RHEAL Sugar Tips

Did you know that the enemy of youthful looking skin stares back at you and your children from your sugar coated cereals, sodas and processed food? You might be surprised to learn that your body engages in a sugar coating of its own, through a process called glycation. Glycation occurs when the sugar molecules absorbed into your blood stream during the digestion coat protein molecules in your body. Glycation causes tough, wrinkled connective tissue. This is most visible on the skin as wrinkles. However, it occurs all through the body. Tough, inelastic connective tissue is very damaging to organs where flexibility is vital. This is especially important in the heart, kidneys, brain, eyes and pancreas.

The newly sweetened protein molecules have been given the name "Advanced Glycation End Products" which morphs very neatly into the anagram AGEs, and could not be better named. Why?

Some of the most important protein molecules in your body are those which make up your collagen and elastin. These two substances are found in the lower layers of your skin, and are what give your skin’s surface its firmness and resiliency. The more sugar you consume, the more AGEs your body will produce. By the time you reach thirty-five or so, your skin will begin to dull and early, advanced wrinkling will occur. Glycation will continue to accelerate skin aging as you continue to consume sugar in all of its forms.

You can slow the process by following these Rheal steps:

• Replace processed sugars in your diet with the natural ones found in vegetables and fruits; if you can’t live without refined sugar, limit your consumption to no more than 10% of your daily caloric intake.

• Supplement your diet with 1 mg each of Vitamins B1 and B6 every day. New York dermatologist, Dr. David Goldberg, cites a number of studies that indicate that these two vitamins are very effective in reducing the effects of glycation.

• Limit your exposure to sunlight;

• Use a moisturizer rated SPF 30;

• Wear a hat with a brim wide enough to shade your entire face and neck during peak sunlight season and hours;

• Use an antioxidant enriched cream that will feed your skin directly, such as Rheal Skin Care’s cream for normal to dry skin which is rich in jojoba and apricot kernel oil.

Healthy is beautiful and it turns out that eliminating or minimizing sugar to no more that 10% of your daily caloric intake is both healthy and beautiful.