No one likes to have acne-ridden skin. It can have a huge impact on self-esteem and confidence. But the good news is there’s SO much you can do to reduce and prevent acne naturally!
Here are some foods and beverages to avoid that inflame the gut and show up on the skin!
Dairy - I LOVE raw good quality dairy, but if you are someone who eats cow or goat’s milk dairy products, organic, and you still notice breakouts within several days, it’s time to exchange hard and soft cheese, milk, and cream for some delicious plant-based options like Malk, Miyokos, or Spero. Quality matters for vegan dairy-free products too! So be sure to look at the ingredients label and go for recognizable ingredients only.
Processed foods - we detox each day via the bowel, urine, and skin! If you notice after eating fast food, junk foods, and fried foods that you break out (sometimes it takes hours or days to show), this is a sign of food inflammation slowing you down and stopping you up. If you notice redness, irritation, oily skin, eczema, and other skin irritations, or if your symptoms are brain fog, fatigue, gas, bloat, headaches, mood changes, or other symptoms, that’s still a red flag. Avoid ingredients you can’t pronounce and fried foods, so your gut health sings and your skin glows.
Alcohol - Alcohol is a diuretic (which will dehydrate you and dry your skin out), a depressant (it can severely mess with your neurotransmitters), and can spike your blood sugar, leading to more stress, more zits, and a host of other symptoms. While it makes you feel chill in the moment, it ultimately leaves you more anxious during your hangover the next day. If you don’t want to feel dry, itchy skin, experience stress-induced acne, or red puffy inflamed skin, leave out the alcohol for rare special occasions. Have a spritzer or mocktail with hydrating cucumber or gut-enhancing ginger instead!
Food Sensitivities - you may not even realize certain foods are causing inflammation on the skin. It’s many times hard to tell, since, as mentioned, symptoms don’t always show up until hours or days later. That’s why we don’t guess, we test nationwide!
Now which foods should you increase while you pull out the above inflammatory drivers?
Vitamin C-rich foods - Vitamin C helps reduce signs of aging, boosts skin tone and texture, and helps with hydration. Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes are terrific examples of food sources! Berries like blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries are excellent sources as well. You can liven up your water with them, eat some oranges/berries and nuts as a healthy snack, and add lemon/lime to top cooked fish, make a citrus homemade dressing, or add as a topping on delicious homemade tacos and guacamole! Lemon also helps increase collagen production - you can snag tasteless Vital Proteins Collagen with Vitamin C and add to any drink, soup, stew, or smoothing for another skin boost from Collagen!
Beta-Carotene + Vitamin A rich foods - wonder how certain fruits and vegetables like carrots, pumpkins, papaya, and sweet potato get their gorgeous orange color? You can thank Beta-Carotene, which is a precursor to Vitamin A! This powerful antioxidant can reduce blemishes, boost your glow, and can also be converted into Retinol, a derivative of Vitamin A linked to optimal skin health.
Vitamin E rich foods - sunflower seeds, almonds, and avocados are a few options to boost your Vitamin E. This nutrient can help keep your skin soft and supple, and can fight against sun damage! It’s fat soluble, and those 3 sample sources above already have the healthy fat built into them - isn’t mother nature brilliant? Snack on those nuts and seeds or ½ an avocado, throw them onto your salad as a topper, and use nut/seed butters and avocados easily in a smoothie!
Omega 3s - it’s one of the most powerful anti-inflammatory agents available, and it’s rich in food sources like chia seeds, walnuts, and salmon! Make some chia seeds pudding, throw walnuts on leafy greens, and eat a couple pieces of Wild Alaskan Salmon each week, and your skin will love you for it! Your brain, digestion, hormones, and mood will too. Use code ‘NAO’ for $25 off - I love and trust their brand for me and my family!
We create customized meal plans that incorporate the right foods for your skin, while getting to the root cause of why your skin is inflamed in the first place! Sometimes it’s not as simple as it seems, so we take all the guesswork out and help you finally get glowing, gorgeous skin through diet and lifestyle planning.