How do auto-immune conditions impact your skin

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If you have been dealing with inflammatory skin issues, whether it’s breakouts, acne, eczema, dermatitis, or rosacea, and whether this is a chronic issue or a recent flare up, one key area that often gets overlooked is your immune system.


Quite often, many clients that experience these conditions have an underlying immune or auto-immune related condition, which causes excessive inflammation of the skin. As your skin is an excretory organ, and the most final organ of the body, there is no doubt that when you are dealing with inflammatory skin issues, it is due to an overproduction of internal inflammation.

When there is an autoimmune condition, your immune system is already compromised which causes the body to have an elevated inflammatory response. This is because it has an increased susceptibility to inflammation and sensitivity. This is due to the over production of T cells, the cells which your body sends out when it perceives a foreign invader is entering the body. Now, in a normal and healthy response these cells would fight off the pathogen or virus, and return to its normal state.


However, when it comes to auto-immune conditions, the body perceives some of its own cells or tissues in the body as foreign, and begins to attack them. This is what leads to the overproduction of inflammation and heightened inflammatory response which begins to impact other organs of our body, including your skin!

Experiencing an illness or imbalance puts the body under a heightened stress response. 
This heightened stress increase begins to impact other areas of your health such as your gut health, hormones, hydrochloric acid levels, and even nutrient absorption and requirements. It mpacts how well your body can break down, distribute and absorb nutrients.


Intestinal impermiability, commonly known as ‘leaky gut’, has been found to be a common factor in inflammatory skin issues like eczema and psoriasis. Hypothyroidism has also been shown to have a strong link with rosacea, as it also impacts digestion and nutritional requirements. 

Essentially, when you have an autoimmune condition, or are dealing with a compromised immune system, your body is already under increased stress. This leads to an increase in your nutritional requirements to support and optimise healing, as your bodies core focus is to reduce inflammation and send its nutrients to its organs it considers most vital. 


Here are some ways autoimmune conditions can impact your skin:

• Increases your nutritional requirements including protein, vitamin C and Zinc. This is because when your body is experiencing ongoing stress, or has been run down, its nutritional requirements, especially zinc ,vitamin C and B are readily used up, and if we are not receiving enough of these, it begins to impact our skin.

• Impacts your gut health, including the digestion and absorption of your nutrients
. This affects nutrient absorption.
This can lead to conditions like impaired gut permeability, dysbiosis or reduced hydrochloric acid, which reduces the digestive enzymes and how well your body can break down and digest nutrients.Increases inflammation

• Impairs your wound healing

  


Protein is also essential when it comes to healing and supporting skin issues, particularly if there is already a compromised or impaired immune system.

Protein is an essential building block for lean body tissue, including your skin. However, when your body is run down, fighting an infection, or trying to heal a skin issue, your protein requirements are actually increased to support this process and rebuild skin tissue. 





This is why supporting your gut and liver is so important when dealing with a compromised immune system, as well as inflammatory skin issues.



So, what are some key foundations for supporting immune related skin issues?



1 Support your gut health.

Focus on eating real, whole foods, and foods as close to their natural state as possible. This is an easy way to support your gut microbiome and improve the diversity in your gut.
Reducing inflammatory foods like refined sugar, as sugar increases dysbiosis, the growth of the poor bacteria which leads to increased inflammation internally.
Sugar also competes with, and reduces the synthesis of vitamin C, which is an essential antioxidant for our health and healing.

By focusing on supporting your gut health, reducing inflammatory food will help support and repair the quality of bacteria in your gut and reduce underlying inflammation, which also helps to increase and improve nutrient absorption and availability.

2. Increase Immune supporting nutrients:

Our immune system, just like all other organs of our body require essential nutrients to help support and protect against free radical damage.
Key Nutrients including Vitamin C, D, Zinc, & Selenium are all essential for supporting our immune system, and help protect against free radical damage.


3. Reduce inflammatory foods

As your body is already under high stress and inflammation, we want focus on supporting the body by reducing any excessive inflammation happening internally.


4. Support your stress levels

Often in auto-immune based conditions, cortisol (our stress hormone) levels are increased due to the inflammation occurring internally. When there is additional stress, or ongoing cortisol levels, it can exascerbate or trigger these issues, leading to a worsening of the skin condition.

