How to look after your skin in the Summer
For most of us the sunshine and warmer weather is a much welcome change. Sunny days lift our mood, and it’s a chance to wear all those cool and revealing clothes we purchased in the summer sales, and what about achieving that healthy glowing suntan?
Healthy sun exposure is a chance to top up your vitamin D levels, which is a crucial vitamin in so many bodily processes but especially it’s role in immune regulation. The emphasis however, is on ‘healthy sun exposure’ as opposed to dangerous sun exposure. Many people are somewhat confused about whether the sun is friend or foe, mostly due to the hype of warnings regarding the increase in skin cancers. Yet studies reveal a Vitamin D deficiency is a common imbalance in those who develop cancer. It would seem with regard to sun exposure you’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t!
There are some key points to bring to your attention on this matter:
- Excessive Sun exposure produces free radicals capable of damaging the DNA in your cells, which may lead to continuous cell renewal, which is how the skin ages and cancer develops.
- Excessively limited sun exposure may easily cause a Vitamin D deficiency which results in dysregulation of the immune system. Your immune system regularly destroys cells with damaged DNA and which have the potential to become cancerous; Vitamin D deficiency thereby increases the risk for developing a cancerous tumour.
- Sun exposure is a radiation exposure and radiation is a toxin.
- Increased levels of Vitamin D increases the absorption of Calcium from the diet.
- Digestive health is vital to detoxification, Calcium metabolism, immune function and the functions of the skin.
- The foods you eat play a significant role in protection from free radical damage and in detoxifying radiation from the body.
If you are planning to get that much desired suntan, follow these ABC guidelines to ensure you gain all the benefits without the potential harm:
- Tan safely! Do not stay in the sun for extended periods that result in a sunburn. The lighter your skin tone, the less sun exposure you need to tan, or to make Vitamin D. The longest lasting tan will be achieved from little exposure over an extended period, the most short-lived tan is achieved by excessive exposure over a short period, which fades fast and is also the most free-radical damaging.
- Avoid foods that rob nutrients from you: sugary snacks, processed foods, denatured oils, and additives. Increase your dietary intake of antioxidants: brightly coloured foods: fruits, vegetables, and Alaskan Salmon. Eat your vegetables raw and organically grown. Vitamin B3 (Niacin) detoxifies radiation from the body, so include foods sources in your weekly menu: buckwheat, potatoes with skin, meats, most fish, peas, asparagus and watercress. Include healthy fats like avocado, coconut oil, butter and olives. Stay well hydrated!
- Address any digestive health issues you have. If you eat all the right foods but your digestive system cannot assimilate them, your antioxidant system cannot function optimally. The skin is a reflection of digestive health!
