These tips are boring...Follow them anyway.
Don’t let these boring, pedestrian tips fall to the wayside, Beauties! I know it is more exciting to get fixated on the latest skin care gadget or miracle product, but honestly, these basic tips will set you up for lovelier skin no matter if you use the latest skin care gewgaws or not. Lets get set up for healthy skin from the inside out, starting today and for forever onward!
Sugar Sugar~
It is the season where sugary foods may start wending their way into our lives, so lets put a little focus on how sugar impacts our skin. Let me just say first off that I love sweet things! (Exhibit A: one of my favorite brownie recipes. Exhibit B: one of my favorite cookie recipes. And also this cookie recipe…) But! Too much sugar will actually damage the collagen in our skin, hastening wrinkling and increasing poor skin texture. (When we eat sugar, it instigates a process called glycation, where collagen fibers in our skin crosslink, essentially becoming damaged. This creates visible wrinkles.)
Too much sugar also causes insulin spikes, which can lead to water retention (puffy face? baggy eyes, anyone?). Sugar-induced insulin spikes can also cause testosterone production to increase, which can exacerbate oily skin, as well as cause or worsen breakouts. Increased testosterone can also diminish blood flow (which reduces oxygen flow) by hardening blood vessels. This diminishes the oxygen that can reach our facial skin, and leaves us with a tired, lack-luster complexion.
Too much sugar is also dehydrating. It takes a lot of water for our bodies to process and get rid of excess sugar. This can cause dehydration that can show up in our skin as dark, under-eye circles, baggy eyes and a dull complexion.
Too much sugar can also lead to low-grade inflammation. (Chronic inflammation speeds up aging in our skin.)
The sugary foods that can derail our complexion’s natural gorgeousness are usually highly sweetened, processed things with low nutritional value…Halloween candies, overly sweet, flavored coffee drinks, “Bubble Tea” (Boba Tea), which has more sugar in one serving that any human would want to consume in an entire day, and other foods like this.
(Don’t let the word “tea” in Bubble Tea fool you! The health benefits of a good quality green tea are simply not present in Bubble Tea. Bubble Tea can even cause constipation because of the preservatives, food additives and thickeners used in making it. Note: our skin does not love having our digestion messed up. While Bubble Tea is extremely high in sugar, it has no actual nutrition for our skin to utilize and benefit from. Ditto for processed candy and just about any sweetened coffee drink with flavored syrup in it.)
Regular intake of any highly processed, low nutrition, high sugar foods and drinks will, sooner or later, dim our skin’s healthy glow. (Boo.)
However! Absolutely enjoy whole, fresh fruit! Our skin loves whole, fresh fruit (and squash and veggies). The sweetness of most fruit is tempered with an abundance of water, vitamins, minerals and fiber- all of which our skin loves and needs. (Right now apples, grapes and pears are lusciously in season. Soon grapefruits and persimmons will be fully ripe and in season. Enjoy this!) Have I mentioned your skin loves whole, fresh fruit (and squash and veggies)?
The Nirvana and Beauty of Peaceful Sleep
The Nirvana and Beauty of Peaceful Sleep~
Schedules and obligations can ramp up this time of year…busy holidays, intensified workload, family expectations, to name just a few. Good sleep is so helpful all the way around. So…what does receiving 7 to 9 hours of replenishing sleep each night do for our skin?
Our bodies replenish while we sleep. They do marvelous things like build the collagen that keeps our skin smooth and strong. When we chronically deprive ourselves of sleep, we are actually increasing the wrinkling of our skin.
Our bodies boost blood flow when we sleep, which brings more oxygen to our facial skin, which helps to amplify rosy cheeks and a peachy, healthy glow. A chronic lack of plentiful, restful sleep (and less oxygen to our facial skin), can leave us with a lifeless, gray pallor.
A lack of sleep can exacerbate dark under eye circles (no surprise here). Sleep deprivation exacerbates low circulation, which can allow blood to stagnate. Our skin is really thin under our eyes, so this stagnation shows through as dark circles.