 Therefore focusing on supporting your stress levels is key, not only for gut health, it is also essential to get into the rest and digest state. Calming our body and nervous system is vital to support healing, and help reduce inflammation occurring internally. 


If you would like to know more about how you can support and heal chronic and inflammatory skin issues, and get to the root cause of your chronic skin issues, then I am here to help!

Simply send an email to contact@skinnutritionco.com.au, or submit an enquiry form and I will be in contact with you!
Also, if you know a friend or family member who is struggling with skin issues that needs to hear this, then I encourage you to please share this with them. My only hope is to help reach as many people as I can experiencing these issues that I can, so you too can begin to support your skin and health, from the inside out!

Thank you,

Until Next time,

Dominique

Skin Nutrition Co. X

Let’s talk Melatonin!

Often when we think of melatonin, we may only think of its benefits for our sleep.

Whilst it is definitely essential for our sleep, melatonin is also an antioxidant that provides multiple benefits for our overall functioning and cellular health.

There is no doubt you may notice an improvement in your skin after a good nights sleep, and no doubt your skin will also show signs when you’ve had a poor nights sleep.
However, melatonin provides a wide array of health benefits that go beyond skin deep!

Melatonin is a hormone which is produced naturally within our body. It is produced and released by our pineal gland within the brain which is responsible for our circadian rhythm, our ‘sleep wake cycle’. This helps control when we fall asleep, and wake up.

Whilst you may be aware of the beauty benefits of sleep, from supporting optimal healing, cellular repair, promoting and replenishing new skin cells. Melatonin also plays a vital role for many of our organs health, and our mental and emotional health, and cognitive support.


In fact, the more we begin to delve into hormones and the foundations for optimal hormone health, one key thing that always stands out is the importance of sleep! 
Specifically how sleep is fundamental when it comes to restoring our health, particularly our hormones!

As melatonin is a hormone, it is responsible for the control, flow and other functions of our body as well as impacting our skin health, from the inside out.


Melatonin also helps regulate many biological functions including:

• Our sleep cycle, and circadian rhythm

• Our immunity and reproductive function


• It provides anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects


• Mood support, reducing anxiety and calming the nervous system

• It helps to neutralise free radical damage


• Now in skincare, it is used topically to protect against the effects of UV damage, hyperpigmentation, and slow down skin ageing


  

Here are 5 ways melatonin can help your skin and overall health, and how you can increase your production of melatonin!


Antioxidant properties

Did you know melatonin is actually an antioxidant, which helps to neutralise and protect against free radical damage?
 This Is essential for cellular health and healing, which helps in reducing inflammation and oxidative stress.
 This goes beyond our skin to our overall cellular health.


It improves mood health and calms the nervous system
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When our melatonin ‘sets in’, it helps increase relaxation. This helps to reduce cortisol, ‘our stress hormone’, which can help to decrease inflammation when under a chronic state. This decrease in cortisol helps to reduce inflammation in the body. Often sleep deprivation, or ongoing poor sleep can impact our skin, as this ongoing inflammation can impact our collagen production and turnover. This can increase sebum production which can deplete our skin of essential nutrients that are required to help maintain optimum skin health.

Mimics Antioxidants function
Melatonin also mimics the function of Vitamin C and E, which both provide key antioxidant properties, and helps to repair against oxidative stress. Vitamin C is essential for collagen production, and cellular repair. Vitamin E provides many protective properties, including neutralising against free radical damage, and protecting against skin conditions contributing to oxidative stress.
 Melatonin also helps stimulate the production of the enzymes which neutralises free radical damage and stimulates the production of antioxidants. 


Hormone Support

Melatonin is key for healthy reproductive functioning and hormone production. If we are in a state of chronic or high stress, whether physical or emotional, overtime this can begin to impact our production of sex hormones, including progesterone and estrogen. High levels of cortisol can impede the production of these hormone as the body perceives it is under extremely high levels of stress, it suppresses ovulation.

Provides additional Support Topically
Melatonin has also gained an increase in popularity for its benefits topically, particularly for its role in skin health and antioxidant properties! 
It has been added to skincare products, and has also shown to be particularly beneficial for treatment against the production of UV damage, hyperpigmentation and reducing premature ageing.

So, how can we promote and regulate melatonin production?



