The Best Lifestyle Book For Healthy Skin

Diagram from Blue Zones showing similarities across cultures

There are many books out there that try to fix the immediate problem of aging and being healthy with topical fixes like cosmetic surgery, potions and lotions. What you really need to do is start with a healthy lifestyle as a foundation for everything you do in life. You will not only look better but feel better as well.

I can tell you of the program i started adopting 1 1/2 years ago. The recommendations are from the Blue Zones by Dan buettner.

Dan buetter's book tracks areas around the world he calls blue zones that have a much higher than average number of centenarians or people that live over 100. what he found is that there are a number of similarities between these various cultures spread around the world. there are similar habits in exercises amounts and foods that are eaten as well as other social habits.

Some actionable notes that I took from the book are below
30-60MINUTES OF EXERCISES A DAY FOR 5 DAYS A WEEK-LOTS OF NON STRESS FULL WALKING

HAVE LOTS OF SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS-JOIN GROUPS LIKE MINDED TO YOU maybe online

DO SOMETHING WORTH WILE OR INTERESTING WITH YOUR LIFE.  BE USEFUL TO COMMUNITY

GET A SENSE OF FULFILLMENT

FIND YOUR DREAM HOME PLACE AND WORK TOWARDS IT

TAKE CARE OF SENIORS IN FAMILY

WHEN YOU GET STRESSED START LAUGHING TO REDUCE IT

APPRECIATE THE BEAUTY AROUND YOU IN YOUR SURROUNDINGS

DRINK 1- GLASSES OF RED WINE

EAT UNTIL YOU ARE 80% FULL-SLOWS METABOLISM

MAKE LIST OF PROBLEMS YOURSELF AND FRIENDS. IF TOO MUCH TO YOURSELF

EAT LOTS OF VEGES AND LITTLE MEAT S

Speaking your mind relieves stress

having a garden gets you exercise
try to focus on the moment rather than the future or past

lots of whole grain breads,cereals,pastas
little coffee.tea,alcohol
some low fat dairy
some use of nuts and legumes
lacto-ovo-vegetrian diet
pay attention to b12,vita d calcium,iron,zinc

drink lots of water 5-6glasses/day

breakfast-oatmeal with
noon-fruit and vegetable salad
snacks?

1 time/week focus on relationships,nature and reflection and get exercise

eat like a king at breakfast,prince at lunch and pauper at dinner


foods rich in magnesium,manganese, vit c, b6, calcium

drink hard water with calcium and magnesium

Get more sleep for Great Skin

sleep deprivation leaves a dull, dehydrated and wrinkled complexion. On top of that, eyes look puffy, dark and swollen with more bags than an upscale purse boutique. That’s because sleep is one of the best beauty treatments in your arsenal, so when you don’t get enough, your skin shows it. Here’s why sleep is so beneficial and how you can get more of it.

How sleep saves skin
The concept of “beauty sleep” isn’t an oldwives’ tale. Experts say sleep does affect your skin and has a variety of benefits.

• Sleep increases skincare’s efficacy. Vitamins, retinoids and other ingredients lose potency after exposure to sunlight, rendering them less effective. Because there’s no sunlight at night, the products’ “anti-aging ingredients stay active longer,” according to Prevention. Consequently, they might provide more anti-aging benefits for your skin.
• Sleep promotes cell turnover. Cell regeneration is the process where fresh, new skin cells replace old, dead skin. This happens quicker at night compared to daytime, Alex Khadavi, M.D., associate dermatology professor at the University of Southern California, tells Prevention.
• Sleep cleans up daily damage. During the day, skin is bombarded with UV rays, pollution and other harmful environmental elements. These culprits can cause damage like dehydration, lines, wrinkles and sun spots. At night, skin repairs itself to reverse this damage. Using an antioxidant-rich night cream boosts this repair process. “If the night’s work is done more efficiently, the skin is better able to protect itself the next day,” Lise Jorgensen, vice president of global product development for Estèe Lauder, tells Notebook. Help your skin reach its protective potential by using a cream that is loaded with antioxidants and moisturizers, it hydrates, encourages cell renewal and delivers a glowing complexion.

