We are a culture obsessed with beauty and youth, yet many of us create an environment within our bodies that is counterproductive to achieving healthy beauty. To achieve beauty, you must first define what it means to you.
Living in Los Angeles, I've spent a lot of time with stereotypically pretty models. Often, after a few minutes, I actually found them very unattractive. All the makeup, fake boobs and plastic surgery in the world will not buy my definition of beauty.
Finding Inner Beauty
True inner beauty can only be found one way: by treating your body like the precious gift that was given to you, by making choices that make you feel amazing about yourself and by being in total control of the only thing in this mixed-up world you can be in control of -- your body. There are women who exude sexiness and timeless appeal well into their 60s and 70s. These are the women I want to age like: Charlotte Rampling, Julie Christie, Catherine Deneuve and Helen Mirren. All of these women have wrinkles, yet they are all still stunning. From what I've read and have heard about them, they have one thing in common:
Lifelong youth and beauty is possible, but you have to work for it (just like anything worth having). At 43 years old, my interest in keeping my skin radiant and wrinkle-free is a priority. I fight to keep my body tight and toned. In many ways, I feel like I have never looked better. My workouts are intense, and my diet is nutrient-dense. I am here to tell you that you can actually turn back the clock at any age with intense, consistent workouts and by eating the right foods.
Sugar: The #1 Beauty Killer
My number one offender to beauty is sugar.
If you want to look and feel younger, cut out sugar. Sugar makes you fat and may increase your risk of cancer. It ages your skin and causes wrinkles. In a process called glycation, sugar attacks collagen and elastin, both key proteins that make your skin look young. Glycation makes them less elastic and more brittle so they break. The skin can't snap back. That's when fine lines and wrinkles appear, and they don't go away. But it gets worse.
Collagen and elastin start to mutate, creating harmful new molecules called advanced glycation end products (AGEs). These build up and cause further inflammation and damage to collagen and elastin. Sugar actively ages you. Ditching sugar will make you look and feel 10 years younger.
To avoid sugar, you have to know where it hides. The food industry cleverly hides it in virtually everything we eat, especially packaged and processed foods, from breads to crackers to soups, sauces and entrees -- and even diet food and low-fat food. Here's where you're getting sugar -- probably without even knowing it:
Foods are a drug and have as much pharmacological affect on brain and body chemistry as a prescription drugs do. Save your money on expensive plastic surgery remedies to look more youthful, and put it into buying healthier, whole foods and treats.
Celebrate the Real You
Stop fantasizing about looking like a celebrity and do the things that will make your body and skin look the very best for you.
Start your new life today, and look and feel better tomorrow.
For more by Jackie Warner, click here.
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For more on beauty and skin, click here.
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In moderation, no food is bad for you, even sugar.
Learn to eat everything in moderation and...BE HAPPY!
(PS: Anyone contemplating a radical changes to their diet should at a minimum keep their doctor informed, if not consult their doctor beforehand.
And anybody who has to seriously worry about glycation is either consuming far far too much simple sugars than is reasonable (hey, I understand, it can happen, especially if you rely on prepared foods instead of cooking and baking your own from scratch) or needs to see their doctor immediately because they have a metabolic disorder which could signify something far more fatal than an extra wrinkle or two around the eyes.)
Thanks for the great post. Cutting out sugar has always been hard for me. And I love oatmeal, and I eat it regularly especially before a workout. I have used Stevia occasionally. The one oatmeal I like a lot is an organic light oatmeal called Dr McDougalls. A couple of them have 6 grams of sugar, which beats 13, and one I think has 0. Thanks again for sharing the article.
Thanks Jackie!
is so bad
but tastes so cool
what sacrifice
to give up what
i crave
for my aging
"beauty"
to save
a quandary
oh so sour
where for art
my willpower;-D