This is part 2 of the subject of nutrients. Be sure to read part 1 of “Skin Problems? It May Be A Lack Of Nutrients” before reading this part.

Royal Jelly is a nutrient that can be used as a topical application as well as taken as a supplement. This nutrient that comes from bees is full of vitamins, pantothenic acid and amino acids. Royal Jelly can help with darkening of the skin, blemishes and wrinkles. When taken orally, its properties can help in delaying collagen from deteriorating which can help the skin look younger.

L-Cysteine (commonly known as just Cysteine) is a nutrient that helps the collagen in the skin to hold together. Most of the skin is high in this nutrient. People can get a good daily amount of this nutrient from foods like milk but mainly eggs.

Gamma-Linolenic Acid (GLA for short and commonly known as just Linolenic Acid) with its anti-inflammatory properties is great for the skin. It’s basically known as evening primrose oil in its supplementation form. Common cooking oils have this acid like extra virgin olive oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil and safflower oil. Just 2 tablespoons per day of these oils (preferably cold pressed) can be added to the daily diet by cooking with them, or they can even be made into a light vinaigrette dressing for salads. In supplementation form 500 mg of evening primrose oil is needed.

There is two more important “nutrients” that are very common and also very important when it comes to good skin care. The first one is water. Water is an important part of all tissues in the body including skin tissue. Water helps to supply important minerals to the body. Drinking about 8 to 10 glasses of pure, plain water will provide enough moisture and give keep good water balance in the body.

The second important “nutrient” is fiber. There are three types of fiber. The fiber in grains is called bran. The fiber in fruit is called pectin. The fiber in vegetables is called psyllium. People should aim to add least 40 grams of fiber from one, two, or all three of the different fibers to the daily diet. A person should add this to their diet slowly if their diet is low in fiber in the first place. Fiber can help to clear the complexion of the skin although studies have not uncovered how. It may be how fiber improves bowel elimination and therefore limiting the absorption of acne-aggravating properties, toxic substances and saturated fats.

Sources of bran from food are of course bran, whole wheat bread, brown rice, rolled oats, Grape-Nuts cereal and even white rice and shredded wheat. Sources of pectin from fruit are apples, strawberries and other berries such as blueberries and raspberries, pears, melons, oranges and other citrus fruits like tangerines and grapefruits. Sources of psyllium from vegetables are beets, green beans, green peas, potatoes, carrots and celery. Vegetable bulk powders like Metamucil and Citrucel are ok but add them slowly to the diet like a quarter teaspoon to each meal and add a quarter teaspoon each week to each meal until the amount is a full teaspoon to each meal.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Skin Care

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Your skin is the largest organ of your body, just like your heart or your kidney. Its job is to protect your insides so it is important for it to be healthy. If you eat a healthy diet, drink lots of water, keep it clean, and protect it from the sun, your skin will stay healthy all your life.

A skin care program is the combination of skin care products and a routine that will be most beneficial to the skin. You will first need to consider your diet and type of life-style since these two factors play an important role in the health of a person’s skin.

Diet - Eat Well

What you put into your body has a huge effect on how the outside looks and feels. Eating healthy foods is important. Remember to feed and nourish your skin by eating the proper foods. Give your skin a drink too. Eight glasses of are essential to maintaining your skin’s elasticity and suppleness, say experts. The water you choose can be sparkling water, mineral or straight from the tap. You still can’t beat the old fruit and vegetable diet when it comes to good health and a good complexion.

Hygiene - Keep your skin clean.

You need to give some thought and consideration to the type of makeup you use. And be sure to clean your tools regularly. Things such as cosmetic brushes get dirty and can carry bacteria and germs and may cause skin irritations and breaking out. A good way is to soak brushes for about 10 minutes in a dish of warm, soapy water using mild liquid detergent or baby shampoo. Rinse and blot excess moisture with a towel and stand the brushes, handle end down, in a tall glass until they are thoroughly dry.

Keep environmental pollutants from being absorbed into the skin with a good moisturizer that also acts as a skin barrier. Check the labels for those with added Vitamin A, C and E, which help block the penetration of pollutants.

Exercise - keep fit

A good exercise program such as aerobics can activate and rejuvenate the skin and improve circulation and blood flow. Also, body sweat triggers production of sebum, which is the skin’s own natural moisturizer.

Sleep - get an adequate amount of quality sleep

Be sure to get enough sleep. An adequate amount of quality sleep can help recharge and rejuvenate the body, making it more resilient. Lack of sleep can lead to tired lifeless skin and circles under the eyes. To avoid morning eye or facial puffiness, sleep on your back so fluid doesn’t collect there. And, you can keep the oil from your hair away from your face by wearing a head covering or a soft headband when you go to bed.

De-Stress - Relax

Get serious about stress reduction. Skin conditions such as acne appear on many people who are stressed out, and chronic skin conditions then to get worse. Set aside quiet time to meditate or daydream. Breathing exercises are excellent for reducing stress. And keep in mind that too much stress can affect your overall health as well as your complexion. A more detailed version of this article is available at:
http://hair-removal-tips.blogspot.com/

Copyright © 2005. Chileshe Mwape writes for The Pregnancy Guide website at: http://www.pregnancyguide.org.uk/ and he’s also a regular contributor to the Cosmetic Surgery Guide blog at: http://cosmetic-n-plastic-surgery.blogspot.com/

This article may be reprinted as long as all the above links are active and clickable.

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We’ve all seen the scaly itchy skin associated with eczema. Perhaps you’ve even had eczema at some point or suffer from it chronically. This condition, thought to be hereditary attacks about three out of every hundred people and can manifest itself as a rash with scaly, dry, itchy and/or red skin. Either way, you’ll want to do something to relive it fast!

You can get eczema medication from your doctor and if your symptoms are severe you should follow his instructions and use it as recommended. You might notice that some of this medication has Vitamin A in it. Vitamin A is a powerful antioxidant that can help to alleviate symptoms of eczema and has many health benefits for your body including its ability to fight against heart disease and other cardiovascular problems as well as cancer and many other chronic diseases.

Most importantly for eczema sufferers is the vitamins ability to boost and develop the immune system. Dietary and supplemental sources of this vitamin seem to help your body produce antibodies and lymphocytes. These are essential to a healthy immune system. In a recent study, for example, diets lacking Vitamin A were compared to ones rich in vitamin A, beta-carotene, and lycopene and the Vitamin A rich diets has better results on the immune systems of mice.

Foods that are high in Vitamin A include many of your favorite fruits and vegetables! Look for veggies and fruits that are orange in color like carrots, cantaloupe, mango, aprictos and sweet potato to get the most bang for your buck. Other foods that are good sources of Vitamin A include broccoli, turnip greens, spinach and yellow squash.

Taking a Vitamin A supplement can be a good idea for control of eczema, but if you are also taking fish oil supplements, you may want to add more vitamin A to compensate. Vitamin A is fat soluble and the fish oils are, of course, fat so the presence of fish oils can deplete the amount of vitamin A your body gets.

Good supplements, however, will provide the right combination of Vitamin A and fish oils so you can take both in one pill, provided it is a quality vitamin. Fish oil also has added benefits which stem from the omega-3 fatty acids. Along with skin problems, omega-3 is thought to help with depression, dementia, heart disease, Alzheimer’s and many other conditions.

If you suffer from eczema, think about asking your doctor if adding Vitamin A to your regime might help. It’s easy to take and can help protect you from a host of other illnesses and disease as well.

Lee Dobbins writes for Acne Articles.com where you can learn more about acne, skin problems and caring for your skin.

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