Easy Steps To Improve Your Health

The basis for any beauty regime is proper nutrition, especially when it comes to your skin. There is nothing more attractive than smooth, glowing skin, and this is made possible by watching what you eat and making positive changes in your lifestyle. You may even save a few bucks on cosmetics!

Why does what you put in your body make a difference? Because when your body is full of toxins from eating processed foods, trans fatty acids, and sugar, drinking alcohol and taking drugs, it affects your body's ability to flush itself out. This shows up as acne, sallow skin, wrinkles, and so on. Like it or not, no amount of lotions, chemicals or surgery can have the same positive long term effects as a healthy lifestyle.

First, drink plain, fresh water (NOT flavored water) and increase your fiber intake. This makes sure that all of your cleansing organs (intestines, kidneys, adrenal glands, thyroid and liver) can do their job properly and flush toxins from your system. Your skin will become clear and glowing when your system is clean and eliminating properly.

Feed your body fresh food like fruits, vegetables, juices, whole grains, lean meats and poultry, oily fish such as salmon (for Omega 3 fatty acids that help keep skin hydrated), virgin oils and fats. A basic rule of thumb is if it's processed, fried, breaded or comes in a can, avoid it! Use sea salt as opposed to table salt, which has no nutrients and does nothing but raise your sodium levels.

Lose the soda, including diet soda, and other sugary drinks. Lose the artificial sweeteners, too. Carbonated drinks leach calcium from your bones, putting you at risk for calcium deficiency and osteoporosis. Artificial sweeteners are full of toxins that can overload your system, causing headaches and other side effects. Raw and maple sugars are better for you if you need a sweetener, but limit your intake.

Cut back on the amount of sweets you eat overall. This doesn't mean no sweets ever, but keep it in moderation, and choose unrefined sugars whenever possible. Sugar is in almost every processed food you can think of, because it's cheap and used as a filler. Read the labels in your cupboard if you need proof. Cut down a bit at a time if you have to, but make it a priority to eat as little processed sugar as possible.

Avoid fad diets, and make healthy eating a regular habit, not a temporary solution. Try to eat as healthy as you can wherever you are. Rapid loss or increase in weight can stretch your skin, and it will lose elasticity, causing wrinkles and skin flaps.

Lack of sleep, stress, smoking or being exposed to second hand smoke, drugs and drinking will also take a huge toll on your skin. Do your best to cut back or eliminate them all together, you know your Mom would approve!

Be sure to get some sun, but wear a hat to avoid burning, and limit your exposure time, especially if you have a fair complexion. Wear sun screen, even on cloudy days, to all exposed areas of skin. Regular exercise will not only increase the blood flow and circulation of your skin, it will increase your energy levels and give you a sense of well being. Try to move with a purpose everyday for at least 15 minutes, take a walk or take the stairs. It's a journey, but you will find you can enjoy a healthy lifestyle no matter where you are, or what level of health you are at right now. Just take it one day at a time.

NOTE: Don't forget to get the OK from your health care professional before making any changes in your nutrition, exercise and medication regime.

Learn More About Real Beauty Through A Healthy Lifestyle At Beauty Culture Magazine and HealthyFoodForHealthyLiving.com .

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