Caring For Your Skin Inside Out

 

What is your skin trying to tell you?

Usually, the message is that unless the cause of the skin issue is external, such as a cut or insect bite, an external remedy will almost never properly correct an internal problem.

You see, our skin is the largest organ of our body, with more area exposed to the elements – internal and external - than any other organ. It receives one third of all the blood that is circulated in the body, helping it to protect, absorb and excrete wastes.

So if you don’t ‘feed’ and ‘water’ it correctly, with the right nutrition, adequate pure liquids, proven natural supplements, and natural topical ingredients, it gets sick!

And if it can’t excrete toxins because the digestive and excretory systems are impaired, leading to chemical and hormonal imbalances, aging and degeneration, the skin becomes even sicker!

Indeed, the skin is a vivid fingerprint of what's going on inside.

According to Chinese medicine, skin is the ‘third kidney’: it rids the body of excess moisture and toxins. Oily, dry, blotchy, itchy, inflamed red skin, acne, psoriasis and other skin disorders very often indicate that the organs which eliminate toxins from the body, such as the liver, kidney or colon are not working properly. For example:

  • Rashes and itching spots, particularly on the lower legs are often a sign of a congested liver.
  • Odd skin rashes can also be parasitic – most commonly yeast/fungus, but sometimes other parasites.
  • Dry skin, dandruff, acne, rough scaly skin often indicates a lack of essential fatty acids (EFAs) and good fats (a mix of mainly monounsaturated, Omega 3 and some saturated fats)
  • Acne in particular is often caused by an excess of processed dairy foods, stress, toxicity, inflammation, hormonal and gut imbalances
  • Dry, ‘shrivelled’ skin can also be a sign of chronic dehydration. Without water, all tissues in the body become crippled at the cellular level; they begin to shrivel and lose their ability to function properly.
  • Bumpy chicken skin on the back of the arms may indicate two problems: The first is a liver that is not metabolizing fat properly, and the second is a lack of the right kind of fat such as omega 3 oils
  • Thick sandpaper textured skin on the back of the heels and the elbows is a reflection of poor carbohydrate metabolism, low thyroid function and/or iodine deficiency.
  • The colour of the skin around the eyes relates to various organs. Greenish colours reflect liver and gallbladder problems; blues along with ‘bags’ reflect kidney problems, and yellows reflect spleen and stomach issues.

Of course, all of these originate largely from a poor diet and unbalanced lifestyle.

A diet based on processed, chemical laden foods and acidic liquids which contain few beneficial nutrients and don’t digest easily in the human body. And an unbalanced lifestyle characterised by all the stresses and excesses of fast paced modern living.

Remember, the body is holistic: Glowing, vibrant, clear skin depends on the optimal function of many of the core systems of the body: your nutritional status, immune system, gut, hormones, toxic load, oxygenation, and mind-body health.

Beauty may well ‘be in the eye of the beholder’, but how much does that eye really see?

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