk food. An interesting thing I have noticed over my many years helping people to lose weight is that almost every single person that has told me that they are “attempting” to lose weight, almost always has their house filled with all sorts of junk food instead of whole unprocessed natural food.
It is not uncommon for people to tell me that they are trying really hard to lose weight, but I will still notice boxes of apple jacks and fruity pebbles on their counters, cakes, candies, and chips in their cupboard, and sodas or syrupy juices in their refrigerator.
So the question that always stumps me is that if all of these people honestly wanted to lose weight so bad, why in the world do most people still have their houses filled with junk foods instead of healthy food?
Interestingly, the answer usually is that they do not want to give up their favorite foods because they think that eating this junk food allows them to “live a little”… if you ask me, it sounds more like dying a little with each bite!
My take on it is that eating junk foods has nothing at all to do with enjoying your life… In reality, when you give up junk foods you actually enjoy life more because you feel better and are more energetic every day. In addition, getting into better shape by not eating junk food can obviously help improve the way your body looks (and therefore increases your confidence), thereby making you enjoy life even more.
One thing that many people fail to realize is that eating healthy does not have to mean eating bland and boring food. Instead, when you learn to enjoy natural unprocessed food and start exploring all of the varieties of natural food that this planet has to offer us, you learn that you can enjoy the natural flavors of real foods more than overly processed aggressive tastes that are so common with excessively sweet and salty junk food.
An example of this is that the other day I wanted an unsweetened iced tea while out on the road, but all that the store had available was these bottles of heavily sweetened iced tea. Well, I have not bought a fully sweetened iced tea in probably at least a few years now… I have actually gotten used to drinking unsweetened iced tea and have learned to appreciate the natural taste of tea without needing sugar or other sweeteners.
Whe I drank this bottled sweet tea, I almost gagged because it was so syrupy sweet, it was absolutely nasty.
A similar example… I used to need a lot of sugar in coffee, but after a slowly reducing the amount of sugar I would use in coffe, I can now actually drink black coffee and enjoy the natural flavor of it without needing sweeteners (although I rarely drink coffee).
These are just a couple examples of how once you start appreciating the natural flavors of real food, you find that you no longer need the super-aggressive salty, sugary, or artificial flavors that have been ingrained in us by the food companies and all of the junk food they push on us.
My belief is that everyone should actually enjoy what they eat, and can do it without eating overly processed junk food… Actually, people are often surprised to hear that a lot of the foods that they think are junk food, I have healthy alternatives that they never thought of.
A few examples:
Junk food: a chocolate candy bar, a chocolate donut, or a piece of chocolate cake
Healthier alternative: a couple pieces of extra-dark chocolate (greater than 70-75% cocoa content only)… this is higher in fiber and much less sugar than milk chocolate or even dark chocolates that are less than 70% cocoa content
Junk food: Deep fried and breaded chicken fingers and fries on the side (loads of nasty trans fats)
Healthier alternative: grilled chicken breast strips with peanut dipping sauce and vegetables on the side
Junk food: a cheap fast-food burger on a processed refined white bun
Healthier alternative: A grass-fed burger (higher in CLA and omega-3 fats) with raw grass-fed cheese on a sprouted grain roll
How about that for eating healthier yet still very tasty foods!
I hope that what you get out of this article is that there is more to life than eating junk food, and eating junk does not necessarily mean that you’re “living a little” as so many people say. Instead, I feel the opposite is true.
Eat healthier and discover the natural flavors of real foods (not processed) and you’ll soon discover that you no longer need junk food. Enjoy!
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06Jul
The weight loss market is flooded with low calorie diets and advertisements for the best healthy low calorie diet. Those looking into weight loss are looking into losing weight quickly and at the same time they want to stay healthy.
The internet is flooded with weight loss tips and how to lose weight fast healthy tips. The main problem that comes up with a person who wants to lose weight quickly is the fact that they often can not lose weight quickly on low calorie diets, or worse the low calorie diet is not actually a healthy low calorie diet for them.
Many weight loss tips are going to recommend a dietary supplement in order to counteract the effects that low calorie diets have on the body. Even a healthy low calorie diet is going to leave the body deficient in many necessary areas and losing weight quickly increases the deficiency. Since this is one of the largest road blocks to losing weight quickly, this deficiency often at times is seen to hinder and prevent real permanent weight loss.
Weight loss supplements like Cheia Vida and Cheia Vida Slim are some of the supplements that offer what the body needs when you want to lose weight quickly. Cheia Vida and Cheia Vida Slim both contain ingredients that are all-natural and have been proven to help the body lose weight quickly and help to correct the deficiencies found in people who are dieting.
Not only does Cheia Vida and Cheia Vida Slim contain ingredients that help to correct nutrient imbalances caused by dieting but they also contain elements to give you more energy as well as help to aid your body in shedding weight faster. This helps to make your diet that much more effective and helps you to reach your weight loss goals in less time.