Tips for a good night’s sleep
Many factors are crucial for getting enough sleep. Below, some advice to get you started, according to the National Sleep Foundation:

• Create a sleep-friendly environment. This involves creating a space that’s dark, cool and free from distractions — yes, that includes the TV and laptop, which are actually stimulating to the brain and wake it up.
• Leave work out. You want to designate your bedroom as a place for sleep and relaxation, so taking in work materials only sabotages your sleep. For many of us work also can be anxiety-provoking, which inhibits sleep.
• Sleep on a comfortable mattress and pillows. Try a medium-firm mattress, which promotes greater comfort and better sleep than a firm mattress, according to Ladies’ Home Journal. It’s especially ideal for people with shoulder and back problems. Also, keep in mind that good mattresses last about nine to 10 years.
• Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Though it’s tough to keep a consistent schedule, particularly on the weekends when we love to catch up on sleep, it’s an important part of fostering healthy sleep habits.
• Take a warm bath. This helps your mind and body unwind after a long, stressful day. Don’t use hot water — it will dry your skin and zap natural oils. Try an oil bath & shower gel containing calming lavender and chamomile to relax the body along with moisturizing oils to keep skin hydrated.
• Read a book or listen to relaxing music. These kinds of activities right before bed are “an automatic cue to become sleepy, making it more likely that you’ll fall asleep,” notes Janis Graham in Ladies’ Home Journal.
• Don’t eat right before bedtime. If it’s possible, finish eating several hours before you plan on going to sleep.
• Don’t smoke. Because cigarettes and other tobacco products are stimulants, they lead to poor sleep. (Another reason to avoid them: cigarettes are bad for your skin, causing dehydration and wrinkles.)
• Skip caffeine. Caffeine in coffee, tea, soda and even chocolate can disturb your sleep. On the other hand, a cup of decaf tea before bed can promote relaxation.
• Say no to alcohol. Sure, a glass of wine might relax you or make you drowsy at first. But it can lead to disrupted sleep later in the night.

The morning after
Even with a conscious effort to get plenty of sleep, sometimes it just won’t happen. Maybe you stay up too late, wake up in the middle of the night or toss and turn. Whatever the reason, your face will reveal all that exhaustion. For when your skin is looking less than luminous and rejuvenated, here are several products to replenish and revitalize tired-looking skin.

• Wash your face to get going in the morning. 
• Apply a quick pick-me-up to tired eyes. 
• Add a pop of color to dull, sallow cheeks. 

What Causes Aging Skin?

In order to develop anti-aging skin care strategies you need to understand the fundamentals of what causes it? There has been much research done in this area and it all comes to the conclusion that there are two types of aging:

1)Intrinsic (internal) aging which is caused by genes that are inherited from our parents. These genes have hereditary patterns that control to a degree how our skin responds to environmental factors causing natural aging. These are difficult to control.

2)Extrinsic (external) aging which is caused by external factors. These are the environment factors like exposure to UVA and UVB rays. These factors are much easier to control.

Intrinsic Aging

Our bodies begin to age the minute we are born. We mature to adults until our twenties and then the second phase of aging starts. Its this second phase of aging that people want to slow or halt. In this phase our skin gradually begins to lose its elasticity which is caused by several factors. Research has shown that collagen production begins to slow and elastin becomes less elastic. Also the production of dead skin cells slows and the start of new skin cells slows. Some typical signs of intrinsic aging are:

• wrinkles
  
• thinning skin/ transparent skin
• drying skin
• drooping eyelids
• sagging/loose skin in the jawbone area
• bags under the eyes
• pattern baldness for men or women
• thinning hair
• hair growth in unwanted areas
• reduced ability to sweat/ cool the skin
• Bones can shrink causing sagging skin
• loss of fatty tissues resulting in loss of firmness in the cheeks, eye sockets, hands and neck