Tips to promote melatonin production:



Lifestyle:
 Aim to avoid screen time at least 30-60 minutes before bed. 
Switch your screens to yellow light (‘night shift mode’) before bed, this switches from the blue light, which is what blocks the conversion of serotonin to melatonin, as the body cannot recognise it is night time, and able to sleep. 


Avoid eating at least 2-3 hours before bed. Aim to have your dinner or last meal of the day 2-3 hours prior going to bed. 
This enables the body to properly break down and distribute its nutrients, so it is not focused on breaking down its food and can transition into the ‘rest and digest’ state.


Have a chamomile tea 30-60mins prior to bedtime to help increase relaxation.



Dietary tips:


Include foods high in tryptophan and glycine.
These essential amino acids, found in lean proteins help the body to convert to molecules which help the production of both melatonin and seratonin, which are important for regulating and supporting mood control.
 Glycine helps to inhibit excretory, or stimulating neurotransmitters in the brain, helping reduce stimulation and overactivity of the brain.


Ensure to eat balanced meals to help stabilise and avoid spikes in blood sugar levels.

Having a balanced meal including healthy complex carbohydrates, fats and protein his essential to help keep your blood sugar balanced, and helping your satiety (fuller for longer). You will be less likely want to snack on sweet or sugary foods after dinner, and preventing hunger late at night.


Include foods containing melatonin,
Tart Cherries and Goji berries both naturally contain melatonin and are natural sleep aid enhancers. 

Eggs, oily fish and omega 3 Fatty acids, fish (like salmon and mackerel) also naturally contain melatonin
. Nuts including pistachios and almonds are among the highest source of omega 3 fatty acids


Avoid inflammatory foods: This includes 
foods high in refined sugar and processed carbohydrates, overly sweetened or processed foods. These are often high in sugars and additives, which can cause a quick spike in insulin levels, and increase blood glucose production. This increase in blood sugar can make it harder for you to fall asleep, as this increase in sugar causes an increase in energy production, and the body is now focused on trying to brake down and utilised its excess energy it has just received.

If lack of sleep is affecting your skin, hormones and overall health, or are struggling to get to the root cause of your skin issues, please have hope and know you can still support and reverse this cycle. I am here help you support you on your health joinery, so you can break free from the cycle of stress affecting your sleep and hormones, and truly heal from the inside out.

Simply send an email, or send an enquiry and I will be in contact with you on your next best steps for your health journey!

Thank you,

Until next time!

Dominique

Skin Nutrition Co. X
contact@skinnutritionco.com.au
www.skinnutritionco.com.au

Have you been prescribed Roaccutane or topical antibiotics for your skin? Have you been advised by your health professional that Roaccutane is the only solution for your skin condition?



How to support your skin holistically, whilst on Roaccutane.

Or perhaps you feel you have exhausted all other options and this really is your last resort, then please have hope, and know you can still support your skin internally whilst on Roaccutane.


Whether you are currently taking or about to take a course of Roaccutane or topical antibiotics, or perhaps have just come off this medication and are worried about how your skin might respond or change after completing the course, then this post is for you!



If you have made the decision to take topical antibiotics or medications for your skin, there is no shame or judgement, as every journey to healing is different and no two skins are the same! You can still support your skin and health from the inside out, alongside taking your topical medication, to help maintain the long term health and healing of your skin.



Here are 6 keys ways you can support your skin whilst you are on Roaccutane.

1. Support your Liver health

A healthy liver is essential for healthy skin! This is especially important when we are taking a course of medication, regardless of the duration, as we need to ensure our liver is receiving the adequate nutrients to enable detoxification to occur properly. 
Therefore, it is important to ensure we are optimising the liver health and ensuring it is receiving the correct quantity of nutrients to support phase 2 detoxification. This helps to break up the toxins within the body, making them into less toxic substances, and more water soluble, enabling the body to excrete them from the body.

Including cruciferous vegetables is important as these contain sulphur metabolites, which is needed in one of the processes to breakdown the substances.
Vitamin C (found from citrus fruits and green leafy vegetables) is also a key nutrient required to breakdown toxins.


