Discover Real Foods That Are Essential In The Battle Against Aging
When it comes to fighting the signs of aging, the solution doesn’t always lie across the pharmacy counter or in the doctor’s office. Some of the best ways to grow old gracefully can be found right in your very own kitchen.
Most of the nutrients that the body needs everyday to survive are found in the foods that we eat. Unfortunately, many of us are not making the proper food choices to keep our bodies, and skin, healthy. Making a few changes to our diet can make a big difference in how we feel and look.
Antioxidants save the day
When talking about foods to eat we’re mainly talking about the general category of antioxidants in food. How does adding foods rich in antioxidants to your diet help your skin?
The body takes on a lot of stresses in a day. One byproduct of this stress, or cellular activity, is free radicals. Free radicals are unstable substances that lack an electron so they steal it from healthy cells throughout the body. This can lead to signs of aging, disease, and pain over time. Antioxidants are natural substances that are designed to neutralize the effects of free radicals. Eating foods that contain antioxidants will lower the free radical count in your body and lessen the damage they can do.
So, what should we be eating to improve our overall health and youthful appearance? Let’s take a look at some of the foods that contain nutrients essential to fighting off the aging process:
Berries
The mighty blueberry shines in this group, but other berries like blackberries, cranberries, and raspberries all play a part in neutralizing free radicals that damage your skin. You’ll notice a theme in these berries; they all are very colorful. Stick to dark colored berries for the best nutritional punch. Berries actually help the body make collagen, the substance that supports and plumps the skin, so adding a good portion of berries to your diet every day is a smart thing to do to battle wrinkles. Berries are also loaded with Vitamins C, E, and riboflavin, as well as being a good source of fiber.
Green Tea
Another powerhouse in the fight against free radicals, green tea has become the go-to beverage for everything from losing weight to lowering blood pressure. Green tea is known to have anti-inflammatory properties as well as antioxidants. Not only does drinking green tea improve your overall health, but many skin creams now contain green tea extract which allows you to rub it right into your skin. Green tea is also believed to help prevent some skin cancers caused by the sun’s damaging rays. Drinking green tea daily gives you a good source of Vitamins C, D, K, and riboflavin, calcium, and iron
Nuts
You need plenty of good fatty acids to help prevent skin dryness. Adding nuts to your daily diet will provide not only healthy fatty acids, but also Vitamins A, E, riboflavin, zinc, and selenium. The Brazil nut is an especially excellent source of selenium, which helps with the skin’s elasticity by producing glutathione which neutralizes free radicals in the body; the same free radicals that are destroying our skin’s collagen and elastin. Eat a variety of nuts, including almonds, walnuts, Brazil nuts, and pine nuts, every day to add good fatty acids to your diet along with a host of essential vitamins and minerals.
Avocados
At first glance, you may think you should stay away from avocados because they appear to be high in fat. But, most of the fat is monounsaturated and is considered a healthy fat. Avocados are rich in omega-9 fat, a powerful skin plumper which also improves dry skin, as well as Vitamin C and Vitamin E, which act together to form a strong anti-aging team. Vitamin B6 is another free radical warrior and is essential to your skin’s youthful look and healthy overall condition. Just one small avocado gives you enough B6 to meet your daily requirement.
Carrots
This may not often make the top of the skin-health list, but there are good reasons it should. Carrots are an excellent source of beta-carotene. What is beta-carotene? Beta-carotene converts to vitamin A inside the body. Vitamin A is crucial for skin cell health. You may have a Vitamin A deficiency if your skin is dry. If you have light skin, eating carrots can also provide a slight SPF sun protection. Carrots also are a good source of Vitamin C which fights free radicals and promotes the creation of collagen in the skin.
Sweet Potatoes
Another overlooked powerhouse in the battle against aging skin is sweet potatoes. Not only do these spuds deliver a healthy dose of beta-carotene and Vitamin C, but sweet potatoes also contain Vitamin E. What’s important about the combination of these two vitamins is that they work together. Vitamin E helps regenerate Vitamin C in the body, which maximizes the effectiveness of Vitamin C. This one-two punch becomes a very effective antioxidant and offers topnotch skin protection.
Whole Grains
Vitamins A, C, and E have taken center stage in the battle against aging skin, but there’s another player in town that’s just as important; that’s the B complex group. Eating breads and cereals that are made with whole grains, as opposed to refined grains, provide B complex vitamins which are essential for healthy skin. The B Vitamins are necessary for the growth of new cells which replace the dull, dead cells. This group of vitamins also helps protect skin against stress. A shortage of B Vitamins in your diet could result in dry, rough skin; even cracking and peeling.
Cold water fish
This group of fish includes salmon, sardines, mackerel, and fresh tuna. These may seem like a fatty bunch of fish, but the fat is the healthy kind containing omega-3 fatty acids. These fatty acids are responsible for healthy cell membranes. These stronger cell membranes are more able to keep water in which keeps the skin cells hydrated; and hydrated cells will give us skin that is supple and younger looking. Salmon is also another source that’s high in selenium, which we know helps the body in its ongoing battle against skin damaging free radicals.
All the wrinkle reducing potions in the world won’t help if you aren’t giving your skin a fighting chance from within. Start your anti-aging battle with a healthy diet filled with nutrient rich foods. These simple, and delicious, foods are some of the easiest things you can choose to fight the effects of aging.
Water
Ionized Alkaline Water is consider good water to drink. Want more information. Want to be enlightened check out this 9 minute video:
Want more information, send me an e-mail at Arlan@muratasensei.com
Your wellness friend,
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Google Buzz
