No chemicals, no preservatives, none of the bad stuff.

That's what it takes to have the all natural skincare routine that will ensure your skin's graceful aging in the years to come. 

Follow these four tips on how to reduce and prevent aging skin so that you can not only feel how you look, but also look how you feel.

 

1. Inflammation = pro-aging

This means that if you want to keep your skin looking smooth like a monk's head, you're going to want to do your best to avoid inflammation-causing foods like sugar, refined carbs (i.e. white bread and white rice), simple carbs (i.e. candy and soda), alcohol, industrial seed oil (i.e. canola and corn oil), red meat, and processed food.

*Pro tips: switch from white rice and white bread to brown rice and whole grain bread and switch from industrial seed oil to extra virgin olive oil.

 

2. Stay away from AGE = Advanced Glycation End

AGE is another compound that causes inflammation in your body. Avoiding this guy has to do with one's cooking method. Grilling, barbecuing, frying, roasting, baking, and toasting food causes an increase in AGE levels, thus causing an increase in inflammation in your body (and therefore skin).

Whenever possible, try to steam, boil, stew, or eat your food raw to avoid causing the level of inflammation-inducing AGE to increase.

*Pro tip: switch from frying your egg to boiling it or steaming your veggies instead of frying them.

 

3. Limit your alcohol consumption (we know, we know, probably not what you wanted to hear...)

The side effects of alcohol on the skin include dullness, discoloration, sagging, enlarged pores, dehydration, blotches, redness, and puffiness.

You can see how the damage this causes your skin can compound over time. Yikes!

If you are to consume alcohol, try to at least balance the consumption with equal amounts of water, to help your body filter it out more efficiently.

If you are an avid drinker or are curious about the other ways in which alcohol affects your skin and how you can safely consume it without it having too many detrimental effects on your skin, check out this article here.

 

4. Consume anti-inflammatory foods

It's pretty darn hard, if not flat out impossible, to completely avoid inflammatory foods, so it's important to make sure you consume the things that will help you fight this daily battle.

Some examples of great anti-inflammatory foods include turmeric, garlic (which is anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antiviral, and boosts the immune system), ginger, dark leafy greens, and cold water fish (i.e. salmon or sardines)

*Pro tips: turmeric is great to make curries with or, if you just want to get it over with, turmeric is available in the supplement form as well. 

 

Even with just these four tips it's a lot to try to keep track of, so go slow and always listen to your body, adjusting as is necessary.

Nobody ever said great skincare was easy, right? Unless you're applying Yu-Be to your skin everyday...