2. Support your Gut Health

Our gut health is interconnected with our skin, with increasing research and evidence showing that the gut has a direct connection with the skin, known as the gut-skin-axis.
Therefore, ensuring we are supporting the growth of the good bacteria within the gut is key for supporting our skin, as this will help reduce inflammation internally, and promote the growth of beneficial bacteria, which helps to support optimal gut health. In particular, focusing on eating prebiotic and probiotic foods, and vegetables high in fibre will help the gut health thrive and support the growth of healthy bacteria.



3. Zinc

Zinc provides multiple benefits for our skin health! 
Zinc helps to protect against free radical damage and to reduce the bacteria within the skin, which is known to increase inflammation causing breakouts. This helps to strengthen the skin cell integrity and reduce inflammation in the skin, protecting against wound healing.

4. Include Vitamin A and Vitamin D rich foods.


These are both key antioxidants which are vital for skin health which play a key part in our skin health, in particularly supporting the structural integrity of the skin.
These are both fat soluble nutrients, which are needed to provide antioxidant properties, and support the structure of the cell membrane.
Both of these nutrients also play a key role in supporting the immune system, and the skins barrier defence system, which helps to reduce proliferation (flaking) and bacterial skin conditions.

5. Essential fatty Acids!
Essential fatty acids, as the name suggests, are essential as our body cannot make them by itself, therefore we need to obtain them from our diet.
These are naturally anti-inflammatory which helps to protect against acne and bacterial skin conditions, and is a vital part of maintaining the structural integrity of the skin. 


6. Selenium

This is another potent anti-oxidant, which has been shown to be lower in patients with chronic acne. Selenium helps to protect the cell membrane integrity, and protecting against free radical damage. Along with its multiple benefits for our skin health, it is also a precursor for glutathione production which helps to support liver detoxification, and reduce toxins that lead to congestion on the skin.



Key Takeaways to remember:

Whether you are on, or have taken topical antibiotics for your skin, you can still support your skin health internally.

 Consuming a diet that is high in antioxidants (coming from fresh fruits and vegetables) will help to support your skin health and maintain optimal health topically and internally, from the inside out!




For more information and key ways to help support your skin from the inside out, be sure to download your Clear Skin Checklist, for you to start implementing today.

Also, if you have a friend who would benefit from reading this, please share this with them.

If you are ready to get to the root cause of your chronic skin condition, and finally break free from the struggle of supporting your skin, please get in contact below, I am here to support you in your next steps!

Dominique

Skin Nutrition Co.
contact@skinnutritionco.com.au

Have you been convinced or sold into the idea that a detox will help support your skin?

Or perhaps you are wanting to detox your liver to help support your skin, but are unsure of the best way to do so.  If this is the case, then this post is for you!
In the previous blog I wrote about why our liver health is so important and how to properly support it. If you missed the first blog then you can check it out here https://skinnutritionco.com.au/blog.

The liver is such a crucial organ for skin health, and it’s a widely known fact that it is involved in detoxification. With the skin being the most external organ of the body as well as the largest excretory organ of the body, it’s no doubt that the two go hand in hand when it comes to addressing your skin health.

In fact, often chronic and inflammatory skin conditions such as acne, breakouts and eczema are known to be connected to the health of liver. Therefore, focusing on supporting the liver is essential for improving these conditions. However, often products or ‘diets’ that claim to  help ‘detox’, often promote ideas that are not so healthy, and may actually hinder, and even worsen your skin condition if not supported properly.

Here I wanted to break down and debunk the common myths about detoxs for your skin, so you can truly support and nourish your skin, from the inside out!

1. Under eating and Restrictive Dieting


The liver is involved in the metabolism and transportation of essential nutrients, including carbohydrates, fats and proteins. 
Therefore, it is important to ensure you are eating full and balanced meals to support the livers health and promote optimal healing.
Contrary to the common myths that many detoxes promote, often advising restrictive programs, or very low calories, this can actually impair the livers ability to properly detoxify if is not receiving enough essential nutrients, and can even worsen skin conditions. 
We need to ensure our liver is receiving enough vital nutrients to allow the process of detoxification , for the breakdown of nutrients and toxins to work efficiently. 

If we are undereating, or cutting out certain food groups, this reduces the livers ability to properly repair and support its proper functions. 
If your body is trying to rebuild and recover, whether this is for an injury or rebuilding skin tissues, under eating or skipping out on essential nutrients will impair the bodies ability to do this, and can even worsen or impair your skins wound healing ability.



