Good skin starts in the gut

There has been a lot of talk about gut health of late and how it impacts on skin. And here at Beatitude I am well on board with the gut to skin link.

Why? Well our gut flora is linked to directly to the microbiome of our skin, so disruptions or imbalance of bad bacteria in the gut can create outer chaos on the skin like inflammation, spots or lines.

I’ve long been an advocate of the philosophy that when it comes to bringing back a glow to skin or helping to treat conditions like acne, we need to take a holistic approach with our lovely clients and discuss their lifestyle and what they regularly eat or drink, as well as the products they put on their skin.

I’ve found that is addressing what’s going on inside the body, as well as providing beautiful, soothing skin therapy on the outside can work wonders on skin. which is why I am excited to be going back to school for health & Wellness coaching so I can better assist in this department.

If you want to help get your skin glowing from the inside out, here’s a few ways to get started:

#1 Stop Feeding The ‘Bad Guys’ In Your Belly

One of my biggest skin tips is to stop feeding the ‘bad guys’ in your belly. That is, the bad flora in your gut that can proliferate when you eat things like sugar, dairy products and processed grains. When these guys are fed too much of these foods, they can play havoc with hormones and starve the body of beautifying nutrients which can accelerate ageing.

#2 Say Yes To Seasonal and Regional Produce

Once you starve the little critters by reducing your intake of gut-unfriendly foods, I’d recommend replacing these with foods that ‘good bacteria’ love such as greens, fermented foods like sauerkraut and kim chi, probiotics, and lots of different fruits and vegetables. Your gut and skin (and probably your butt!) will love you. To do this consider:

Eating seasonally: our gut bacteria thrive off seasonal and local produce. When eating foods that have travelled miles overseas that may be in season over there but not here, it can disrupt our natural flora environment.

Eating a diet rich in polyphenols: things like cacao, dark skinned grapes, cherries, peanuts with the skin on, pomegranate, cinnamon, ginger are going to feed the good bacteria and kill off the bad bacteria.

Keep fruit to 1-2 serves max per day: steering away from high fructose fruits like banana, apple, watermelon, and opting for dark skinned berries, citrus, thick skinned fruits like kiwi, cherries.

#3 Go Easy On Your Skin

Once the inside is being taken care of, we can look at how best to nourish and protect the outside. The products you use on your skin can make a huge difference, which is why we are so committed to toxic free, small batch products that are rich in antioxidants. Serums, like our Citrus & Kale C+E Serum which is rich in Vitamin C, are especially good for stimulating collagen production and smoothing out the skin. Our other key strategy to a healthy microbiome is to stop stripping the skin through harsh exfoliation and focus on replenishing the skin with oils, because our skin bacteria thrive in lipid environment. We stock a some beautiful oils here such as the Rosehip & Lemongrass C+ E oil and the Total Facial Recovery Oil.