Grow Your Glow, Part 1: Nutrition

Beauty and health coach Jolene Hart is back to share with you her tips on aligning your diet with the change in season…

Your gorgeous glow: you know it’s there, but there are some days — weeks, even — when it feels like it’s playing hard to get. A stressful time, a few too many indulgences, a stretch of weather that leaves you feeling blah — these routine life situations influence the way your skin behaves, and in turn what you see in the mirror.

In this 4-part series I’ll teach you how to take your baseline glow and amp it up, taking your skin and your glow to the next level of healthy and gorgeous. We’ll start with nutrition (kind of the foundation for everything glow-y, in my book), and spend some time looking closely at digestion, energy and hormone balance. I promise to leave you smarter and better-prepped to grow your glow, in good times and lackluster times, too.

Nutrition to Grow Your Glow

Eating well is the number one way to put your best skin forward. If you’re still questioning whether or not food matters to your skin, know that it does, in a big way. When I first shifted from my role as magazine beauty editor to that of beauty-focused nutrition coach, my skin had a pretty nice glow, most of the time. I was eating well to support my skin, with plenty of fresh, whole, colorful foods. But over the years I’ve fine-tuned my approach and found that there are even more ways to support your skin not just to be clear, but to be radiant.

First, use more herbs and spices in your cooking. Yes, they’re delicious flavor-enhancers, but there are so many other levels upon which these kitchen staples support your skin. They’re some of the most powerful foods in the world. Their concentrations of antioxidants blow other anti-aging beauty foods like berries and dark chocolate out of the water. Humble cloves, for example, pack 22 times more antioxidants than blueberries! Of course, you’re eating them in much smaller amounts, but be sure not to underestimate their nutritional powers. Herbs and spices also naturally support digestion (the better you digest and assimilate your food, the glowier your skin — stay tuned for next week), and fight off unwanted bacteria and viruses that can compromise your health. I challenge you to find new ways to spice up your smoothies, stir-frys, soups, dressings, and whatever else you’re cooking.

Next, grow your glow by regularly (read: daily) eating foods that specifically support the health of your liver. What’s so important about this organ? Your liver cleanses toxins from the body and supports healthy elimination, an essential for skin that is not only clear, but radiant and thriving. Eat more beets, which cleanse and purify your blood and promote lymph flow (another important mode of waste removal). Eat more cruciferous vegetables (think cauliflower, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, radishes) which help produce a powerfully liver-detoxifying compound in the body. And drink lemon water with fresh lemons, which help your liver produce helpful enzymes and aid in digestion.

Incorporate these two powerful strategies into your diet, and you’ll make major strides to optimize your skin glow. Check back next week for two more key ways to grow your glow!

BIO:

Jolene Hart, CHC, AADP is a Philadelphia-based health coach and founder of Beauty Is Wellness, a natural beauty and health coaching practice. Her coaching and Eat Pretty book series teaches women to use nutrition and lifestyle choices to look and feel their best from the inside out.

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I’m all for using more herbs and spices in my cooking. They bring such unique differents to the smell and flavours!

Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com

6 years ago

I’ve never heard of these tips, but I’m excited to try! Hopefully my skin and digestive system will improve.

6 years ago

I had no idea that cloves were so high in antioxidants ! Incredible, thank you for sharing. Learned alot from this.
http://niccimarquart.com/