The genes also not only how we age but how fast we age as well. Some may develop wrinkles in their twenties while others develop them in their thirties

Extrinsic Aging

There are a variety of external/ environmental factors that age our skin simultaneously with the intrinsic factors to cause premature aging of our skin. The most common causes of extrinsic aging are:

• sun exposure (the most common)
• gravity
• sleeping positions
• smoking
• drinking
• poor diet
• stress
• repetitive facial expressions like frowning
  

Sun exposure is usually the most common and yet easy to control. All it takes is a few minutes a day of exposure and over years it builds up causing bug changes to the skin. Common results are: a blotchy complexion, spider veins on the face, rough leathery skin, loose skin, freckles, age spots, skin cancer, actinic keratoses and of course wrinkles.

Aging caused by sun exposure is called "photoaging" by dermatologists. The amount of photoaging is determined by the persons skin color(fair skin ages faster than darker skins) and their history of long-term sun exposure. When the skin photoages it loses the ability to fix itself and the damage piles up by breaking down collagen and reducing the making of new collagen. Elastin is also damaged by the sun resulting in reduced elasticity of the skin(sagging).

If you have fair skin and get a freckle over night you may assume that photoaging happens suddenly when actually it happens gradually beneath the surface of the skin for years undetected. A technology has been developed called UV photography which allows you to view the damage underneath your skin.

You can view some photos of UV photography here

Gravity

The gravitational forces that keeps us from floating away into space also pushes on our bodies attacking our elasticity in our skin. A few noticeable results of this are a drooping nose, ear lobes, and eyelids.

Smoking

There is a ton of scientific research out there and growing daily about how smoking accelerates aging. Studies have shown a few side affects of smoking for 10+ years can give you a more deeply wrinkled, leathery skin, cause a yellowish hue and blotches on fingers, hands and generally all over the body.

Facial Expressions

Every time you use a facial muscle a groove forms beneath the surface of the skin which is what causes lines in our skin when we make facial expressions. When the skin starts to lose elasticity these grooves become more noticeable causing fine lines and wrinkles

Sleeping positions

sleeping the same way for years causes sleeping lines which lead to wrinkles. If you sleep on your side or with your face down into the pillow you will develop sleeplines easier. The best way to avoid these sleeeplines is to sleep on your back so your skin doesn't get crumpled against anything in your sleep.


So what can you do to prevent premature aging caused by intrinsic and extrinsic factors?

• Avoid tanning altogether and reduce your sun exposure. When you decide to go out make sure you have sunscreen year around
• quit smoking immediately. There is research showing that people who quit smoking can still avoid many of the affects of long term smokers
• Avoid drinking excess alcohol.
  
• Stay out of the sun between 10am to 4pm when the sun's rays are the strongest
• Use a broad spectrum sunscreen(UVA and UVB) with an SPF (Sun Protection Factor) of 15 or higher
• Use a good moisturizer with collagen when your skin is dry
  
• Research your family history and create an anti aging program for yourself
• reduce stress by meditating or take time away from your problems
  

Other alternatives include cosmetic treatments, surgery, hair transplants, and other choices to slow the external signs of aging skin. Some cosmetic procedures include:

• injectable fillers
• botulinum toxin
• radiofrequency
• dermabrasion
• laser resurfacing
• chemical peeling
• microdermalabrasion

There are a number of ingestible food based products that revolve around optimizing nutrition that i will be detailing in future blog posts.

Research in this area is increasing and will likely yield better future products. The best way to keep up with the latest products that work is to consult with a dermatologist and design a program around their suggestions. You can also try the UV photography to get a glimpse first hand of the sun's handiwork.

If you are lucky and live long enough, aging skin will catch up to you and the years you acquire will eventually show on your face. One of the healthiest things you can do for yourself is to work on accepting your aging process with dignity…and grace…and style.