In honor of National Nutrition Month, we’re looking into one of the most basic types of skincare that can make a tremendous difference in skin health and overall wellness.
The more we investigate the medical science behind our endless health-related interventions, treatments, high-tech procedures and low-tech extreme fads, applications, medicines and more, the more we uncover the simple magic of a healthy diet.
Of course, our Bradenton medspa specializes in the latest highly effective skincare and wellness therapies medical science has to offer. But nutritional skincare makes any outside intervention—including spa treatments—exponentially more effective.
Here’s how your diet affects your skin—and what you can do nutritionally to take your next trip to Bellagena to the next level.
Some Stuff is Just Nutritionally Bad for Your Skin (and Everything Else)
Let’s get the bad stuff out of the way: Smoking, alcohol, and high amounts of sugar and fat are just bad.
First of all, if you’re so inclined (or you’re looking for a reason to quit), you can just abstain from smoking and alcohol altogether. Between dehydration and cellular damage caused by a variety of harmful toxins, they don’t help.
Sugar and fats are a little trickier because they do provide nutrients and fuel. But your body never needs a lot of them at once, and chances are you’re already getting more than enough sugars and fats from an average American diet.
We’re so sorry to say this, but step away from the Easter candy aisle. A Cadbury Creme Egg is not workout recovery nutrition.
Why Diet is So Important?
Your diet is the basis for all of your body’s operations, not just your skin. So start there: You need your diet to provide you with energy, brain function, nerve communication, muscle flexion and relaxation (including your heart), and so much more.
Secondly, your body needs balance. Too much of any substance in your diet is usually bad (or, at the very least, it gets filtered out and goes unused), and so is too little. When one aspect of your nutrition starts to falter, everything gets out of whack.
Thirdly, your body naturally digests natural food. It’s the most efficient way to absorb nutrients.
Keep this in mind when people promise miracle foods or miracle fixes. When it comes to one thing you should eat or one thing you should avoid, there will never be a single, simple solution. And on top of that, if you’re following an extreme diet to lose weight, you’re probably wreaking havoc on your skin health.
What Do Nutrients Do for Our Skin?
Skin health takes many forms and requires many foods. We talk a lot about collagen and peptides, the importance of hydration, and the ways everyday foods can affect (positively and negatively) our skin. Our skin needs loads of vitamins like A, C and K, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein in all its forms.
To put it very simply, our skin needs a wide variety of nutrients to look traditionally healthy and beautiful—that’s firm, full, supple, smooth, even, and hydrated (but not oily).
Our skin also needs nutrients to perform its duties for our body—that’s strength as a barrier to keep things out and protect everything inside, and to repair itself when it’s damaged from these harmful elements on the outside.
Moreover, this job as a barrier is why nutrition is so important. While we have many topical solutions and treatments that directly influence our skin from the outside, our skin was designed to resist these elements and draw its strength what our body gives it.
Plus, some of today’s most revolutionary skincare procedures work by triggering the body’s own skin repair and cell production. And your body can’t fully respond to these treatments if it doesn’t have the nutrition in the tank.
As much attention as we give it from the outside, our skin will always turn inward first for what it needs.
What Should You Eat for Healthy Skin?
Fresh, fresh, fresh: Processed foods (multi-ingredient, pre-packaged and/or pre-cooked dishes and meals) have artificial additives that are intended to keep the food from rotting. Those sorts of “preservatives” tend to have the opposite effect on your skin.
Dark, Leafy Greens: All veggies are great, but the darker they are, the more nutrient-dense with antioxidants they are. (Think of veggies like watercolor paints: Lighter means more water.)
Fresh Fruits: Vitamin C boosts collagen. ‘Nuff said.
Nuts and Seeds: Some of the most nutrient-dense things on the planet, nuts and seeds provide all kinds of skin-healthy oils, vitamins, proteins, etc.
Fish: High in protein and healthy omega-3 fats—the things your skin needs to look young.
Of course, if your skin is already nutritionally out of balance, then you’ll need to consult with an expert on how best to get everything in sync again.
Need Bradenton skincare experts? Bellagena has those.
The Bottom Line on Diet and Nutrition
The bottom line: Don’t waste great medspa services with bad nutritional skincare. Eat right, come to Bellagena, and glow from the inside out.