2. Low Protein


Cutting out foods groups, especially protein can actually worsen or exacserbate skin issues, as protein is needed to rebuild skin tissues. 
Healthy lean protein is needed to support a healthy liver!
Proteins containing essential amino acids including cysteine, glycine and glutamine are required for phase 2 liver detoxification, which enables toxic substances to be broken down into less toxic matter, and excreted from the body. 
Not having enough protein can worsen or lead to scarring, as protein is required to rebuild and repair tissues. 
If we do not have enough, or are cutting out protein, this can lead to further weakening or breakdown of skin tissues and impaired skin healing, as protein is required to rebuild and regenerate new skin tissue.

Therefore under eating, or cutting out essential food groups like protein can worsen your skin issues and impair it’s healing!


3. Colonics and herbal teas


Herbal teas, drinks or ’cleanses’ that are marketed to detox or ‘boost your liver’ or ‘clear your skin’ that do not provide adequate nutritional guidance are just fads! 
These are not promoted by health professionals, and are unfortunately only seeking to provide a bandaid or quick fix solution, which can often lead to further complications and health issues further along.

Whilst herbal teas do provide some benefits as they naturally contain polyphenols, which are high in antioxidants that help reduce inflammation, and often support skin complexion, relying on teas alone will not help ‘detox’ or ‘heal’ your skin.
 Please avoid taking supplements or restrictive programs, particularly ones promoted to ‘heal’ or ‘detoxify’, as they are not promoted by qualified health practitioners, and can later lead to rebound symptoms. 


If you are really concerned with wanting to improve your liver health, it is advisable that you consult a qualified practitioner that can help guide you in the right direction.




For more information on what to eat to heal your skin, head to the website for all things skin health and healing, from the inside out!

Be sure to grab your clear skin guide as well so you can begin to implement the steps to help heal your skin from the inside out!

If you’re ready to get to the root cause of your chronic skin issue, or if you feel you may need further support for your liver health, hormones, or gut health then I am here to help you! Simply get in touch via the contact in the blog below!




Dominique,

Skin Nutirition Co. X

contact@skinnutritionco.com.au
www.skinnutritionco.com.au

Why Zinc is so beneficial for skin health

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If you have been struggling with skin issues, whether it may be breakouts, redness, rashes, itchiness, dry or sensitised skin, or perhaps you have cleared your skin and are wanting to focus on strengthening and reducing scarring of your skin- you may want to consider zinc!


Zinc is one of most vital (if not the most vital) nutrients for skin health and healing!



Zinc is a mineral which is actually found naturally in skin tissue and is needed to make keratin, which is the building block for our skin cells (called karotincyets).



It is involved in over 300 enzymatic processes within the body, making it a key essential nutrient to support the optimal functioning and processing of many vital organs, including our immune system, hormones, brain function and in particular, our skin!



Its multiple benefits for the skin extend from:

• Supporting and reducing hormonal acne

• Reducing scarring

• Protecting against wound healing

• Increasing cell turnover

• Improving wound repair and our skin texture.


This is due to its natural antioxidant, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, which is essential for combating and supporting chronic and inflammatory skin issues including dermatitis, acne, and hormonal acne.


This means it helps protect our cell membrane by reducing oxidative stress to the cell and supporting the integrity of the cell. This makes it particularly beneficial if you have been experiencing hormonal breakouts, or ‘rebound’ acne after coming off the pill. 
This is also key for supporting inflamed breakouts, particularly due to hormonal imbalances, as zinc helps to regulate hormones, and actually reduces androgens (male hormones), which is often a large driver for breakouts in women.

 This is particularly beneficial to help support healing alongside topical therapies, as it helps to encourage a new cell turnover.

Zinc assists with strengthening the skin cell integrity, and encourages the shedding of dead skin cells.

 This helps promote new skin cells coming to the surface, as well as prevent the inflammation driven from hormonal breakouts. 

It is important to ensure you are consuming enough zinc, particularly alongside your topical treatments for your skin, as it will help with the cell renewal, and reduce the bacterial build up in the skin!

