Healthy skin – naturally

By Lovely Ranganath, Dietician, Al Zahra Hospital, Sharjah 

Yes, there are lots of healthy reasons for following a balanced diet, among which an important one is that there is a built-in beauty bonus. The phrase, “You are what you eat”, has never been so true. The skin mirrors what’s going on inside your body. Healthy skin starts from the inside and works out. A healthy diet will keep your skin looking its best. 

Too much stress, smoking, excessive alcohol, lack of sleep, crash diets…all affects the state of your skin. 

Eating the right foods can meet several needs, including your need for energy, the correct balance of nutrients and stress reduction. Few of the things to keep in mind with regards to diet and nutrition are:

• Including a portion of carbohydrate in your meal helps, by triggering the release of the brain neurotransmitter serotonin, which soothes you. Good sources of carbohydrates include rice, pasta, potatoes, whole meal breads, air-popped popcorn, etc.
• Choosing foods high in fiber helps to keep your digestive system moving, since stress can result in cramps and constipation. Fruits, vegetables and grains are excellent sources of fiber.
• Eating more vegetables can increase your brains’ serotonin production. This increase is due to improved absorption of the amino acid Tryptophan – vegetables contain the natural safe form of L-Tryptophan. In other words, eat a salad for lunch.
• Choosing green, yellow, and orange vegetables will boost the immune response and protect against disease, since these are all rich in minerals, vitamins and phytochemicals.

For many years researchers believed that acne was due to the high fat, high sugar content of many teenagers’ diet, typically composed of French fries, sodas, burgers, and the like. This still appears to be partly to blame. However, recent studies would tend to indicate that the foods that are not being eaten by young people are more important I their getting acne. 

A well balanced diet should definitely include anti-aging antioxidants. Antioxidants are compounds that scavenge and neutralize harmful, reactive molecules called free radicals. Antioxidants are now appearing in face creams and rejuvenation lotions, as also supplements. But taking supplements or using creams will not give you what nature has already provided in fresh, healthy food. 

Vegetables and fruits are packed with the best-known anti-oxidants – vitamins C, E & beta-carotene (converted to vitamin A, once in the body). If you still choose to supplement, consider it an ‘extra’ over and above what you can get from good healthy food. Other than the above-mentioned nutrients, your skin also needs a good supply of nutrients like protein, iron, zinc, copper and folic acid. 

To make sure your body gets a regular supply of the above mentioned nutrients you need to include these beauty boosters in your diet everyday, irrespective of your skin type or the climatic conditions under which you live:

• Fruit – at least 2 to 3 servings
• Vegetables – at least 5 servings
• Grains – at least 6 servings
• Fish, lean meat, chicken, eggs – 1 to 2 servings
• Yogurt or reduced fat milk – 2 to 3 servings
• Oils – 1 to 2 tablespoons
• Water – 2 liters

I am sure the ladies would be especially interested in knowing about magical foods, which are true beauty aids…. Here is a list of those foods that can do your skin the most good:

• Carrots – are the gold mine for beta-carotene, which your body converts to skin smoothing vitamin A. Aim to eat one carrot a day.
• Chicken – You get a complete array of amino acids, which will fuel the growth of new skin cells.
• Mangoes – One medium sized mango will take care of your recommended allowance of both vitamins A and C.
• Oats – Provides you with both insoluble and soluble fiber. Insoluble fiber keeps your bowel movement regular, avoiding constipation, which can precipitate skin eruptions. Soluble fiber helps stabilize your blood sugar level, so emotions stay on an eve level.
• Oysters – Will add zinc to your diet, which aids in the disposal of beauty-robbing carbon dioxide from the dermis. It facilitates protein synthesis that is essential for skin-cell renewal. Eating oysters also taps you into one of the chief sources of copper, which is instrumental in the formation of healthy red blood cells that nourish the skin.
• Papaya – Provides vitamin A that most directly contributes to keeping ski texture youthful. It also bolsters your skin’s ability to resist infection.
• Parsley – There are lots of nutrients I each little sprig, including the B-vitamin, folic acid which helps keep skin tone vibrant since it plays a role in the formation and maturation of red blood cells.
• Potatoes – Are a rich source of vitamin C, iron, copper, niacin, folic acid…and if you eat the skin, a fair amount of fiber.
• Spinach – Half cup of cooked spinach has more than your daily need for vitamin A and is a good source of calcium.
• Strawberries – An excellent source of vitamin C, which is critical to the formation of collagen, a key element of the connective tissue that keeps the skin firm.
• Tomatoes -  a low calorie year-round skin helper….You get vitamins A & C along with some niacin and fiber, for only 30 calories.
• Whole grain breads / cereals – Rich in fiber, zinc and B-vitamins.
• Yogurt – One cup of low fat yogurt gives you a good amount of protein, zinc, folic acid, B12 (important for healthy blood and skin tone) and riboflavin, important for providing energy for skin cells.

