ACE Your Way To A Radiant Youthful Skin

 Our skin is the fingerprint of what is going on inside our body, and all skin conditions, from psoriasis to acne to aging, are the manifestations of our body's internal needs, including its nutritional needs.

What is your skin trying to tell you? Often the skin is a metaphor for deeper issues and a way for your body to send up a red flag to warn you that all is not well underneath. When our skin is unhealthy it is usually a reflection of the internal state of our bodies, and is often a sign of poor elimination of toxins and waste products.

Is it possible to achieve smoother and radiant skin by eating healthy? And the answer is absolutely YES!

These days health circles are talking about the ACE Method

A- Vitamin A (retinol and beta carotene)

Retinol sources include cod liver oil, liver, butter, milk, cheese, eggs
Beta carotene: green vegetables (avocado), orange fruits and vegetables (carrots, apricots, mangoes, squash, sweet potatoes)

C- Vitamin C  (ascorbic acid) such as Fruits (especially citrus fruit) and vegetables (watercress, sweet peppers, potatoes).

E- Vitamin E (tocopherol) such as nuts, vegetable oils (soya, corn, safflower, sunflower, peanut, olive), egg yolk, green leafy vegetables, wheat germ

As we age, cell turnover slows down and creates dry rough patches. We also make less oil as we age. If you want a radiant skin that glows from inside out try

omega 3 foods. Best omega 3 foods (salmon, sardines, mackerel) 2 servings per week are sufficient.

If you want to soften up wrinkles eat diet that is rich in anti-oxidants. This will clear up the free radicals that cause fine lines; blueberries are a great antioxidant.

STUFF TO AVOID:

Fluoride disrupts the connective tissue, causing excessive cross-linking, cysts, and premature aging of the skin!

Polyunsaturated oils and eat plenty of saturated fats. Consumption of vegetable oils is associated with wrinkles while saturated animal fats and coconut oil help prevent wrinkles.

Stimulants such as coffee, tea, and sugar.

Highly refined carbohydrates and sugar, including white bread, white rice, French fries, and sugar-laded soda, can increase acne and speed aging by causing glycation-the result of sugar breaking down and bonding with protein molecules-which reduces the elasticity of collagen in your skin.

Smoking makes your skin look older and contributes to wrinkles. Smoking narrows the tiny blood vessels in the outermost layers of skin, which decreases blood flow. This depletes the skin of oxygen and nutrients, such as vitamin A, that are important to skin health. Smoking also damages collagen and elastin (fibers that give your skin its strength and elasticity). In addition, the repetitive facial expressions you make when smoking — such as pursing your lips when inhaling and squinting your eyes to keep out smoke — may contribute to wrinkles.

Acne Vaccine

Sounds like a miracle, doesn’t it? 

Prayers from millions of people who suffer from adolescent and/or adult acne would be answered if it happens. A vaccine company Sanofi Pasteur from France has partnered up with University of California, San Diego, to develop an investigational vaccine for acne. It’s still a long shot away but preliminary work is already in progress. 

The vaccine would target a protein called CAMP made by the Propionibacterium acnes. Instead of killing the bacteria, like current antimicrobial acne treatments (topical antibiotics and benzyl peroxide) the vaccine would basically render the bacteria harmless. Simply eradicating Propionibacterium acnes is not viable because it still has important functions to perform on the surface of the skin. By targeting the protein thought to be responsible for the inflammation, just that function can be controlled, leaving the bacteria to perform other functions that are still necessary. And, unlike antibiotics, there would be no worry of developing resistant strains of bacteria. Plus, the vaccine wouldn't harm other bacteria. The proposed vaccine may be delivered locally, using micro needles, within the skin of people with acne.

Before you shout, "sign me up!" remember that this is still in the developmental stage. Even if all research goes as planned, and they are actually able to develop an acne vaccine, it will most likely be years before this is ready for the public.

And though I'm thrilled about the idea I have doubts that a vaccine would actually work as a single miracle cure. As we know, bacteria are only one factor that contributes to acne. Other factors include a proliferation of dead skin cells, retention hyperkeratosis and overactive sebaceous glands. We already know that treatments that target just one factor of acne pathogenesis don't really do much to clear the skin. Combination approach targeting the multiple causes of acne gets much better results. Exciting stuff would be to have a new weapon in our fight against the age old acne.