Daily diet to beauty

Simple changes to your food habits could lead to healthier skin

like aspartame are not very healthy in the long run. And diet colas are the worst. So minimise your sugar intake wherever possible.

ooking good and feeling good cannot only come in a jar of cream or a bottle of conditioner. What we eat is what impacts our skin and hair. Your food intake can, if you are careful, be the best anti-ageing tool for retaining younger looking skin for longer. In the first of this two-part series, I will take you through the tips needed to keep you looking great.

Water, water everywhere!

I cannot stress enough about the importance of this vital ingredient. Our body weight too, has a large percentage comprising of water. We may not even realise this but sometimes, tense shoulder muscles, a dull headache or a very dry skin can all be connected to drinking less water. Dehydration makes our bodies age faster –externally and internally. Our joints too feel better lubricated with enough water intake. Substituting water with fizzy or energy drinks is not the answer. If you have access to coconut water, a glass a day of that also works wonders.

So don’t wait till your body tells you it is thirsty; drink up, regardless. And if you keep sipping water from a glass every now and then, you will also keep getting up frequently from your chair at work to refill the glass. This is also good exercise.

Try to consume at least six to eight glasses of water a day.

Salt and sugar

They may be the most vital ingredients to our main courses and desserts, but these can also put you at risk from hypertension, and if diabetes is a hereditary ailment, it can make you vulnerable. Rather than having to abstain completely after becoming susceptible to high blood pressure or diabetes, it is better to go easy on these two ingredients.

Sugar substitutes are easy to find. Avoid processed sugar and where necessary, use a bit of honey. Eat a lot of fruit, if your body craves sugar. Items like cakes, desserts, etc., should be avoided as much as possible. However, sugar-free substitutes

For salt too, use low sodium variants and other spices and herbs to enliven your food. Even low fat and no fat foods have lots of sugar in them so stay away from these. Maintain a healthy BMI and body weight to prevent ageing due to ailments like high BP, diabetes and hypertension.

Fibre-rich foods

The more the roughage in your diet, the better your insides will be. A large part of your diet must consist of carbohydrates – fruit, vegetables, rotis, rice and pasta. Wholegrain products and multigrain variations are much better than the others. Protein and fat should form the rest of your diet – say 15% protein and 20% fat content. Protein is important as it forms the building blocks of the body. Too much or too little can cause harm, but including proteinrich foods like chicken, pulses and beans in your diet will ensure the right amount of intake.

Fruit is a very good source of fibre and sugar. Fibre aids digestion and the fewer toxins in your body, the better your skin will look.

eat small portions, eat often

Being overweight leads to its own set of problems because yo-yo diets and binge eating can cause the body to miss out on vital nutrients. Also, some diets recommend eating one kind of food and excluding others which also causes problems. The best thing to do is eat at regular intervals. Missing breakfast is not a good idea because you will most likely end up overeating in the second half of the day. The end result is that you will consume more calories by skipping a meal, than by eating smaller portions throughout the day.

Make sure you have breakfast – it could be cereal and low fat milk, as cereal is a good source of fibre. It could even be eggs and toast, but don’t skip brekkie. Lunch and a few biscuits or a fruit are a good option for a midday and early evening meal. For snacking options, fruit is the best bet because a lot of them like melons for instance, are rich in water content and non-fattening, but they give you a satiated feeling and satisfy hunger pangs. A glass of water half an hour before and after lunch also helps. Celery and carrot sticks can also double up as a mid-morning or late afternoon snack. If you can make the effort, a smoothie is also a good option. The golden rule is to eat something every four hours. But make sure dinner is not the heaviest meal of the day.

right size, baby!

Even if you eat often, make sure that you don’t overeat. Ensure that only the amount of calories your body needs go into it. A good dietician will be able to guide you, and weight loss or gain can be controlled. Excess calories are always stored in the body as fat. And there is no guarantee that you will burn off the entire extra calorie intake with exercise for the day.

There are a certain amount of calories you expend in a day. Even 100 calories more than what is expended in your body leads to fat. That in turn leads to other problems and slows you down. By maintaining the right body weight, you will feel lighter and better. Plus, exercising will help you burn out the extra fat, and sweating during exercise also helps to detox the skin.

Keep these tips in mind and in 21 days (that’s how long it takes to change a habit or develop a new one) you will have adapted to a healthier lifestyle. You will look and feel younger, and will have slowed down the ageing process.

For snacking options, fruit is the best bet because a lot of them like melons for instance, are rich in water content and non-fattening, but they give you a satiated feeling and satisfy hunger pangs.