Whilst I don’t advocate just supplementing for the sake of it, and don’t believe in taking supplements as a band aid approach (as nutrients are best absorbed coming from whole food), and each and every body has different nutritional requirements. However there are times when our body requires higher amounts of certain nutrients. These are in times of healing or recovery, or if there has been a deficiency, or depletion due to being run down or after periods of high stress.



Tip: If you have been struggling with a skin issues, whether it has been short term or ongoing, you may want to assess your diet and see if zinc deficiency or insufficiency may be a contributing factor!

 Foods highest in zinc include beef, oysters, shellfish, chickpeas, nuts, seeds and eggs. 


Please note; if you are vegetarian or vegan your nutritional requirements for zinc will be higher, as zinc is higher and absorbed faster from animal proteins, and plant based sources are absorbed at a slower rate, therefore supplementation may be necessary and intake may be higher.

If you are ready to get to the root cause of your skin issues, and are unsure where to begin your journey, then I would love to help guide you in the right direction! At Skin Nutrition Co. I also provide nutrient testing in order to assess your levels, prior to deciding to supplement.


Simply send an email to contact@skinnutritionco.com.au or book online for a consultation.


Also, if you have a family member or friend that you know would benefit from this, then please share this with them!



I look forward to helping you on your health journey, and helping you balance your skin and health, from the inside out!




Dominique



Skin Nutrition Co. X

Whilst antioxidants may be largely known for their array of health benefits across the body, did you know they are pumped with skin boosting benefits as well?

In fact, increasing your antioxidant status can provide an array of skin health benefits including; preventing ageing, reducing acne, improving skin tone, brightening, improving skin wound healing and cellular integrity and even your skin complexion!

So what are antioxidants and how do they work?

Antioxidants help protect against free radical damage, helping to provide an extra line of defence within our cellular structure and integrity.
Everyday exposure to things like UV rays, pollution, cigarette smoke, and environmental toxins expose our cells to these ‘free radicals’, which essentially impair and alter our cell membrane and generates free radical damage.
When we have a high amount of these, or accumulate too many free radicals this can create what’s known as ‘oxidative stress’. Antioxidants help to stabilise the cell membrane and prevent damage caused by oxidative stress.

Here are the key antioxidants I recommend for optimal skin health!

Vitamin A
Provides key support for anti-ageing and increasing skin rejuvenation as it helps to increase cellular turnover and collagen production.
Also, particularly beneficial for clearing skin and preventing acne, and reducing overactivity of the sebaceous glands. 

Vitamin C
This is essential for collagen production and repair. 
Its benefits include supporting collagen production, elasticity and blood vessel repair. 
It helps  with brightening the skin and boosting tone and texture of the skin, which helps to prevent sun damage and pigmentation. It helps stabilise cell membranes, increases cell turnover and protects against sun damage and pigmentation. Particularly beneficial for boosting skin luminosity and complexion.

Vitamin E
This helps to neutralise free radical damage, this nutrient has various functions both topically and internally when it comes to protecting the skin.
It helps to absorb UVB light helping to decrease the effect of sun damage. Within the skin cell membrane it helps to nourish the cell, providing a barrier around the skin to keep the skin hydrated and moisturised.

Selenium 
Similarly to vitamin E, this also helps to neutralise free radical damage, helps to decrease inflammation, free radical damage and other skin damaging compounds, preventing wrinkle formation. Essentially selenium provides a safe ‘coating’ around our cellular membrane.

CoQ10
CoQ10 topically applied has been shown to help reduce oxidative damage caused by UV rays.
It is involved in energy production, helping to prevent skin degradation by improving collagen production formation and integrity and helps supports mitochondrial function, neutralising free radical damage.

Niacinamide (Vitamin B3)
This provides multiple benefits; however is particularly beneficial if you experience dryness, or sensitised flaking skin including eczema or psoriasis.
Its involvement includes rebuilding the barrier function of the skin, keratin formation and helps provide a lipid barrier, and retaining moisture, particularly important if you are experiencing dry or flaking skin. It also helps with regulating oil production, which is key for oily/ acne skin types.

Having an adequate supply of antioxidants is crucial for our skin health and integrity, as well as protecting our overall cellular membrane. They help with strengthening the structure of our skin and increasing cellular turnover (encouraging a new cell cycle, increasing skin rejuvenation).

If you would like to know more about how nutrients can help your skin, please subscribe to the email below to receive weekly updates on all things skin health and nutrition!

