Tips for Protecting Your Skin from the Inside-Out

For most of us, especially as we get older, summer is the time we think a lot about our SKIN. Some of us cover ourselves with loads of sunscreen or find ourselves reaching for the moisturizing lotion to calm dry skin. Many of us are worried about getting burned and we are being bombarded with warnings about skin cancer. I firmly believe that the health of your skin has more to do with your overall health, and not so much about what products you use on your skin. Here are some tips for keeping your skin as healthy as possible…

Take Juice Plus+

I was excited to find a study that showed how Juice Plus+ significantly improves skin health versus those not taking it. Specifically Juice Plus+ improved:

microcirculation
hydration
thickness
density

One of the reasons I started Juice Plus+ was because my friend who has been taking it for the last 12+ years has the most beautiful skin, hair and nails I’ve ever seen. Another friend who has been taking it for 20+ years always shocks people when she tells them she’s in her mid-forties. The woman doesn’t look a day over 25!

You can check out this study here.

Be sure to take your Juice Plus+ every day, knowing you are feeding your body the phytochemicals it needs to stay young and have fun in the sun!
Contact me to learn more about Juice Plus+, or click here to view Real Food Family’s Juice Plus+ website.

Take Fermented Cod Liver Oil/High Vitamin Butter Oil Blend

Did you know that sufficient vitamin D and fatty acid balance in your body can protect your skin from burning? This study is one of many that shows that sufficient vitamin D not only protects from sun burns, but also inhibits skin tumor development.

I believe that because the vitamin D in the cod liver oil I recommend is naturally occurring and in proper balance with co-factors like fat, vitamin A, minerals and enzymes, I definitely believe that the fermented cod liver oil/high vitamin butter oil blend is your absolute best supplement choice for vitamin D, as well as vitamin A and essential fatty acids.

More Skin Protecting Tips:

Protect Your Skin with Coconut Oil:

Coconut oil not only offers important essential fatty acids to protect your skin from the inside-out, but also offers an SPF of 4. You can use coconut oil as a cooking oil, salad dressing oil, or in recipes like this smoothie recipe to get it into your body. Also have coconut oil on hand to spread all over your skin when you’re ready to spend some time in the sun, or if you do get a burn. Coconut oil is fabulously moisturizing and healing in case you get burned, and smells nice, too!

Use a Zinc-based, Chemical-Free Sunscreen If You Have To

I’m not a fan of sunscreen. In fact, I HATE spray-on sunscreen- not only because I hate toxic sunscreen in general, but I think it’s rude to force the world to breath the toxic sunscreen that is blowing out of the can!

The main reason I dislike sunscreen is because it is typically full of toxic chemicals…chemicals that are known to cause cancer, ironically. (Again, I’m so glad people blast the spray on stuff into the wind so I can breath all that carcinogenic stuff.) Such chemicals include oxybenzone, which is in about 56% of sunscreens currently on the market, and Retinyl palmitate, which is a known skin cancer hazard. When you use commercial, chemical-laden sunscreens, these chemicals seep into your skin and can end up in your blood stream. No, thanks!

There science actually shows very little reduced risk of skin damage from the use of sunscreen, and only 20% of melanoma is related to sun exposure at all (source).

Sunscreen works by inhibiting your body from absorbing UV rays- UVA and UVB to be exact. While UVA rays cause damage from excessive sun exposure, we need UVB rays to properly absorb Vitamin D. This is the other reason I don’t like sunscreen. It actually keeps your body from absorbing the vitamin D your body wants and needs…which protects your skin from burning and inhibits skin cancer tumor growth!

The science does show that skin burns (as in many sunburns over time) definitely raise your risk for skin damage and cancer. It is important to avoid burns by taking the supplements I recommend and following these extra tips to protect your skin, and avoiding excessive sun exposure.

Kabana Green Screen Organic Sunscreen is the sunscreen and brand I recommend if you insist on using it, or need it because you can’t avoid a day of excessive sun exposure.

If You Get Burned, Try These Natural Remedies

Here are the remedies we successfully use in our house if we get burned…which isn’t often. We use one or all of these things together, so it’s good to have your sunburn kit ready to go.

Aloe

Probably the best first aid option for a sunburn is lathering real aloe vera gel from an aloe plant all over your burn. We always keep a potted aloe plant in the back yard.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Amazingly apple cider vinegar really helps a burn heal quickly…you might just stink a bit after rubbing it all over your skin.

Coconut Oil

Like I mentioned before, coconut oil is great for healing a sunburn.

Plant Medicine

Plant medicine is amazing at calming burns, bites and wounds. Contact me to learn about the plant medicine I use!