5 Tips for Younger Looking Skin
Our society is obsessed with youth and beauty. Who doesn’t desire flawless, glowing skin? Americans spent roughly $114 billion on anti-aging products in 2015. While the natural aging process is inevitable, we can control some of the physiological factors related to getting older. As with any health concern, the most effective route to lasting change starts by identifying the root cause. Several factors determine how we age, but the most significant is inflammation. And guess what? We can control inflammation.
A study from the Yale School of Medicine showed that chronic inflammation can speed the aging process and significantly reduce lifespan. Under normal circumstances, inflammation is an acute, self-protective response to help our body heal. However, when inflammation becomes chronic, the inflammatory process becomes habitual and begins to wreak havoc on our skin and health. Chronic stress and lack of sleep (especially restorative sleep between 10 PM and 2 AM) increases cortisol production, accelerating inflammation and aging. Environmental factors play a role in inflammation: second-hand smoke, chemicals, and air pollution all produce an inflammatory response.
Reducing the toxic load caused by inflammation is possible. You can boost your body’s ability to appear youthful. Here’s my top five tips for younger-looking skin:
1. Eat a diet high in anti-inflammatory foods. This includes foods like dark greens, colorful vegetables, fresh fish, bone broth, coconut oil, and berries.
2. Ditch foods that increase inflammation. Some of the most inflammatory foods we eat are gluten, dairy, and sugar. These foods are known as “the big 3” and for good reason. They’re often a likely cause of irritation to the lining of the gut. If you don’t remove what causes the inflammation to begin with, you won’t see the benefits.
3. Consume inflammation-squelching spices. Turmeric and ginger are my favorites. Both are extremely powerful when it comes to soothing inflammation.
4. Consume bone broth daily. Bone both has incredible gut healing properties. It’s also full of collagen and gelatin which help to rebuild inflamed, damaged gut tissue and give skin a full, healthy, and plump look.
5. Use pure topical oils to help repair skin. True Botanicals and emu oil are my go-to anti-aging serum. Both have incredible anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, and skin healing properties. Read more about emu oil here.