Happy New Year, Fashionistas & Stylinistas;
I sincerely hope you all had a lovely holiday season; I also hope that you enjoyed good health and were able to maintain a comfortable diet and exercise program amid all the fun.
From the beginning of this blog I have mentioned that we would be discussing the five building blocks of physical health necessary to "rock our age"; diet, exercise, sleep, stress reduction, and skin care. Today we are going to discuss skin care in a bit greater depth because it is the most challenging time of year for mature skin. It is the most challenging because of the colder weather, because of the foods we put in our body, and it is the most inconvenient time of the year to take proper care of our skin.
I'm sure most of you know your skin type (dry, oily, combination, skin allergies, etc.) On November 24th, I posted the four basics of skin care that almost every woman must perform to have her best skin. (cleansing, moisturizing, exfoliation,UV protection-If you haven't already read it, I would suggest reviewing the post for the basics.
In that post I discussed the importance of eating nuts, fruits and vegetables and drinking appropriate liquids. I want to spend a bit more time on its importance in this post. Being a Nutritarian, I cannot stress strongly enough the most important part of skin care is what you put in your body, not what you put on it.
Many women forget that alcohol in excess of one drink per day and five days per week is damaging to skin. (one drink is 1 shot of liquor, 5 oz of wine, or 12 oz of beer) Too much processed foods and sugars further damage the skin. All too often complexion faults can be attributed to greasy saturated fats, yet not enough healthy oils (olive, nut oils) are eaten to keep the skin smooth and supple. I have not mentioned smoking (tobacco or other) because I don't believe there is a woman on the planet does not know that is almost certain death to healthy and youthful skincare. Many women do not drink enough water to flush toxins out of the body,
For those of you who like smoothies or are juicers, it is a simple matter to assure you get the right amount of fruits and vegetables (juicers, remember to eat the fiber) in healthy drinks made with berries, apples carrots, leafy greens, herbs and spices, bananas, tomatoes, cucumbers, nuts, etc. There are literally thousands of recipes available on the internet or in book stores to suit any taste. For those of us who cannot tolerate too many juices, whole fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables are in abundant supply even when out of season. Avocados, bananas, coconut, citrus fruits, berries, and any dark green or purple plant supply our bodies with many essential vitamins; the list is endless.
Although diet is extremely important for great skin, it is not enough; exercise and enough sleep are also critical. Aerobic exercise not only helps reduce the waistline and helps to lose weight, it also increases the blood supply to the skin and hair folicles. It also aids circulation of blood to remove toxins stored in the body. Inadequate amounts of quality sleep are necessary to provide repair to damaged skin. As you can see, the same principles that apply to to good health also are the same requirements for great skin and hair.
Many of us believe the same foods that are eaten to provide the greatest advantage to one's skin is also the same that provide us with the best skin care. I have found home made skin cleanser, moisturizer, and masks are more beneficial to my skin. I must admit that they are messier and require more work and greater care. I have had to do quite a lot of research to find the best combinations that work for me.
In addition to diet, exercise, and adequate sleep, cold weather requires additional moisture protection. Also, just because it is cold does not mean we can forget protection from the sun. Sunscreen and hats are just as important in winter weather as in hot weather.
Many women forget that alcohol in excess of one drink per day and five days per week is damaging to skin. (one drink is 1 shot of liquor, 5 oz of wine, or 12 oz of beer) Too much processed foods and sugars further damage the skin. All too often complexion faults can be attributed to greasy saturated fats, yet not enough healthy oils (olive, nut oils) are eaten to keep the skin smooth and supple. I have not mentioned smoking (tobacco or other) because I don't believe there is a woman on the planet does not know that is almost certain death to healthy and youthful skincare. Many women do not drink enough water to flush toxins out of the body,
For those of you who like smoothies or are juicers, it is a simple matter to assure you get the right amount of fruits and vegetables (juicers, remember to eat the fiber) in healthy drinks made with berries, apples carrots, leafy greens, herbs and spices, bananas, tomatoes, cucumbers, nuts, etc. There are literally thousands of recipes available on the internet or in book stores to suit any taste. For those of us who cannot tolerate too many juices, whole fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables are in abundant supply even when out of season. Avocados, bananas, coconut, citrus fruits, berries, and any dark green or purple plant supply our bodies with many essential vitamins; the list is endless.
Although diet is extremely important for great skin, it is not enough; exercise and enough sleep are also critical. Aerobic exercise not only helps reduce the waistline and helps to lose weight, it also increases the blood supply to the skin and hair folicles. It also aids circulation of blood to remove toxins stored in the body. Inadequate amounts of quality sleep are necessary to provide repair to damaged skin. As you can see, the same principles that apply to to good health also are the same requirements for great skin and hair.
Many of us believe the same foods that are eaten to provide the greatest advantage to one's skin is also the same that provide us with the best skin care. I have found home made skin cleanser, moisturizer, and masks are more beneficial to my skin. I must admit that they are messier and require more work and greater care. I have had to do quite a lot of research to find the best combinations that work for me.
In addition to diet, exercise, and adequate sleep, cold weather requires additional moisture protection. Also, just because it is cold does not mean we can forget protection from the sun. Sunscreen and hats are just as important in winter weather as in hot weather.
Like personal style, however, every woman must identify and find the exact best fit of products for routine care for her individual type of skin. Total skin care is vitally important to our over all health and appearance because skin is the largest organ in the human body and deserves quite a bit of our attention.
One New Years resolution I hope each of us will make and keep is to drink a healthy smoothie at least five days a week. I also hope we resolve never to forget to protect our skin from the sun, develop and practice a daily skin care ritual, get at least 7 hours (preferably more) sleep per night, and perform 150 minutes of aerobic exercise every week.
I know these routines have helped me improve my all over health and skin quality (yes, of course, I blow it once in a while!), but it is my continuing resolution.
Let's all have a great 2016!!!!!!..........Geneva.....Rockmyages@aol.com
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