Apart from including the above healthy foods you need to remember that no matter what kind of skin you have, there are some general points to keep in mind: 

• First, I’d also like to tell you about stress and its effect on the skin, simply because it is an unavoidable part of a person’s life, more so in this part of the world… When you are low on time, energy and practically everything else, it’s just plain easier to frequent fast food establishments or grab something convenient from the cupboard. This practice often translates into a diet high in fat, salt, sugar and caffeine and low in fiber and essential micronutrients. If this is characteristic of your eating habits for more than just a few days in a row, your ability to deal constructively with the stress you are under will likely be compromised. Perhaps you are beginning to get the picture: stress often leads to poor eating habits and habitual poor eating leads to a more profound stress response. It should also come as no surprise that eating is a common response to stress. For most of us, when stress settles into our lives, it makes itself right at home across our faces. So to add to the dark bags under your eyes from lack of sleep, and the gray skin tone from lack of exercise…too much smoking, drinking, and poor diet, you literally become a walking billboard for the menacing results of stress.

• Drink plenty of water – Your body loses water throughout the day and you need to put at least as much as you lose. Water keeps your skin looking fresher. Your skin type can change from season to season. Winter is the worst season for dry-skin sufferers. Here again the answer is to drink plenty of water to hydrate the skin from the inside. This is especially rue in the case of diabetic patients. If your blood sugar is high, your body loses fluid. With less fluid in your body, your skin can be itchy, causing you to scratch and make it sore. Also dry skin can crack. Cracks allow germs to enter and cause infection. Once again drinking water helps to keep skin moist and healthy.
• Saturated animal fats found in red meat and dairy products made from whole milk are to avoided or limited. But do not completely eliminate polyunsaturated fats (from corn, sunflower and soybean oil). Even strict low fat diets should contain one to two tablespoon of polyunsaturated oil each day, since without it you cannot absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, & E, and a deficiency of these vitamins could result in red and irritated skin.
• Quit smoking – Smoking and excess sun will leave you with deeper and darker wrinkles. The tobacco smoke released into the air dries out your skin, while the smoke you inhale constricts blood vessels, and therefore, the amount of blood flowing to the skin, robbing your skin of essential nutrients. Remember, smokers have a two to threefold chance of developing psoriasis, a chronic skin condition.
• Crash diets are the biggest culprit when it comes to destroying your skin. The elastic network of collagen fibers break down when you rapidly lose weight, and that in turn promotes the formation of permanent wrinkles. Sensible, slow weight loss won’t harm your skin if you stick to a balanced diet.
• Excessive alcohol is another notorious beauty robber. Among other things, it can cause tiny facial capillaries to burst, resulting in unsightly spidery lines.
• Sleep is something we take for granted, something we seem to have no time for. Insufficient sleep does more than make you cranky. Nighttime is the best time to deliver nutrition to the skin. At rest, your body is not tending to other activities, so it is able to focus on the absorption and redistribution of fluids, it ignored while you were engaged in your hectic day. Sleep at least 71/2 hours a day. Schedule it if you have to. Sleep deprivation can make you look older than your age. Your muscles become fatigued, causing your face to droop. Your face may look sallow because, as your body suffers exhaustion, your blood pressure drops, so that less oxygen is available to your skin cells. The skin will mirror a well-rested body with vitality and a healthy glow.

Remember, the key to good skin starts with good nutrition. Therefore, it is important that you feed your body a well balanced diet.

Photo courtesy: .oneworld.net 

Ms Lovely Ranganath, Dietician, M.Sc (Food Science & Nutrition), Dip. Fitness & Nutrition, Al Zahra Hospital, Sharjah and Al Zahra Medical Centre, Dubai will be regularly writing on Diet and Nutrition on womenone.org.