31 May 7 Tips from Registered NYC Dietitian to Keep Your Skin Glowing

There are few things that are better indicators of health than teeth, hair, nails and skin. Beauty is just a side-effect of being healthy. Nevertheless, beauty, as an end-goal, tends to take up limelight. According to the Global Cosmetic Industry, the beauty sector – creams and makeup and everything in between – will be worth 90 billion dollars by 2020.

As a registered dietitian, I tell my clients that they have to focus more on what they put in their bodies than what they slather on their bodies. Because, really, we are what we eat.

Here are 7 inside-out beauty tips to keep your skin youthful, healthy and glowing!

• Are you getting your fabulous five? Anti-oxidants are the name of the game. They battle free-radicals – sun, pollution, smoking – all of which damage our skin (wrinkles, age spots and all those “feeling old” things). By eating five portions of fruits and vegetables during the day, you’re giving your skin a head start to looking great. Plus, by eating more fruits and vegetables, including super foods like blueberries, cauliflower, kale, broccoli and acai (there’s a bit of an Acai rage going on)  you’ll give your body a much-needed health boost.
• Think in colors – rainbows of colors: It’s not enough to get five portions of fruits and vegetables. You need to eat all the colors available (and their hues): orange, red, purple (blue), white, brown, and green. The more variety, the better. An easy way to keep variety in your diet is by eating in-season fruits and vegetables. This food color chart is a great graphic to show the essential phytonutrients to keep you healthy and looking beautiful.
• Weight cycling takes a toll on skin: Weight cycling, otherwise known as yo-yo dieting, ages skin. Skin is elastic, but after lots of ups and downs, it won’t retain that elasticity. Stretch marks and wrinkles are telltale signs of yo-yo dieting. Add that to the fact that crash-diets lack essential nutrients to keep us healthy. The ups and downs of yo-yo dieting ages skin.
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Not only is good hydration essential to keeping your body functioning, it’s essential to keep your skin moist. When you’re slightly dehydrated, your skin shows it. Good hydration – drinking lots of water – is an easy way to keep your skin looking healthy and staying elastic. Did you just get up to get a glass of water? Good! You can try some free apps like Waterlogged to keep you on your water-intake goals.
• Bring on the fats! Come on down! (I kind of imagined somebody saying that in a Price is Right voice.) Anyway, it’s time to give fats credit where credit is due. Fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) keep skin moist and glowing. Avocados and nuts are packed with Vitamin E and can help us fight those free radicals. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats are essential fatty acids. That means our bodies do not make them. So, we’ve got to eat them! Oily fish (like salmon), walnut, flaxseed and rapeseed oils, sunflower seeds, and nuts all contain omegas. So what’s the big deal about omegas? They’re big on getting our bodies to produce anti-inflammatory compounds. What better way to treat acne, eczema and other skin problems than that?
• Just a spoonful of sugar … can cause wrinkles and spots, acne and more. Sugar is the primary cause of cancer, obesity, and chronic disease in our country. Period. Simple carbohydrates (refined sugar, white breads, and many of the highly processed foods at the store) cause insulin levels to go through the roof. This insulin charge can damage collagen as well as exacerbate skin problems like eczema, psoriasis and even acne. So, cut back on sugar and see the difference in your skin.
• Okay, let’s talk about creams. Everybody needs sunscreen. Every day. With the sun getting hotter, it’s damaging rays are causing more problems. Put on sun screen every single day. As for moisturizing, I recommend olive oil or coconut oil. (Back to the foods, right?) But these natural moisturizers are inexpensive and effective.

Really, we are what we eat. With a balanced, healthy diet that includes all of the nutrients our bodies need, our skin will glow! So the easiest way to great skin is by taking one nutritious bite at a time. Beauty is, indeed, inside-out.