Of coarse, if you feel you need more support, or are struggling with identifying  the right treatment for you skin, we would love to assist you. Simply send an email below or get in touch and we can have a chat about how to best support your optimum health, from the inside out!

Till next time, take care

Dominique @ Skin Nutrition Co. X

Did you know that our skin health is largely affected by our hormones? Have you noticed particular breakouts along the lower jawline, chin or upper neck area?

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According to Chinese facial mapping these are the key areas that indicate hormonal imbalances of the skin.

You might notice an obvious difference in the health of your skin when you have eaten too much chocolate or after a weekend of overindulging, but did you know this can actually disrupt our cells and hormonal receptors as well?

Perhaps you may even feel that your skin is not improving, or won’t be able to properly improve due to a ‘hormonal condition’. Well, please know that you can naturally restore your skin and hormones to achieve optimal skin from the inside, out!

Our hormones are basically chemical messengers, which send messages to other organs, controlling the functions they perform. Think of these like a symphony in an orchestra. Each plays a careful and intricate role, and if one ‘key’ is out, this can affect the flow of the orchestra. Similarly, this is how our hormones function in our body, if one receptor is off, this can alter the functions of the organs in our body.

Our hormones are largely influenced by factors such as lifestyle, environmental toxins, sleep and diet. Please know there is hope and you can restore your hormones naturally, and in turn clear and improve your skin too!

Here are 5 ways to eat to support hormonal balance and help assist skin healing:

1. Increase your intake of dietary fibre rich vegetables.

   Particularly in the form of dark green leafy vegetables. This helps to naturally flush out excess toxins and elevated hormones, helping to increase the clearance of elevated hormones. Fibre is also important for skin health, as it helps to support detoxification, and provides a high amount of antibacterial properties.

2. Increase essential fatty acids- particularly omega 3s.

   These play an important role in our cellular membrane within the skin and are vital for maintaining and restoring the skin integrity, as well as keeping the skin structure hydrated and ‘plump’. Omega 3 fatty acids are particularly helpful for decreasing inflammation, and play an important role for providing a building block for supporting our hormones.

3. Reduce inflammatory foods including fried foods, sugar, and processed or takeaway foods.

   These cause inflammation within our body in a number of ways including, a breakdown of antioxidants, as these contain ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species), which oxidise our cells, causing a breakdown in the cellular structure. Also, having a high amount of inflammatory food disrupts our insulin levels, which can alter our hormonal response and increase androgens, leading to acne and breakouts in the skin. Sugars also creates a ’sticky’ like effect within our cells and blood vessels, creating a coating over our blood vessels, causing a restriction in the vessel formation, and break down of collagen.

4. Eat your greens!

   Include cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussel sprouts and kale. These are not only high in fibre but also contain DIM (diindolylmethane) which helps to promote detoxification and supports oestrogen clearance, which is particularly beneficial for hormonal breakouts

5. Include Broccoli sprouts in your diet.

   Broccoli sprouts contain the active ingredient sulforaphane, which provides a higher concentration of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties than regular broccoli. It helps to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, helping to protect against DNA and cellular damage, as well as supplying oxygen to your skin cells, which is crucial for combating any oxidative stress and achieving healthy skin! So there are 5 easy, simple tips which, if implemented regularly over a period of 2-4 weeks, you will really start to see a difference and improve not only your skin, but support your hormones as well.

Tip: Please be patient with yourself, as our skin health can take at least 4 weeks to see a change as we have a new cell turnover every 28 days.

Also, particularly with hormones, they tend to change very slowly over time. However, taking small, gentle steps too help support and rebalance them. Implementing these changes regularly and consistently will help you achieve the best results, from the inside out, and for the long term! I hope you found this helpful!

Please let me know in the comments below how you found trying any of these steps helped! I’d love to hear from you and encourage you on your journey! Also, if you know someone you feel needs to hear this or would benefit, please share this will them.

And if you found this helpful and would like to receive more information weekly about all things skin, health and wellness, please subscribe!

Skin Nutrition Co. X

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How your gut health impacts our skin, and is the key to optimal health, inside and out!

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Did you know, much of your skin health is largely impacted by the health of your gut? In fact, your gut microbiome has a direct link to your skin, known as the gut-skin axis. Just like our gut microbiome, our skin has its own microbiome too!

