The Secret To Good Skin Lies In What You Don’t Eat

You are what you eat and you’re also what you look like. Ermm… that sounded better in my head, to be honest. But you get the point, right?

What you eat not only affects your mind, body and soul but also plays a key role in ensuring a healthy, glowing skin. No amount of skincare products will help if you’re not eating right and not not eating certain foods. A good daily diet coupled with adequate sleep and water intake is the ultimate skincare regimen - if only more people were interested in having that conversation!

Here are 7 things you must not consume if good skin is what you want. 

Even if you can’t eliminate them completely from your diet, try to reduce their consumption and see how it positively affects your skin in a few weeks. 

PS: I could give you the medical jargon behind each of these - so-and-so molecules get destroyed in such and such processes, etc., etc. - or I could instead go through it all by myself so that I could simplify it for all of you, and I’ve chosen to do the latter. Who said selflessness is a forgotten virtue? 

Refined sugar

You already know how consuming excessive amounts of sugar leads to a spike in your blood sugar levels. What you probably didn’t know is that this spike results in glycation, a process where sugar molecules attach themselves to a protein or lipid to form a new molecule. This harms all the different kinds of proteins in your body, including collagen and elastin that are responsible for keeping your skin firm. As a result, what you’re left dealing with are wrinkles and sagging skin along with other premature signs of ageing. 

Aerated beverages

We’ve already understood the importance of collagen - it’s the building block for your skin and there’s no such thing as too much of it. Which is why, the next time you pick a bottle or can of your favourite brand of aerated beverage, remember that you’re wilfully inviting trouble for your skin because these beverages damage the process of collagen formation. You know what happens when adequate amounts of collagen isn’t produced in the body!  

Dairy products

Aside from the complex issue of the quality of dairy products that’s gone severely down, there’s enough and more scientific chatter to suggest that dairy products, especially milk, is not doing people’s skin any favours. Apart from triggering hormonal imbalances and causing dietary issues - both of which are causes for various skin-related issues - these products also lead to inflammation which can further trigger already-triggered problems in your skin. 

Before you come at me with your calcium complaints, I’ll do what vegans have been doing and ask you to look up broccoli, almonds and other alternatives. I’ll do it more politely than them, as well!

Deep-fried foods

Everyone loves fried chicken or a samosa but the impact these foods have on our bodies is rarely worth the taste. The excessive oil in these foods increases the amount of oils present in your skin. Since excess of everything is bad, these excess oils end up clogging your pores which is the main cause for acne, breakouts and other such issues. 

Energy drinks

They give you the caffeine kick you’re desperately seeking, sure, but they’re also ingesting a lot of unwanted sugar and other stimulants that you didn’t know you didn’t need. Energy drinks get a lot of bad rep in the health and wellness circuit and if you were to ask me, I’d say they deserve a lot more of it, and then some more. 

Condiments

These are a double-edged sword with enough and more quantities of both sugar and sodium. All those layers of barbeque sauce, ketchup, soy sauce, etc. that you’ve been relishing with glee may have done a lot to enhance the taste of your food but they’ve also done enough to negatively impact your skin. 

Salty snacks 

Have you heard of models/actors avoiding salt or reducing its intake a few days prior to an important shoot or event? It’s because excessive salt leads to water retention in the body which not only hides their otherwise visible abs but also leads to unwanted puffiness in the skin, giving it a tired, dull look. Since all your beloved salty snacks, such as chips, wafers, popcorn, etc., are loaded with salt, think twice before opening up a packet.