My metabolism changed a lot when I turned 30 and I began to notice that I could no longer eat as before – I used to eat buns and drink sweet tea with milk! Moreover, as a doctor, I understand that ageing on my face is only the result of all those destroying processes, that continue in my body. Now in my diet, there is almost no sugar, alcohol, gluten, and milk (ordinary refined sugar can not be found in my home and I gave it up as much as possible). I also prescribed for myself a course of excellent effective supplements for detox and holistic recovery. These simple steps have helped me to significantly improve my appearance and well-being – my skin is clean and radiant and I am healthy and full of energy. And in this article, I want to share these methods with you!
What daily foods age us?
Dermatologists, nutritionists, gastroenterologists, and endocrinologists in the course of research and practical experience have identified 4 groups of products that always lead to adverse reactions from the human body. They are:
- gluten-containing;
- refined sugar;
- dairy products;
- alcohol.
Nigma Talib, a favourite dermatologist and celebrity nutritionist, talks about the same products (1). She calls them a “stress group”, and eating them you are guaranteed to accelerate aging and get different diseases. Through many years of practice, she learned to identify eating disorders in humans, just by looking at the face. The skin, being the largest organ in the body, removes all the toxins that the intestines and kidneys can not cope with. Yes, human skin is a great indicator of whether everything in the body is working properly. If there are inflammatory or allergic reactions, stagnation of lymphatic fluid, disorders of the gastrointestinal tract – all of this will definitely affect the face. Based on this, Nigma Talib created a system of 4 groups of products, the abuse of which is always reflected in the face.
Alcohol
We have long known that alcohol is not the most useful drink. Although, as with many foods, it all depends on the dose, and there is a proven benefit of a glass of good red dry wine for the heart and blood vessels due to the antioxidant resveratrol. But abuse of any type of alcohol is likely to lead to signs of ageing and gastrointestinal and nervous system disorders (2).
One of the causes of disorders is that alcohol binds water and dehydrates the body. Dehydration itself is manifested by familiar headaches and dry mouth in the morning after the all-night party. Dehydrated, dry skin is more vulnerable, which leads to tightness, peeling, cracking, and the appearance of small wrinkles. In addition, alcohol destroys collagen – a known building block that is responsible for the elasticity and density of the skin.
Alcohol also provokes an imbalance in the intestinal microbiome, leading to inflammation and decreased immunity. To literally save your face and health, abstain from alcohol or at least minimize to a few glasses a month. Do not drink alcohol for two days in a row. Try to choose pure drinks without sugar content: dry wines, whiskey, vodka, cognac. And be sure to increase the amount of water you drink on holidays.
Gluten
There has been a lot of controversy over gluten for years. Some argue that it is harmful and directly related to Leaky gut syndrome, while others argue that the harm of gluten is a myth invented by marketers. Although it hardly seems to be a myth for people suffering from celiac disease, ie physiological intolerance to gluten, which has more than 1.4% (3) of people in the world, according to official data. But these are the numbers of patients with laboratory-confirmed absolute intolerance. While in most of us gluten causes certain negative reactions, but the strength of their manifestation depends on the amount of gluten in food and the personal characteristics of a particular organism. On average, gluten causes swelling, redness, and pigmentation on the skin and serious damage to our immune and gastrointestinal systems (4).
These problems can be solved, of course, by excluding all gluten-containing foods from the menu. These are wheat, rye, barley, and any of their derivatives. If somewhere you had to deviate from the rule and eat something floury, then in the coming days increase the amount of fibre and drink more water.
Sugar
Everyone knows that sugar is evil and that it causes acne. But few know why. It is important to understand that we do not call sugar only the white powder that we put in tea and coffee. Rather, sugar is the same, only it is present, except sugar, in all confectionery, semi-finished products, fast food, sweets and desserts, sweet drinks, canned food, and more.
When sugar is combined with collagen, glycation occurs – collagen fibres are compacted, wrinkles and sagging appear and deepen, the amount of moisture in the subcutaneous layer decreases. In addition, glycation results in products of high glycosylation, which are oxidants and lead to the intoxication of skin cells (5). But more importantly, sugar provokes the growth of putrefactive microflora in the intestine, shifting the balance and causing inflammation. On the skin, we see reactions in the form of numerous redness and inflammation, swelling, and sagging contours. And inside us at this time is the suppression of hoosh microflora and the growth of pathological, which in the future will inevitably affect the health of the whole organism (6). Surprisingly, refined products have the same effect – such as polished rice, and white flour with a high glycemic index.
You can cope with all this by completely eliminating sugar from your diet. Start by giving up obvious sources: sugar, cakes, candy. And eliminate products that contain excess refiners, replacing healthy analogues. Do this until the industrial sugar is completely gone from your life. One month after full-sugar unloading, occasionally eat foods that contain sugar, but do so very carefully and be sure to drink plenty of water.
