Feeding Your Skin

Your skin reflects your state of health. If you follow a healthy, balanced lifestyle, eat sensibly, keep stress in check and allow enough time to pamper yourself and recharge your batteries, you are less likely to suffer the skin diseases and disorders discussed in previous chapters. If, on the other hand, you subject your body to all the things we are told not to do (smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise and overload at work), the chances are you’re not going to look as good as you could after a few months. The warnings are unmistakable, but it is important to remain realistic about one’s lifestyle: there is only so much each of us can do to try and reduce stress levels; apart from recycling and trying to contribute as little as possible to pollution, there’s very little we can do about it, and it is not always easy to give our bodies exactly the fuel that they need. The key is to try to live as vibrantly as possible. Supplement to replace missing nutrients, take time out when you need it and have fun. It’s all about making an effort to live well, because that is your insurance for good health and great skin.

Relaxed breathing and elevated concentration levels will help you to lower your heart rate and blood pressure and increase your peace of mind.

The Stress Index
In chapter one we mentioned that stress can make skin behave badly. For some people it takes severe and prolonged stress to reach the breaking point, while for others it may only take smaller irritations like traffic jams, having to do a presentation, or lack there
of sleep to induce a physical or emotional outbreak. Short-term stress is beneficial in that it prepares the body for an emergency. However, in the long-term, your body, skin and health start to suffer. Unlike other hormones, them cortisol -the stress hormone –does not decrease with age. In a young, healthy body, cortisol levels increase in the morning and drop at night. If you are under prolonged stress, cortisol is continually secreted into the bloodstream. A younger person is more able to move from a stressed state to a relaxed one, whereas with age, this becomes more difficult. Problems arise when the body makes too much cortisol for too long. Effects include inflammation -a major con tributor to skin ageing, weakening of the immune system and increasing blood sugar levels.
Long-term stress also depresses DHEA, an important steroid hormone breakfor the skin. High cortisol and low DHEA levels are associated with rapid skin ageing. In order to protect the body from the effects of stress there emofore, you need to keep your cortisol levels in check. Doing the following can help:

• Eat a diet high in raw and fresh fruits and vegetables. Stick to low glycaemic fruits like citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruit, limes, lemons), deciduous fruits (apples, cherries, peaches, apricots, nec tarines, plums, pears, strawber ries), kiwifruit and grapes. They help to detox the body balance hormones and increase levels of potassium -which is essential for beautiful skin.

• Get enough exercise.

• Watch your vitamin intake. Pantothenic acid, vitamins B6 and C, zinc and magnesium support adrenal function and you should get enough of all of them.

• Eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables per day. Wash them thor oughly to remove pesticides.

THE EFFECTS OF STRESS ON THE SKIN

Sallow Complexion (yellowish)
Stress sends the body into survival mode by directing most of the blood to the vital organs such as the heart, lungs and brain. This means less blood goes to the skin, which leaves you looking washed out.

Pimples
Cortisol causes the secretion of androgen, a sex hormone that increases oil production. Excess sebum means clogged pores, which then leads to breakouts.

Rough, Dry Skin
A restricted blood supply to the skin means the cells renew themselves less quickly, leading to dry, flaky skin.

Inflammation
When your body is stressed it often releases histamines, witch can cause irritation like itchiness, bumps, rashes and hives. A routine relaxation or meditation session can help reduce these hypersensitive reactions.

As little as two cups of coffee a day can dramatically increase levels of cortisol – the stres hormone – in your body.