Being exhausted can actually make the corners our mouths droop! (Over-all fatigue can cause our facial muscles to sag a bit.)
Getting ample, restful sleep each night makes our skin care products work better. Truly! Good skin care products are designed to work in harmony with the natural healing processes of our skin, and every night while we sleep, our skin is busy repairing and rejuvenating itself. Following a good skin care regimen every PM and then getting plentiful, restorative sleep each night is an absolutely unbeatable combo.
Good Exercise Rejuvenates Our Skin
Good Exercise Rejuvenates Our Skin~
There is a theme here- good circulation (which we can receive amply from exercise) is soooo good for our skin! Increasing circulation brings nourishing blood to our skin cells, keeping them healthy and vital…increasing oxygen flow to our facial skin gives us healthy color and a glow…increasing lymph flow helps to decrease puffy eyes or a puffy face…The list of skin benefits is extensive.
And! At the same time, this time of year gets so busy…it seems harder and harder to find time for a workout, a walk, a run, a bike ride (plus the rain and shorter daylight hours also create a challenge to getting outside when its light out).
If you are struggling to get to the gym or yoga studio or to figure out how to fit a workout in…have you discovered the huge library of free workout videos online, for every level? You may be in for a treat. I have been pleasantly surprised by some of the (free!) videos to be found online- everything from yoga to Pilates to barre to chi gong to Thai chi, and some of it is not bad! Some classes are even very good! You can find hour long classes, or 40 minute classes, or 30 minute or 10 minute classes…So you can find something to match whatever amount of time and energy you have on any given day. This can supplement whatever exercise you are already doing, or get you started if you haven’t found your exercise groove yet…by making it a bit easier to get some movement in each day.
Don’t be surprised when your skin starts glowing up along with your daily exercise. (Your gorgeous, glorious skin says “thank you.”)
Quench with Water
Quench with Water~
Being well-hydrated from the inside out is great for our skin. When we are flush with water this supports healthy circulation, which encourages a more glowing complexion, and can even help to keep dark circles and puffiness at bay. (You guys are now clearly experts at how good circulation is great for our skin.)
To keep our skin soft, lush and supple however, hydrating with skin care products is key.
This time of year we are probably turning on the heat inside (central heating typically reduces moisture in the air), while outside its getting colder (and as cold air holds less moisture, natural humidity goes down). This leaves us with drier air both inside and outside.
Now is not the time to forget about drinking water! You can sip cool water, warm water, water with slices of cucumber or mint leaves or slices of lemon or lime or grapefruit, you can add a few drops of liquid trace minerals…whatever is the most quenching and delicious to you.
This a simple, old-news tip that is still well worth practicing.
A Restorative Cup of Tea
A Restorative Cup of Tea~
Macha tea, oolong tea, green tea, white tea and black tea are all supremely rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatories (two essential fighters in age prevention and good health for your skin), while herbal teas (tisanes) have a wide variety of individual benefits of their own. Here is a just a sampling of what different teas can do for your skin:
Rose Tea~ extremely rich in vitamin C (vitamin C is essential in many healthy skin functions such as collagen production)
Ginger Tea~ rich in antioxidants, and is a potent anti-inflammatory (both are essential age-preventatives)
Tumeric Tea~ deeply anti-inflammatory, can help regulate blood sugar, and may even help to induce restful sleep.
Chamomile Tea~ the polyphenols present in chamomile can help to reduce redness in our skin, as well as chamomile can help to reduce stress and support restorative sleep.
Peppermint Tea and Spearmint Tea~ wildly rich in antioxidants and antibacterial activity (may even help with some types of hormonally related oily skin and breakouts).
Rooibos Tea~ rich in quercetin, which is a natural skin soother and calmer, rooibos is also chock-full of age-preventative antioxidants.
Hibiscus Tea~ full of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and a full panoply of antioxidants such as myricetin, which helps to keep our collagen and elastin firm and taunt.
Green Tea~ packed with antioxidants, amino acids and polyphenols, green tea (and its sister teas white tea, black tea, matcha tea, and oolong tea) is a nutritional powerhouse. It can help to balance blood sugar, support healthy metabolism, provide anti-inflammatory support and fight free radical damage like nobody’s business (ALL of which keeps our skin healthier).
