“Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be your food”

-Hippocrates

Sure the father of medicine had it all figured out but that was in 400 B.C. a.k.a. Before Cheeseburgers. Join elements™ Longevity Expert Sharon Perlow , ND, MS, Diplomate of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Health Practitioners, as she explores Eating for Beauty in our fast paced society.

What you consume on a daily basis is as important to your health as what you do not consume. The adage, “You are what you eat”, certainly rings true in a generation that is bombarded with fast food, frozen entrees, and packaged food. Most Americans are too busy to prepare home cooked meals and opt for convenience over nutrition. Not only does this affect your internal health, it affects the largest organ in your body-the skin.

What you consume reveals itself in the quality and integrity of your skin. Especially during the summer when the sun is hot and clothing is minimal. Undoubtedly exercise, specifically strength training, has a great impact on how you look in your swimsuit. However, the skin on your face and even your body divulges to the world how old you really are. That is unless you have been 29 for the last 10 years!

What steps can you institute right now to improve the quality of your skin? To begin with, change your diet. Research demonstrates that the consumption of carbohydrates in all forms wrecks havoc on your skin. The reduction of carbohydrates from your daily menu will eliminate a source of free radicals and inflammation. Consumption of excess sugars results in the sugar attaching to the protein in your cells creating a process called glycation. This process alters the structure of proteins all over your body. A high level of glucose in the blood causes inflammation as well. This circulating glucose attaches to collagen, which causes it to stiffen and results in sagging skin. Your body becomes damaged at the cellular level and the signs of aging such as wrinkled dry skin, dry brittle nails and loss of skin tone contributes to making you appear older than you are.

You could have a fit and toned body, but your skin does not lie. A lean body with sagging, wrinkled skin is not a youthful body. The key to reverse aging of the skin through food consumption is to consume lean protein, essential fatty acids, and low glycemic carbohydrates.