People spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars every year on personal care products like facial moisturizer, eye cream, cleanser, exfoliant products – all with the marketed promise of either maintaining a youthful glow or taking years off your skin. I know this first hand because I used to be one of those people at the cosmetics counter looking for the newest cream to moisturize my dry skin and look 19 again.
The same is true for hair products. I am always shocked at how costly shampoo and conditioner is at my hair salon. I chuckle because I buy an all natural, organic shampoo and conditioner for less than ten bucks! In fact, you likely have many ingredients right in your kitchen that can cleanse and replenish your hair’s natural shine.
Have you ever noticed that many of these products advertise the fact they have vitamins like Co-Enzyme Q10 and vitamin C and antioxidants like polyphenols?
The truth is, beauty comes from the inside out – literally. What you eat and drink everyday impacts the health of your skin and the shine of your hair. Why not simply eat these vitamins and minerals in your food instead of buying outrageously expensive products that are probably not even working. In addition to this, there are very specific supplements you can take for skin and hair health.
I am excited to share a few of my beauty tips with you so that you can keep your money in your pocket!
Olive Oil
I wrote a post very recently about all the benefits of olive oil. Olive oil is an monounsaturated fatty acid that is like moisturizer for your skin. You need to eat fat to have supple skin, plain and simple. Olive oil is a good source of polyphenols which are antioxidants known to help slow the aging process. The ancient Greeks used to bathe in olive oil! Add olive oil in your diet everyday – on a salad, if you are not sensitive to wheat then pour some on your whole wheat pasta or dip some whole grain bread into extra virgin olive oil. Do not cook with olive oil because heat destroys all the beneficial properties of olive oil. Of course the other fat that is absolutely essential in your diet for skin health is fish oil. But you already know that right? 
Citrus Fruits
If you want to get rid of blotchiness or blemishes, you have to make sure that you are eating foods that contain vitamin C and vitamin E. Citrus fruits are very good for your skin, and include fruits like oranges, grapefruits, and limes. You can also find vitamin E in any green and leafy vegetables and as well as in certain lean meats, nuts, and beans. Remember to always choose organic to avoid exposure to chemicals and hormones – both negatively affect the health of your skin.
Brazil nuts, whole grains, salmon, halibut, shiitake mushrooms
What do all these foods have in common? They are a good source of selenium which is a mineral and a powerful antioxidant that protects your skin from free radical damage that you may encounter from the sun and air pollution, especially if you live in a big city. Selenium is a skin rejuvenator and protector of your cells. Interestingly, selenium plays an important role in the health of your thyroid as well. One of the symptoms of a hypothyroid is dry skin. Next time you are grocery shopping, aim to purchase at least one or two of these skin protecting items.
Water
Without water, life would cease to exist. We need water for every single cell in our body to function optimally and our body weight is comprised of nearly 70% water. Water is essential for detoxification and elimination. If you are dehydrated then toxins cannot possibly exit your cells, nevermind leave your body. This may very well manifest on your skin as blemishes or dry cracks and dull lifeless hair. Aim to drink 6-8 glasses of filtered (not bottled) water per day.
The best news of this blog post today, is that ALL of these suggestions do double duty! They help create healthy shiny hair too. The key thing to remember is that beauty comes from the inside. Invest in yourself with the foods you put into your grocery cart instead of fancy products that promise, but do not deliver. Not only will you see the benefits on your skin and hair, but you will FEEL better from the inside out. And nothing says beauty, then when you feel beautiful and happy.
Happy Friday!
Joyous
Olive Oil … I do use it for moisturizer at night as well as you can use it as ur massage oil .. with few drops of aromatherapy oils ..
Joy .. How about flaxseed oil? Me being a hardcore vegetarian .. prefer flaxseed oil as I don’t eat fish.
And how can you forget to mention Almonds?? Our all time favorite almond butter and almond milk
Happy Friday to you too.
Flaxseed oil is most definitely the best option if you are vegetarian. I grind my own flax seeds and add them to my breakfast. I feel so good when I eat them!
I cannot determine if it was adding the 1/2 cup of blueberries or tablespoon of flaxseed oil to my daily diet (morning smoothy) that did it, but after 2 weeks the plantar warts I had were visibly shrunken, and by 6 weeks they were completely gone. None came back. I had been treating the warts with the skin-killing salicylic acid for 12 weeks, losing hope. The improvement in diet had surprising and speedy results.
Reduced the winter-skin flakiness on my face, too.
If only it help with male-pattern baldness…
The blueberries were giving your body a nice dose of antioxidants and warts can often be a sign of low antioxidant status in the body. The flax oil will definitely help your skin hydration and aid in hormonal balance. Glad to hear you had great results by eating well
I’m one of those people that search for the best products to treat my skin and hair.
I keep hearing that Olive oil is good for your health and for your hair. I recently read a post about Rosemary oil and how it’s supposed to be way good for dry hair and hair growth. I also heard the same thing about coconut oil. I’m getting the impression that all oils are good.
Have you by chance done any research on Rosemary/coconut oil? I’d like to hear your opinion on it.
Well, I really want to try out the rosemary oil first and see if it really works on me, but it’s supposed to be really great from what I’ve read. However, I haven’t looked into oregano oil so I really don’t know how similar they are to each other…
By the way, thank you for recommending me that blog. I will definitely look into it as well.
You have a wonderful day as well!
Hi Joy,
I have an appointment with you this week and was wondering if you could send me the link to that wellness form?
Thanks,
Michelle Taylor