Purely Personal Skin Care

We do hear confusing things about the sun and its harmful rays.  Warnings of skin cancer are prevalent and for good reason.  However, when the sun’s rays touch our skin our bodies produce Vitamin D.  We know Vitamin D is extremely important for our health.  Studies have now verified that people with low Vitamin D levels exhibit higher levels of several common types of cancer, including colon and breast.

How much Vitamin D do we need and where can we get it?  Well we can get about 200 units a day from food and supplements usually contain about 400 – we need 1, 000 units a day to keep our cells healthy.  Spending 10 minutes a day in the sun in the middle of the day with our face and arms exposed can produce 1,000 units.  Believe it or not, with our air conditioned existence a lot of people are not in the sun even that long.   For that short amount of time, it’s actually good to be unprotected by sun screen.

So, science has confirmed the old wisdom that sunlight is essential to and beneficial for all living things. While you’re at it, slather up with sunscreen after the first 10 minutes, take a walk, dine on some fresh fruits and vegetables and drink lots of water – now we’re talking healthy living!

In our last article we promised to introduce you to vitamins that are good for skin nutrition.  So here we go.  Vitamins C, E, A, K and B complex can all help improve skin health.  Here is how they contribute:

Vitamins C and E.  New dermatologic discoveries have uncovered the power of vitamins in countering the effects of sun exposure.  Vitamin C in the form of a cream or lotion can prevent the consequences of hours in the sun, which can lead to skin cancer.  Supplementing with natural vitamin E (about 400 mg per day) can reduce damage from the sun, wrinkles, and improve skin texture. Recent studies have found that people who take vitamins C and E for a period of time can reduce their sunburns from exposure to UVB radiation.  In addition, researchers have found a reduction of factors linked to DNA damage to the skin cells, which led them to conclude that antioxidant vitamins help protect against DNA damage.

Vitamins C and E help protect against free radicals, which are harmful byproducts of sun exposure, smoke and pollution.  Free radicals destroy collagen and elastin, the fibers that keep our skin full and flexible.  Thus, they cause wrinkles and other signs of aging.  When these two vitamins are together in a cream or lotion, they are a dynamic duo fighting against sun damage – and winning!  PLEASE, don’t take this to mean that as long as you swallow vitamins or slather on lotion that you can safely fry yourself in the sun.  There is no question that there is a link between sun tanning and skin cancer.  Always protect your skin with at least SPF 26 and try to stay out of the sun between 10 and 3.

Some foods to explore for ingesting vitamin C include citrus fruits and vegetables such as bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower and leafy greens.  You can actually lose vitamins through the skin and these foods can help replace that loss.  You can also supplement with 500 to 1,000 milligrams a day of Vitamin C.  If you are using a cream make sure the Vitamin C is in the form of L-ascorbic acid so it is in the form that can penetrate the skin.

Vitamin E appears in vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, olives, spinach and asparagus.  It’s harder to get Vitamin E from food than it is Vitamin C.  So, often people take a supplement.  Beware of taking too much Vitamin E, it can be harmful to your health.  Stick with no more than 400 mgs per day or less. Creams, lotions and/or serums containing Vitamin E can soothe dry, rough skin.

More Vitamin and Mineral information to come.