Anti-Ageing,
Naturally.
When it comes to anti-ageing we can go one of two ways: Au-natural with as much help as mother nature can give us, or full throttle with the dermal fillers, botox, face lifts, tucks, nips and anything else that sounds as terrifying as the above! As someone that works in the natural healthcare space (although be it from a very scientific standpoint), I’m sure you can easily guess which of these 2 camps I fall into. I am so uninterested in anti-ageing treatments because I’m not keen to put anything into my body that’s not supposed to be there, and I also really enjoy the feeling of the sun on my skin! That being said, I do like to look and feel my best - so how can we tackle anti-ageing naturally?
The first thing to point out, and the science bit that underpins any anti-ageing treatment, is that ageing is basically the outward signs of oxidative stress - a process that happens naturally within the body (which is why, inevitably, we will all at some point get wrinkles!), but also can be sped up and made worse by certain lifestyle choices like smoking, alcohol, stress, lack of sleep and poor diet.
Diet
The reason that anti-oxidants are heralded as such health superheroes is because they can prevent or slow the damage to cells, (a.k.a oxidation), that is caused by the body’s reaction to free-radicals and environmental toxins. Hence a diet of purely beige food will speed up your body’s internal and external ageing process, but a diet rich in colour, diversity and abundance will have protective and preventive impact.
Some of these antioxidants can also be applied topically to the skin, my favourite thing to put on my face at the moment is sea buckthorn oil (from sea buckthorn berries), it’s a deep orange colour and aside from being amazingly good for you it gives you a lovely, healthy glow too.
A great way to up your intake of antioxidants is with organic, cold-pressed juices as an adjunct to your already healthy diet. You can never have too much of the good stuff after all! Particular favourites of mine from the Presscription range are The Green Elixir,The Red Remedy (Beetroot is one of my all round nutritional heroes as it’s also great at supporting liver function), and The Amber Boost.
Packed full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, our organic, cold-pressed juice cleanses are a great way to boost the status of your body's nutrition! Why not give our super popular Weight Loss Cleanse a go?
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"I loved the cleanse, I'd needed to detox and kick start my healthy eating again. The cleanse was simple to follow as the bottles are numbered and it comes with a little guide. I wasn't hungry at all. After day one I found the juices with fruit in them extremely sweet. Everyday I really looked froward to the milk juice which is super filling and delicious at the end of the day. I lots 6 pounds in 3 days, I don't expect all of that to stay off but it's a great boost mentally as well as physically!" - The Weight Loss Cleanse
Toxin Exposure
- It’s important to try and reduce your toxin exposure wherever possible and by extension the build up of oxidative damage on our cells. Here are just a few things to get you thinking about your daily life and your environment:
- Cookware (non-stick is pretty terrible stuff! Opt for stainless steel, cast iron, pyrex and ceramic where possible)
- Smoking, recreational drugs and alcohol
- Chemical exposure (either at work or at home), this could be anything from nail salons, solvents, dyes, aerosols etc)
- Cosmetic products. Whilst so many skincare brands these days claim to sell products that reverse ageing, I would argue that the added stress on our detoxification systems to biotransform and excrete foreign chemicals that make their way from the surface of our skin to our organs of detoxification, is pretty counterintuitive to anti-ageing.
- Non-organic food
- Non-filtered drinking water
- Plastics (food wrap, bottled water etc)
Red Light Facemasks
Have you seen your favourite Instagrammer with one of those funny red light face masks recently? They’re doing the rounds on the #sponsored posts but I’m actually quite keen on red light therapy for anti-ageing (in fact, for pretty much any ailment).
As we age we naturally produce less collagen, which is responsible for keeping our skin firm and plump. Instead, the reverse happens and we develop fine lines and wrinkles due to a thinning and drying of the skin. I know, it’s so sad !!
LED red light (the specific wavelengths contained in red light devices), penetrate deep into the dermis layer of the skin and delivers photos (energy) into the skin cells. This stimulates the cell structure which boosts circulation thus bringing more nutrients to the skin and, here’s the great part, stimulates the formation of collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid which assist in skin repair. And, anecdotal evidence, I have been using a red light device on my face for the last few months and I’ve certainly noticed a difference in my skin quality. Try it for yourself and see!
For more info on red light therapy, check out this recent blog post. And finally, sleep well, drink water, exercise, drink your greens, laugh...you know the drill!
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@gracekingswell