Milk
Milk is another popular product that causes a storm of emotions and discussions. It is called the cause of all diseases and indispensable drugs (7). Research is ongoing and we still do not have an unequivocal verdict. However, given the results we have at the moment, I agree with doctor Talib, who believes that it is desirable to limit the consumption of dairy products, especially after the age of 30-35.
Scientists say lactose is one of the strongest food allergens. In addition, with age, the amount of enzymes that break it down gradually decreases, increasingly causing indigestion after eating dairy products. This leads to impenetrable sluggish inflammation in the intestines, which is reflected in acne and redness on the face and body, allergies, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases in various organs (8).
You can get rid of “milk problems” by removing from the menu absolutely all dairy products: milk, cream, cheese, ice cream, sauces, etc. if you want to always look fresh. You can leave only eggs, although they belong to the dairy. Fermented milk products are still recommended by most doctors to eat.
What did I add to my recovery plan?
In general, I listened to both Dr. Talib and the latest scientific data and tried to eliminate sugar, milk, gluten, and alcohol from my diet as much as possible. But in addition, as a doctor, I understand that all those harmful substances that have already accumulated in my body over the years need to be removed and used by the best detox agent I know – volcanic clinoptilolite Zeostar®, developed by scientists and proven to be effective. By the way, this product also promotes weight loss!
The next stage after detoxification of the body was anti-inflammatory therapy with Neotosil®, aimed primarily at combating Leaky gut syndrome. In addition, Neotosil® contains vitamins, antioxidants, and polyphenols – that is, I immediately actively help the process of cellular respiration recovery, reduce the level of oxidative stress in cells and make my daily diet more complete.
And the last, but very important point of my therapy was the intake of MultiEM ferment® – an innovative product that contains as many as 31 strains of necessary beneficial bacteria that restore my microbiome and, accordingly, immunity. In addition, MultiEM ferment® contains a number of useful antioxidants, enzyme particles, minerals, vitamins, (L+) right-handed lactic acid, prebiotics, and bioflavonoids that are complementary to Neotosil®.
Very importantly, all of the above products are free of preservatives, sweeteners, synthetic additives, gluten, flavours, and flavour enhancers.
To summarize…
I can conclude that, of course, some of us may, for example, drink litres of milk and have no acne or edema. However, as always in medicine, it is important to look individually. All these products are pro-inflammatory by default, ie. cause micro-inflammatory reactions in the body. But, depending on individual characteristics, the reaction to some products may be brighter, and others much weaker. Age, quality of goods, ecology, and way of life also plays an important role here.
But still, even in the absence of rapid obvious negative reactions from your body, do not forget that there are such concepts as “cumulative effect”. Deep wrinkles will not appear the next day after drinking a latte with cinnamon. The face will slide slowly and imperceptibly to anyone who sees the face every day. However, in 5-10 years, the difference between the one who excluded these products and the one who decided not to bother will be, as said “on the face”.
Well, in addition to nutrition, of course, physical activity is needed. Personally, I am a fan of yoga and pilates and I think my body will thank me for finally changing my eating and lifestyle.
Dr. Oksana Klymenko M.D., PhD, SNHS Dip. (Holistic Nutrition), Medical Doctor, Researcher in the fields of molecular physiology and pathophysiology, molecular biology, genetics, cell biology
References
- https://healthydoc.com/
- Iranpour, Abedin, and Nouzar Nakhaee. “A Review of Alcohol-Related Harms: A Recent Update.” Addiction & health vol. 11,2 (2019): 129-137. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6633071/
- Prashant Singh, Ananya Arora, Tor A. Strand et al. Global Prevalence of Celiac Disease: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Volume 16, issue 6, p823-836.e2, 2018 https://www.cghjournal.org/article/S1542-3565(17)30783-8/fulltext
- Akhondi H, Ross AB. Gluten And Associated Medical Problems. [Updated 2021 Jul 6]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2021. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538505/
- Cao, Changwei et al. “Diet and Skin Aging-From the Perspective of Food Nutrition.” Nutrients vol. 12,3 870. 24 Mar. 2020, doi:10.3390/nu12030870 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7146365/
- Freeman CR, Zehra A, Ramirez V, Wiers CE, Volkow ND, Wang GJ. Impact of sugar on the body, brain, and behavior. Front Biosci (Landmark Ed). 2018 Jun 1;23:2255-2266. doi: 10.2741/4704. PMID: 29772560. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29772560/
- Thorning, Tanja Kongerslev et al. “Milk and dairy products: good or bad for human health? An assessment of the totality of scientific evidence.” Food & nutrition research vol. 60 32527. 22 Nov. 2016, doi:10.3402/fnr.v60.32527 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5122229/
- Szilagyi, Andrew, and Norma Ishayek. “Lactose Intolerance, Dairy Avoidance, and Treatment Options.” Nutrients vol. 10,12 1994. 15 Dec. 2018, doi:10.3390/nu10121994 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6316316/