Only Skin Deep? #1: Diet

This post is the first in a series about how skincare and beauty are influenced not only by the products you apply directly on your skin, but also by how you take care of your body as a whole. It is important to recognise that you can only spend so much money on make up and skincare products, but at the end of the day, lifestyle choices play an equally vital role. You need to give your skin all the help you can from within so that it can help itself from without.

Let's start off with diet. I truly believe that what you put in your gut is likely to affect your skin. Every time I walk away from McDonald's with a tummy full of fries and McNuggets, I can guarantee that a few spots will be due to appear within the following two or three days. The same goes for drinking milk: I recently went through a phase of obsession with Starbucks's Caramel Cream Frappuccino (no coffee, just milk and cream). Out of nowhere came these large, painful spots around my lip and chin area. I eliminated the drink from my diet, albeit reluctantly, and the spots stopped appearing.

There are so many foods that 'experts' claim to contribute towards better skin, it becomes difficult to select exactly which ones you know will be good for you. One useful way to go about solving this dilemma is to incorporate foods with specific ingredients that you know are beneficial for your skin. For example, antioxidants help in preventing and repairing damage to body tissue. Anti-ageing properties, hello! They also block the effects of oxidation, which is caused by free radicals (think of an apple that has been cut and then turned brown after a while - that's oxidation). Foods and drinks high in antioxidants include pomegranate, blueberries, dark chocolate, green tea, and red beans. Don't forget the importance of protein, fats, and zinc. By fats, I mean unsaturated fats, found in nuts and some vegetable oils, as well as in the form of Omega 3 in fish. The possibilities are endless when it comes to eating properly for your skin. As a general rule of thumb, however, try to avoid deep fried stuff, as well as processed food. The smaller and more basic the list of ingredients on the label is, the better.

We've also all heard the timeless advice given to us from doctors, parents, friends: drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. While I'm not sure I can drink that much in a day, the continuity of that advice demonstrates the wide-ranging benefits of drinking water regularly. Water keeps your body functioning properly. It doesn't take a genius to know that our bodies are made up of a majority of water (around 60%, if you want an actual figure). The fluid regulates a number of processes, namely digestion, saliva production, and body temperature regulation. Let's also not forget that it helps eliminate the nasty stuff that your body does not need. The skin is an organ in itself, and it needs water to fill up the skin cells and prevent dryness. As a result, it's no secret that the first step to healthy-looking skin is hydration, so think of water as a cleanser, toner and moisturiser from within. The best aid in locking that moisture in your skin is a moisturiser containing hyaluronic acid.

It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) that alcohol is going to take you a hundred steps backward in terms of keeping your skin healthy. Alcohol dehydrates you like it's nobody's business. However, I have to admit that I enjoy the occasional beer/wine/cider/cocktail. I try to remedy this by drinking a lot of water along the way, just to top up the H2O as best I can.

By no means should you deprive yourself when it comes to food. On Friday night, I had the most wonderful dinner at Hakkasan in London, and tried all the amazing dishes that came to the table. My advice, however, is to have all these treats in moderation. Too much of a good thing can end up being bad for you, so give in to temptation, but not to gluttony.