When you come in for a treatment at Rich Earth I may send you out the door with some handpicked tea, or send some specific tea along with your skin care product mail order. This is not random! I am choosing to add tea because it is so lovely for your skin, and also, there may be specific benefits in a certain type of tea that are particularly beneficial for you.
And this time of year, warm, fragrant tea is so pleasurable and soothing, and also, miraculously overflowing with benefits for our skin.
More Ease
More Ease~
Prolonged, chronic, intense stress has been associated with everything from exacerbating eczema, psoriasis, acne, rosacea, and accelerated aging to digestive issues that impact our skin, to diminishing our natural, radiant glow down to a dull, gray pallor. High stress can even make us break out in a rash, bumps, pimples, hives, fever blisters, cold sores, or other inflammatory response. (Ugh.)
Stress actually causes a chemical response in our bodies that make our skin more sensitive and reactive, and a hormonal response that can make us more apt to break out. It can also make it harder for skin problems to heal. (Jeeze Louise.)
How I wish we could wave a wand and poof! Hurray! All stress for everyone is gone. (Oh, how I wish.) In lieu of that wand, what can we do about stress?
Here are a few thoughts…
*Offer yourself the gift of enough sleep. Every night. Give your body the chance to recuperate.
*Exercise. For some of us, its possible to “burn off” stress through physical activity. Do this every day. Give your body a real chance to release stress.
*Keep taking care of your skin. If you suddenly have an unexpected breakout or flair up of some kind, it can be dispiriting and make you feel hopeless about following your skin care routine. BUT, if you keep up with the gentle basics (a gentle, hydrating cleanser, good hydration and an appropriate moisturizer) it will keep your skin on an even keel from the outside in, as you work on healing from the inside out.
*Do breathing techniques work for you? Or meditations? Or guided meditations? If you can find a quiet, open space in your heart and mind with these options, utilize them.
*Does receiving physical touch help? A massage? Acupuncture? A facial? Sometimes this can be a doorway to begin to release stress.
*Is there something restorative you can do? A quick walk outside for some fresh air and a change of scenery, a warm bath with Epsom salts maybe, or a good book and a comforter? These can’t solve it all, but can help in the moment. Right now.
*Does writing it all down help? Some of us can find clarity and relief by writing down all the thoughts circling in our minds. Then we can take a look at them down on the page and see what’s there. Open a notebook or journal. Give it a try.
*Do you need to talk? A good friend and a cup of tea. A therapist. A support group. A counselor. A coach. Either in person or online. For some of us it helps to connect with another human being. To know that someone is listening.
*Is there an action to be taken? Sometimes our stress is asking us to consider making a change, or to take some kind of action, even a very small one, to improve a stressful situation. Saying no to something, making a schedule adjustment, etc.,. If its possible, can you take a gentle, wise action that will help?
I know you know these tips already, Beauties. They are well known. However, its easy to ignore them because they seem so small and inconsequential. They are not. Whatever you do for your skin, your skin will be in better shape when these basics are a part of your daily life.
“Sleep, drink water, and treat your skin.”
~ Georgia Louise
“I drink a bunch of water and get facials regularly. I take care of my skin.”
~Angela Bassett
“Facials are my biggest beauty indulgence. Looking good is about having a good base. It’s about taking care of your skin.”
~Halle Berry
“Whenever I’m putting on skincare products… Sometimes it really feels like therapy. I’m taking care of my skin. I’m breathing in essential oils.”
~Unknown
“Real skin has texture, pores, and even the occasional blemish. The goal is healthy skin, not perfect skin.”
~Sean Garrette
"You don't have to be perfect to be beautiful."
~Unknown
Blog written by Marna Herrington with Rich Earth Organic Skin Care Studio
Blog copy editing and polishing provided by Karen-Eileen Gordon (MsGordonLovesWriting@gmail.com)
This blog is not intended to take the place of in-person consultations with qualified skin care and health care practitioners. This blog is for the purpose of education and fun only.
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