“If there is one message I like sharing
with people, it’s this: aging is optional.”
Dr. Nicholas Perricone
While it seems obvious that good nutrition does great things for your insides, did you know it works wonders on your skin as well? Your skin is a reflection of your inner health, and when you take care of yourself, your skin looks good. Some nutrients that are beneficial to the skin need to be consumed through diet or nutritional supplements, while others are more effective when applied to the skin. In his book The Perricone Prescription, Dr. Nicholas Perricone outlines three elements for long-lasting healthy skin:
- A healthy diet;
- Nutritional supplements; and
- A skin care regimen with natural food-based nutrients.
If we follow this outline, Dr. Perricone says, "Although we cannot stop the progression of the years, we can stop skin from wrinkling, sagging, and dulling." So make the commitment to great skin and face up to what you eat.
Glycemic Index
It's an index that rates foods from 1 to 100. High glycemic foods rate above
50 on the glycemic index and indicate a rapid increase in blood sugar
levels. For example, watermelon is not as good for your skin as a handful of
peanuts. Watermelon rates a whopping 72 on the glycemic index versus 14 for
peanuts. Foods high on the glycemic index are bad for your skin because they
rapidly increase your blood sugar levels, leading to a process known as
glycation, which causes the loss of skin elasticity and the breakdown of
collagen.
Nicholas Perricone, M.D. says, "When glycation occurs in the skin, the ultimate effect is not unlike tanning a hide. Over time, skin begins to resemble a cross between beef jerky and an old boot."
(Perricone, Nicholas, M.D.
The Perricone Prescription. Harper Collins: New York, 2002.)