When I grew up and had any skin issues, like pimples, eczema- I typically put on specifically indicated topical cream or over the counter ointments. They sometimes helped a bit, but often it was time that was required for the issue to resolve or get better.
People struggling with chronic skin conditions are referred to dermatologists, who prescribe topical antibiotics, gels, creams and often also prescribes medications and/or antibiotics that need to be taken internally.
But little did I know back then that instead of focusing on what to put on top of the skin to hopefully heal the skin condition, we need to focus on the inside of our bodies- what we eat and drink, how we take care of our gut and how we take care of our liver.
No, food is not the only area people with skin issues need to focus on, but this is a good starting point, especially if you have not been really thinking whether and how the food you eat, affects your body and your skin.
In this article I cover the importance of taking care of your bodily organs to support the health of your skin.
Caring for your gut
Your body has two external surfaces to defend itself- one is your skin and the other one is the lining of your intestinal tract- your gut. What's inside your intestinal tract, isn't technically inside your body- your gut lining, when in a good condition, is helping to make sure no food particles are getting into your blood-stream. But when your gut lining is in a bad condition, also called 'leaky', it means, the food can get into your bloodstream which causes your own body to fight against the foreign invaders. I covered the term 'leaky gut' in an earlier post in my blog, explaining what it is and how to treat it.
Microbes in your gut protect you from the outside world- they support to remove old cholesterol and oestrogen, synthesise vitamins and antioxidants. Eating greens is crucial for the production of glutathione, your master antioxidant in the body to fight oxidative stress that ages your skin.
Have you heard about face mapping?
Face mapping has been used in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine for centuries as one of the tools to evaluate what's happening inside human's body- person's skin is a reflection of their inner health. Ancient medicine practisers have mapped the human's face, where different parts/areas are connected to different inner organs.
If the body is out of balance, the skin will show it either via dry skin, redness or pimples and the location of these issues on the face represent often the organ that's affected.
I think it's good to pay attention to the facial skin and examine it's condition and consider whether the issues you are currently experiencing could be linked to an organ and its condition in your body.
Source: Mukti Organics
Reducing inflammation inside your body has a positive affect on your skin
I have experienced it first hand myself. Since I went off the most common inflammatory food groups one by one couple of years ago (gluten, sugar, lactose (still consume occasional cheese once a week or so), plus gave up using make-up on a daily basis, my skin turned more clear and softer. I use organic moisturising cream on my skin only during the winter months- the rest of the year, I use avocado oil oil or jojoba oil with a drop or two of an essential oil meant to be used on the skin, depending on my mood I am looking for.
If you are suffering from any of the skin issues such as acne, eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, hives etc, I would highly recommend to try the following for 3-4 weeks to see if your skin issues see any improvement (you have nothing to loose I promise, only win).
gut out added sugar from your diet
gut out dairy products (you can try and introduce raw dairy, kefir, plain yoghurt later on back if you want, but conventional dairy products are often linked to acne)
gut out foods containing gluten
avoid trans fats and processed foods
avoid consuming too much alcohol- best to avoid it for the 3-4 weeks when you try to reduce inflammation in your body to allow your body to heal
Focus on consuming wide variety of colourful vegetables, salads, berries, fruits (but not too many), herbs and spices, healthy fats (extra virgin olive oil, extra virgin coconut oil, camelina oil), nuts, seeds, fish (wild salmon, sardines, herring etc), seafood, organic meat (grass-fed beef, chicken, turkey, lamb), mushrooms and legumes if you can tolerate them.
Add in prebiotic and probiotic rich foods and check out my leaky gut article for additional supplements you can take to support the gut healing. Healthy gut helps to lead to healthy skin.
Do not forget to consume enough purified water on a daily basis as dehydration ages the skin faster. You can also drink herbal teas or matcha to add in additional antioxidants to your body.
In addition you can read how can you support your skin topically and learn more about skin microbiome from one of my articles earlier this year.
Getting adequate night sleep and regular exercise are also key areas to help your skin to heal, so putting more focus on these areas will definitely benefit you.
If you are interested in getting a better understanding what causes inflammation in the body or how do you know that your body is in need for a detoxification, read the relevant articles in my blog.
I hope the above steps, even if taken one at a time, will lead you to a happier you about your skin and overall good energy.
If you need support from a health and nutrition coach, who can guide you with nutrition and lifestyle changes to help and improve the health of your skin from inside out, don't hesitate to reach out to me at info@katrinpeo.com.