3 Foods that Ruin Your Complexion

by Laurisa Truemperhttp://greenbeautyteam.com/answers-advice/self-care/3-foods-ruining-your-complexion/

Perhaps you’ve heard the statement “diet has nothing to do with acne.” Well, that’s a lie!
It’s a ridiculous statement that has been made by dermatologists and doctors who often have little to no training in nutrition. Doctors would rather take the quick and easy route to write a prescription for a cream or drug to address skin problems versus spending time investigating the root cause — diet.

IMBALANCES BEGIN WITH OUR DIET

The skin is the largest organ and acts as a messenger for every thing that is going on inside the body — good and bad. Your skin holds all the answers! It may be encouraging to realize that a breakout is actually a plea from your body for help. You can take this “message” and learn what it is saying to turn your skin around. Messages like breakouts, eczema, psoriasis, premature aging and dull skin can all be caused by certain foods.

Every bite of food causes a reaction in the body.

Of course we want positive reactions not negative ones such as inflammation, overflow of toxins and blood sugar swings. Negative reactions eventually affect the health and overall look of the skin.
Here are the three main culprit foods to avoid for skin that is as healthy as possible:

Culprit #1 Flour

Flour is challenging to avoid, as it’s involved in almost every meal of the day. Breakfast is brimming with cereal, toast, bagels and pancakes.  Lunch orders up sandwiches, wraps, pasta and pizza. While dinner is served with breaded chicken and topped off with a bread basket. Then of course there may be a cookie or cake for dessert. That is a lot of refined grains (the bad carbohydrates)!

When a whole grain is pulverized to make flour, all of the vitamins, nutrients, fiber and phytonutrients are destroyed. The word “refined” indicates the food has been stripped of all the beneficial nutrition. This fine powder that is everywhere in the standard American diet is unrecognizable to the body.

The digestive system sees this starchy powder (flour) as a foreign invader and pulls out all the stops to protect itself from it. This causes a number of internal problems like:

• Inflammation
• Blood sugar swings
• Food cravings
• Metabolic slowdown (hello, weight gain!)
• Digestive issues
• Food allergies and sensitivities

All of these issues are directly connected to how your skin looks. 
Consuming refined carbs will result in not-so-pretty skin.

Culprit #2 Dairy

Milk contains an average of 60 different hormones and can raise insulin levels 300 percent. Why is that important for skin health, you ask? Acne and other skin conditions are triggered by hormones and foods that cause an elevation in insulin. Insulin is released to control blood sugar highs and lows.
Many think milk is necessary for strong bones and healthy bodies. This idea is just an extremely successful marketing campaign by the dairy industry to promote its product.
>> >> Read Dairy: Silent Killer Or Delicious, Creamy Treat?
Cow’s milk is meant to grow baby calves very rapidly (I think most humans want to avoid growing into a large cow!). Milk contains hormones called androgens which include testosterone and growth hormones (IGF-1). It is now known that androgens and insulin both stimulate the skin to produce an excess of oil which can result in acne.
Studies by the American Journal of Dermatology have found a direct link between the 60 different hormones in milk and acne. These hormones are present in all varieties of milk including non-organic, organic, raw and bovine growth hormone-free. Unfortunately this includes cheese and yogurt — two very popular foods in daily meals.
Don’t fret, stay tuned for my follow-up article which will provide delicious alternatives that will leave the body and skin glowing.

Culprit #3 Sugar

This powdery white substance was called “crack” by the French upon it’s creation due to its highly addictive quality. They weren’t far off with the comparison. Eating even a small amount of sugar creates a desire for more and abruptly quitting causes withdrawal symptoms like headaches, mood swings, cravings and fatigue.
>> >> Read my article on 6 Tips to Kick Sugar Cravings to the Curb
Sugar also disguised as sucrose, corn syrup, dextrose, maltose, glucose and fructose have no nutrients whatsoever. This causes the body to work extra hard to digest it. It also enters the blood stream quickly spiking blood sugar levels. Just like refined carbs and dairy, this causes inflammation that leads to breakouts, rashes and dull skin.
In addition, when sugar breaks down and enters the blood stream it bonds with protein molecules found in collagen and elastin. This is called glycation which degrades the collagen and elastin and leads to sagging and wrinkles.
If firm and youthful skin is a desire, stay away from sugar! Still need something sweet? Learn ways to Eat Sugar the Healthy Way.
It’s not all doom and gloom. Look forward to my next article that will introduce foods to enhance your complexion.