By Sofia Segounis, Nutritionist

Not everyone wants to go through painful and expensive procedures to look good.  And not everyone can afford it.  What you can do is change your diet.  Just by following these three diet tips you can take your skin and body back in time.

Tip 1:  Hydration
Staying hydrated is one of the most important rules in looking and feeling years younger. Drinking plenty of fresh water and avoiding any dehydrating agents, like caffeine, alcohol and medication that acts as a diuretic (unless doctor prescribed).  These substances cause your body to lose water, resulting in dehydration. 

Water makes up 70% of our body and, as a result, is extremely important to us.  It helps ensure our body is running smoothly and removes toxins.  By getting the right amount of water daily you are ensuring that toxins are removed, allowing your healthy skin to shine through.

Tip 2:  Essential Fatty Acids
Essential fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats that our bodies cannot produce.  The one most commonly referred to is omega-3 fat—found in foods such as:

• Oily fish and fish oils;
• Flax seeds and flax seed oil;
• Walnuts and walnut oil;
• Omega-3 eggs.

These fats will help keep skin moisturized and your hair shiny. 

Tip 3:  Antioxidants
Antioxidants work to counteract the affects of free radicals.  Free radicals can come from the sun, pollution and the food we eat.  They affect our skin by causing it to droop, wrinkle and sag. 

Vitamins A, C, and E, as well as lycopene are examples of antioxidants.  They can mainly be found in fruits and vegetables.  Some excellent examples of these are:

• Dark leafy green vegetables such as kale and dandelion greens;
• Bright colored fruits and vegetables such as sweet potatoes, mangoes and carrots;
• Citrus fruits and kiwis;
• Tomatoes;
• Nuts and seeds.

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By eating a well-balanced diet it is easy to incorporate all of these foods.  Click here for a well balanced meal plan.

There are many foods that will help you look and feel better but there are also other things you can do in conjunction with eating right.

• Get plenty of rest.  You don’t need those bags under your eyes, making sure you get the right amount and quality of sleep is important.  Six to nine hours is what is recommended.  If you feel rested, you will also look rested.  Visit our Sleep section for some great sleep tips. 
• Reduce your stress.  Stress will make you look and feel tired and will also disturb your sleep.  Visit the Stress page and listen to some meditation CD’s to help you relax.
• Quit smoking.  Smoking causes the skin to age and depletes the body of vitamin C, an antioxidant.  For tips to help quit smoking visit Smoking Cessation and Rehabilitation.

If you are not following a healthy diet and a healthy lifestyle, no amount of creams, injections and surgeries can make you feel younger—and there’s no guarantee these will  even make you look younger.  Using these easy tips, you can look and feel younger than you ever have before.   Click here for a natural facial mask.

References:

webmd.com