Why what you put ON your skin is as important as what you put IN your skin...
It’s that time of year we are slip slap slopping lots of products onto our beautiful sun kissed skin. Have you ever stopped to think about what’s actually in those products though?
The skin is the largest organ of the body and it can give us great clues as to what’s happening to our health overall.
Anything that goes in through the skin, still has to be processed and eliminated, putting extra strain on an already hard-working liver. Many of us are health aware nowadays. If you’re reading this, my guess is that you give a fair bit of time, thought and energy to your diet and exercise. Though few of us give any thought to the products we use on our bodies - day in day out. The quality of that we put ON our bodies really ought to be akin to the quality of that which we put IN our bodies.
If you want to have beautiful skin, balanced hormones, good digestion and a strong immune system, you should be taking this seriously. Here’s why…
Personal care products - like shampoos, conditioners, body wash, creams, make-up, sun cream and so on - contain synthetic ingredients. Some of the main culprits are parabens, phthalates and sodium lauryl/ laureth sulphate. And, if a product label mysteriously says ‘fragrance’ without further clarification, you can bet it’s not good news. Instead, look for labels that say, “no synthetic fragrances”. The average woman uses 12 personal care products per day, exposing her to around 168 unique ingredients. These ingredients matter! For a full list of ingredients to avoid and where to find them, visit ttps://www.safecosmetics.org/get-the-facts/chem-of-concern/. It’s really worth checking the labels before you buy new products to ensure you’re not unnecessarily adding to your toxic load. You might also like to download the Think Dirty – Shop Clean app onto your phone so that you can scan the barcode of your existing products to see how they rate – and choose what you’ll ditch or at least buy differently next time.
Ladies listen in – I am REALLY encouraging you to start thinking about switching your personal care products as many contain ingredients that DISRUPT YOUR HORMONES. Yes, really. Before you start thinking, she’s gone all woo-woo, let me remind you that one of the main ways oestrogen is administered in HRT is as a gel you rub on your body. It soaks into your skin, and that’s how you get your oestrogen top-up.
The skin is also one of the first lines of defense for our innate immune system. We’re constantly doing things to break down our skin barrier. Did you know the skin also has it’s own ecosystem? The skin microbiome is an essential part of our overall immune health. An impaired skin barrier allows enhanced penetration of antigens and readily induces inflammation of the skin.
It works both ways too. One of the first tell-tale signs that our liver is struggling is in the appearance of our skin, When your liver becomes a bit sluggish, your skin can really suffer. Toxins in our food and our skincare products can cause irritation, itchiness, acne, rosacea, dryness, excess oil, and even a flare-up of eczema. To learn how to better support your liver, check out number 5 and 6 on this month's awesome giveaway (10 Secrets of Lasting Weight Loss) available to download from my July newsletter. You can always reach out and ask me to send it to you if you missed out on that.
It's an inside job...
If you want beautiful, blemish free, well hydrated skin, you really need to be thinking about it from the inside out. Here's my top 10 skincare tips:
Sleep! You don't need me to tell you that your poor sleep quality leaves you looking dull. They don't call it beauty sleep for nothing!
Manage your stress levels - Some stress is unavoidable, it's how we respond and manage that stress which is important. If you want to dive into that deeper, join my next round of 'Eat Better, Sleep Better, Live Better' nutrition talks.
Drink 2l+ water - that includes herbals teas without caffeine or milk/ sugar added.
Watch your fats - increase your intake of the 'good' fats such as nuts, seeds, avocadoes, good quality olive oil and oily fish. Ditch the rest. Again, lean into my 10 Secrets to Lasting Weight Loss if you have a phobia around fat and you're still in the outdated mindset of calorie in/ calorie out.
Take care of your 'eco system' - include pre and probiotics into your diet, thus supporting your microbiome (healthy gut = healthy skin)
Include zinc rich foods such as oysters (by far the best source), shellfish, lean red meat, pumpkin and hemp seeds, cashew nuts, chickpeas and other legumes
Ensure your vitamin D levels are adequate. Your GP may test this for you or you can get a relatively cheap home testing kit yourself - https://www.vitamindtest.org.uk/
Stay out of strong sunshine. Stay in the shade, cover up and wear hats rather than using poor quality sunscreen. Ensure the sun cream, that you do use, especially that on your face, is a good quality one (remember hormone disruptors and the skin microbiome).
Avoid synthetic or unnecessary use of detergents, skin care products, anti-perspirants, make-up etc.
Book yourself in with me for a FREE 30 minute skincare consultation....
Why this is my skincare brand of choice...
The quickest and simplest thing you can do to support your skin is making sure you're using the purest, natural, organic ingredients. Clients I work with are always asking me which brands I recommend and, after extensive research, the one I undoubtedly favour is Tropic Skincare. So much so that I am now proudly one of their ambassadors. They are organic, sustainable, carbon negative (giving more back to the environment than they take), vegan, and 100% natural or nature identical. There are no chemicals or preservatives in any of their products. I don’t know about you, but that’s what I I want on my skin. If ethics are important to you, you might also like to know that they support children in the poorest parts of the world to go to school, and have funded over 6 million school days, as well as opened three Tropic schools in Nepal, Cambodia and Madagascar with United World Schools. I felt so compelled by their story and what they refer to as their ‘infinite purpose’ that I became an ambassador. That means I have my own little Tropic shop and I am able to advise women on switching their skin care and make-up over to a cleaner, greener, glowier version of what they’re already using.
If you would like to clean up your skincare/ make up/ sun protection/ toiletries, then book yourself in for a complimentary 30-minute session where I can make personalised recommendations based on your skin type and goals.
It can be daunting making the switch, especially if you’ve been stuck in your old ways with the same products for years. But maybe it’s time to ask if what you’re putting onto your skin is really adequate for the woman you are today. Getting this personalised support can make all the difference. I also find it really reassuring to know that there is a 30 day happiness guarantee – anything you don’t like, you just send it back and swap it. How great is that?
Minimalist? Me too! I have never used a lot of products, but what I do use, I want to know it’s the good stuff. Plus I’m now am a woman in my 40s that works hard and I am enjoying that little act of self-care, knowing I’m nourishing my body from the outward in as well as the inside out. I think I’m worth it – and you are too.
Book your FREE 30 minute consultation today and let me help you to get your summer glow, without unnecessarily compromising your health.
If you'd prefer to explore it yourself, have a look at my 'shop' on this link - https://tropicskincare.com/pages/lizbortoli - It's best to place your order via an ambassador like me, though, as we always have offers on so we can get you more bang for your buck. Who doesn’t like a freebie, right?
If you're local and would like to drop by one of my Yoga classes, I'll have a stash of the current Tropic 'Glow' mags with me. It makes for a really nice read, and you're able to get a good feel for what the company are about. I really can't speak highly enough of them. Here's the electronic version of that for you not so local women - https://issuu.com/tropicskincare/docs/2022_glowmagazine_issue4_issuu
As ever, it's always a pleasure to hear from you. Please get in touch with any questions: hello@holistichealthwithliz.com