Natural Remedies to Improve your Skin. PART 1: Inside going Out

• Quite some time ago now my dear friend Anne, wrote to me on Facebook and said to me:
  "I'm having skin issues, do you know anything about what kind of essential oils and herbs are good for your skin and if there are any natural remedies that I should be looking into?"
  The following post is what came of that conversation, just a little bit more organized for your reading pleasure! 
  So imagine a wheel turning like a computer trying to load up all the informations stored in my memory after Anne asked me this questions. I had to pull up years of research and saved articles (yes, I save interesting articles, you're welcome).
  

  
  

  I mean, it's a big question..!

  
  

  "Tell me everything you know about essential oils and skin--GO!"

The beauty of your skin is first of all an inside towards outside kind of thing.

FATS, ESSENTIAL FATS (must be read as in BOND, JAMES BOND)

Let's start by talking about foods that will improve dry skin, if you suffer of greasy skin, just read this backwards, meaning this are the foods you might want to cut down!

Essential fatty acids, or Omega 3, are "essential", duh, to achieving a natural skin glow, they are natural anti-wrinkle and will improve the elasticity of your skin. Here are some suggestions of foods that contain such fatty acids and how you can incorporate them in what you should already be eating:

1. Seeds and nuts: Enjoy some sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds (pepitas) in your salad, add 5 cashews or walnuts or pecans or brazilian nuts or a table spoon of pine nuts or hemp in your yogurt, blend 1 tbsp of flax seeds in your smoothies (this is also great for your gut health). The combinations are endless and you can create so many yummy salads and snacks with these!

2. Flax seed oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Rich in vitamin E and has antioxidant properties. Choose cold press and organic. Add 1tbsp of either to your salad or choice of veggies before serving. Remember that heating them up is not good for the oils, so consume them "raw". 

3. Eggs: good percentage of Zinc and vitamins from the B group, you can eat them for breakfast or make yourself some yummy quiches or frittata, here are some recipes right here!

4. Legumes (beans and lentils): they have a good amount of vitamin B and fiber, which drags toxins away from your body and nourish the skin. Add a couple of tbsp in your salad, soup or eat as a side or as a main, tossed with a little garlic and olive oil. Check out my video on how to rehydrate them yourself for better tasting beans. 

5. The right kind of Proteins: prefer the ones coming from fresh cheese (cottage, ricotta, mozzarella) and fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines, anchovies) which are great for keeping your skin elastic. TAKE SOME IDEAS FROM MY RECIPE BOOK

FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

No matter your skin type, eating more fresh fruits and veggies will make you glow and rejuvenate your epidermis. 

1. Fresh berries: rich in bioflavonoid, which are believed to fight the free radicals responsible for early aging. Plus whatever, berries are delicious! Make smoothies with them, add them to yogurt, make a daiquiri with fresh strawberries. Ok maybe not the last one, but all the other suggestions are great. 

2. Fresh fruit: fresh, seasonal fruit is rich in liquids, it will keep your skin hydrated. Make a fruit salad, add them to your regular savory salad, learn how to pair it with cheese. Combine them with some of the nuts from earlier. Fruit is so much fun! 

3. Leafy greens: anything from kale to watercress, from parsley to mint, spinach and brussels sprouts. Here you'll find Omega 3, fiber, vitamin C, iron and minerals! Great for improving circulation (unless you're already taking blood thinning medications..), they will rejuvenate you and take away inflammation. Enjoy them raw or steamed, check this recipe out! If you sauté them, don't overcook, 5 minutes is more then enough, or you'll loose most of their properties. 

4. Other foods rich in Vitamin C: root vegetables (like turnip, carrots, rutabaga), plus the famous ones like oranges, strawberries, peppers, cantaloupe. Eat them as a snack between meals, far from everything else for improved digestion and minimize fermentation in the gut. 

HERBAL TEAS

For more serious skin conditions, before you resort to medications, try this naturopathic remedy.

Enjoy some BURDOCK TEA 3 times a day, far from main meals possibly: 50g of dried leaves soaked in 1l of boiling water for 10 minutes. If you can't find loose dried burdock leaves check out this tea made by Yogi

Remember that any diet related remedy will take some time. It's going to be at least 3 weeks to a month before you start seeing improvements, but don't give up! I promise it will improve your health all around! 

Now that we adjusted what goes in your body, let's talk about what you can do for your exterior to feel radiant right away. 

CLICK HERE TO KEEP READING ABOUT NATURAL REMEDIES FOR BETTER SKIN