Every season has holidays, celebrations, family gatherings, parties, pictures and…the uninvited guest – pimples!
It’s no coincidence that celebrations often result in a flare up of acne. Let’s discuss how certain foods may contribute to this annoying skin condition and how an anti-inflammatory diet can help.
Why anti-inflammatory? Acne is considered an inflammatory condition
. Many studies have demonstrated a relationship between something called “glycemic load” and acne. In short, glycemic load is a measure of how much your blood sugar will rise after eating a particular food or meal. Eating a meal with a high glycemic load will raise your blood sugar significantly, which triggers a surge of insulin. A rise in insulin levels then triggers an inflammatory process throughout the body. So Grandma’s sugar cookies, Uncle Ed’s pound cake and Cousin Tony’s cannoli’s cause havoc with our insulin and potentially our complexion.
The key to the anti-inflammatory diet is that it has been designed to prevent a rapid rise in blood sugar. Why is this important? Because a rapid rise in blood sugar causes an insulin response in the body, which then causes an inflammatory response. Remember this fact: whatever food we eat is converted to sugar as it is digested. Different foods are converted to sugar at varying rates. If we consume foods that are rapidly converted to sugar, that is considered pro-inflammatory. Pro-inflammatory foods cause all kinds of problems in the body resulting from a rapid rise in blood sugar, which in turn sparks a burst of inflammation on a cellular level which sparks
a series of process that effect our skin , in other words pimples.
The cornerstone of the anti-inflammatory diet is the careful regulation of blood sugar. If you want to have clear, healthy, and beautiful skin it is crucial to understand the relationship between the food we eat and its effect on blood sugar levels. Of course the converse is true: a food or meal with a low glycemic load won’t raise your blood sugar as much. Some examples of anti-inflammatory foods are: almonds, apples, artichokes, asparagus, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cantaloupe, celery, cherries, cucumbers, endive, escarole, fish, flaxseed, green bell peppers, hazelnuts, melon, kale, mushrooms, oatmeal, olive oil, pears, pomegranate, pumpkin seeds, salmon, spinach, soy products, tofu, turkey, and yogurt.
At least now you have somewhat of an understanding of what is contributing to your breakouts during holidays, celebrations, family gatherings, parties and pictures. So go ahead and have that cookie for now. But when the next invitation arrives remember to also pencil in the day to begin your anti-inflammatory diet resolution. You can have your cake and eat healthy too! Bon appétit and celebrate all of the holidays, parties and events of your life!
By Angelic Medi Spa
September 2, 2012