As our skin is the most external organ of the body, it is often the first place to show any signs or indications of an imbalance within. Likewise, being the most external organ, it’s important to look not only externally, but internally as well for achieving healthy, glowing skin.

“Our gut health is actually said to be the foundation for optimal health. Our gut hosts trillions of cells (more than our own bodies DNA), which is called the microbiome. ”

— Dominique - skin health co.

Within this is a balance of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria, which are both essential for optimum health. However, when we have an increase in poor bacteria, known as ‘dysbiosis’, this can lead to inflammation within our body, which shows up as inflammation on our skin. These often contribute to conditions like acne, breakouts, eczema, dermatitis, psoriasis, and rosacea.

Here are 5 key ways for repairing our gut health to support both optimal health and clear, glowing skin:

1. Reduce Sugar

   Sugar increases the growth of beneficial bacteria and increases inflammation within the gut. This overgrowth of inflammation and bacteria can lead to conditions like SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) and candida. Sugar also increases insulin levels. High insulin levels can cause IGF-1, which is a common trigger for acne. In fact, acne is so closely related to blood sugar, it has been labelled the ‘diabetes of the skin’. Tip: avoid refined sugar and sweetened, processed foods, and opt for natural sweet foods like fresh fruit.

2. Increase Fibre

   Fibre (particularly in the form of green leafy vegetables), is vital for achieving optimum skin and gut health. It will help support the growth of beneficial bacterial, which will assist the clearance of any excess bacteria or pathogens from the gut. This is key for rebuilding the microbiome of the skin and gut, and is essential for optimum health. SCFA (short chain fatty acids) provide anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties as well, and is key for maintaining overall health.

3. Prebiotics and Probiotic Rich foods

   Again, this goes back to supporting and rebuilding the quality of the microbiome, and assisting rebuilding the health of the skin. This will help reduce inflammation within the body, and can actually assist in repairing a healthy gut lining. The use of probiotics has actually been found to be a beneficial treatment for inflammatory skin disorders including, psoriasis, dermatitis and acne.

4. Reduce Inflammatory Foods

   That’s right, there are some foods that cause a direct inflammation within the body! Refined sugar, processed foods, overly oily or smoked takeaway foods can cause inflammation in the body. Having a high amount of these in the body causes an increase in inflammatory compounds such as ROS (reactive oxygen species), AGES (aged-glycation end products) and lead to increased oxidative stress. These all literally affect and impair our cell membrane quality. ROS (reactive oxygen species) are oxidative compounds which literally disrupt stable skin cell membranes, and cause cross linking between collagen and elastin, leading to increased wrinkle formation. Consuming a high amount of sugar causes AGEs, which forms a ‘sticky coating’ over our collagen cells, and increases the breakdown of collagen and increases aging and free radical damage within the skin.

5. Maintain and Support a Healthy Intestinal Lining.

   The health and condition of your gut microbiome integrity largely impacts the integrity and health of your skin. If you feel you are struggling with digestive issues such as bloating, constipation or other issues like candida, SIBO, leaky gut (a term formally known as intestinal permeability), these will disrupt our bodies ability to breakdown and absorb nutrients properly. If we are not breaking down and absorbing foods properly, this can lead to undigested foods in the blood stream and increase stress within the body, again contributing to inflammation within the skin.

Tip: If you feel you may be experiencing either of these digestive issues, but not quite sure where to begin, I recommend working with a functional practitioner such as myself to help understand and piece together an individualised treatment plan to address and treat the root cause of your digestive issues.

This is why the health of your skin is so closely related to your gut health. To sum up simply, a healthy microbiome, free from any ‘gaps’ or damage to cell lining, adequate nutrient absorption and a healthy diet is key for optimal skin health, and really is the foundation for achieving clear skin from the inside, out.

I hope you found this helpful, and if you know anyone who you feel would benefit from this, please share this post with them.

If you are ready to get to the root cause of your chronic skin issue, and achieve optimal health from the inside out, or are ready to improve your health but not sure where to begin, then I’d love to help you!

Please feel free to contact me via the email form below, and we can have a chat on how I can help you.

I hope this was helpful, and look forward to helping you improve your health journey, from the inside, out. 

Skin Nutrition Co. X

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