Lady Greystones

It is important when dealing with Acne at any age to realise that the problem is coming from within and while using good quality products topically and keeping the skin cleansed is vital, it is so important to look for the root cause of YOUR acne.  This is the important thing…..we are all individuals and therefore our own biochemistry is different to everyone elses, so your root cause may be different to somebody elses!!

Many teenagers develop acne due to the huge increase of hormones in their body, this can lead to over production of sebum which can produce blockages in the skins sebaceous glands. Many teens also have nutrient poor diets which will make the problem worse.

In adults, acne is usually a sign of internal toxicity, which as you can imagine can be caused by many things. Poor food choices, food intolerances, constipation and an imbalance of your gut flora (bacteria in your intestines) as well as hormone fluctuations  all put pressure on your liver and detoxification process. Once the system gets overloaded it can dump toxins in the skin.

So what can you do to help allieviate your acne symptoms?? The following information is aimed at regulating hormone levels and assisting the liver and the detoxification process.

Helpful foods:

• avocados are rich in vitamin E which helps to nourish the skin – many people avoid these as they have been tagged as a “fatty” food, but the fats in avocados are infact healthy and essential fats essential for every cell in your body!!
• a glass of beetroot juice daily for a couple of weeks is particularly useful for teenagers as it can help to control the over production of hormones.
• chickpeas, soya beans, haricot and cannellini beans and other pulses are also helpful for the excretion of excess hormones – it is ok to buy the pre soaked and cooked beans in cans and use them in curries and salads if you don’t have time to be soaking them over night.
• drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. Bottled or filtered water is preferable. If you have difficulty getting the water into your routine, try diluting fruit juice and drinking herbal teas to up your intake.
• Include lots of fresh fruit and vegetables into your daily diet, organic if possible. It is also a good idea to use a fruit and veg wash to remove any pesticides that may be lurking on your apples etc, your local health store will have one in stock. Green coloured vegetables as well as brightly coloured peppers, carrots, sweet potato, squash all contain beta-carotene, the body processes this into vitamin A which is essential for healthy skin. Green leafy vegetables have lots of chlorophyll which has a cleansing and antibacterial action on the skin.
• oily fish such as salmon, sardines and mackerel all contain lots of essential fats which are helpful in regualting hormone levels, white fish such as cod, halibut, plaice and sea bass also contain zinc and selenium which are required for healthy skin.

Helpful Supplements:

• A good quality multivitamin and mineral is a must, I like Biocare’s one a day multi vitamin which is highly bio available and easy to take as it is just one a day!!!
• Zinc has been shown to be as successful as some antibiotics for this condition. If you are not taking a multi vitamin and mineral, you can try taking a higher dose of a zinc supplement for approx 6 weeks NB NB it is important to take copper when taking zinc as the two work closely together and need to be in balance, Hazel Courteney recommends taking up to 30mg of zinc up to 3 times daily for 6 weeks and then reducing to 60mg daily. For every 15mg zinc you should take 1mg copper to maintain the healthy balance in the body.
• As stated above essential fats are vital for healthy cells, Nordic Naturals Cod Liver Oil is a great fish oil supplement and again it is just one teaspoon per day

Foods to Avoid:

• refined, processed foods such as cakes, sweets, ready meals and drinks high in sugar – if you don’t understand the ingredients or there is a really really long list of ingredients, it is most likely best to avoid!!!! Many of those unintelligible ingredients may put more stress on the liver.
• If a particular food makes you feel bloated or queasy, you may have an intolerance, dairy and wheat products seem to cause problems for people, if you think you might be one of these then cut it out for a couple of weeks and see if you feel any better.

Nutritional therapy consultations are available here at Lady G, if you think you would benefit give us a call on 01-2872311 to make an appointment. We also offer Food Intolerance testing, which can be helpful in identifying possible triggers for poor skin condition, low energy, bloating, IBS and much more.