The Wrinkle-Free Diet
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November 13, 2007 |
 Natural Beauty
The creator of this diet is Nicholas Perricone, author of the best-selling books The Wrinkle Cure and The Perricone Prescription, and a former assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Yale University School of Medicine.
The essence of the diet is to cut out sugar, eat more fruit, vegetables, healthy fats, and lean protein, and add fish to the diet. The best fish is wild salmon, not farm-raised because it's higher in omega-3 fatty acids.
It is a good idea when starting this diet, to be fairly strict for three days, and then add more variety for a sustained way of eating. Each day, besides downing one or two servings of wild salmon, you could eat cantaloupe and a couple of cups of romaine lettuce with olive oil and lemon juice at lunch; a few almonds or olives, half a pear or green apple, and chicken or turkey breast for snack; and more cantaloupe and romaine lettuce, plus sautéed asparagus, spinach, or broccoli, for dinner. The only starch you should have at the beginning is a half cup of oatmeal at breakfast. Water -- lots of it -- and green tea or herb teas are suitable beverages.
In the regular diet you could add black bean and vegetable barley soups, chicken and tuna salads, and a wider array of fruits and vegetables to the mix.
It is also recommended that you take good quality antioxidants and anti-inflammatory supplements for general health as well as skin health.
Just as important as eating the right foods, says Perricone, is ridding your diet of the wrong ones. The initial diet should be almost completely free of saturated fat and starchy carbohydrates (especially highly processed carbs like white bread, white rice, and pasta) and allows no sugar or caffeine.
There are many factors that cause skin to wrinkle and sag, including the food we eat, stress, exposure to sun and pollution. What they all have in common is that they unleash free radicals -- unstable molecules that damage cell walls, inhibit the growth of new cells, and destroy collagen, protein fibers that give the skin structure and flexibility. On top of this certain foods (as well as the sun and other skin abusers) also create inflammation in cells, which triggers even more free radical damage.
It's well-established that applying antioxidants directly to the skin can reduce free radical damage, but Perricone believes you can also fight free radicals from the inside out. Perricone points to studies that show using DMAE (an antioxidant obtained from fish) topically for six to 12 months has the same effect on wrinkles as botox. DMAE also helps build a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which nerves use to tell muscles to contract. It's Perricone's belief that one reason we lose muscle tone is because acetylcholine declines as we age. Thus, by increasing acetylcholine levels, DMAE may improve muscle tone and help firm up the face.
Researchers at an Australian university found that elderly people who ate lots of vegetables, olive oil, fish, legumes, and cereal had less sun damage and wrinkled skin than people who didn't. The researchers attributed much of the skin-saving power of that diet to olive oil, because it's high in monounsaturated fat, which, unlike other kinds of fats, is not highly susceptible to free radical formation. The Australian study also found that what you don't eat may be as critical to the look of your skin as what you do eat: The people who consumed a lot of red meat (especially processed kinds), sodas, butter, margarine, whole milk, potatoes, and sugary foods had faces that were noticeably more lined.
But other people aren't so sure about the claims. For one thing, despite the Australian study, there's not much research showing a definite connection between what people eat and the luminosity of their complexions. "On the face of it, Perricone's claims seem like others in a long line of absurd claims based on some truths," says Robert Polisky, a dermatologist in Elk Grove, Illinois, and spokesperson for the American Academy of Dermatology. "For instance, his book infers that if you get your protein from nuts and beans or from lean meat, you won't look as good as if you eat fish. Let's see the evidence. We know that good nutrition is part of good-looking skin, but only up to a point."
I guess the way to find out, as with a lot of other things, is to try for yourself. If you are committed to making the most of your natural attributes and making yourself look and feel better and healthier, give this eating plan a try. From all accounts you will at least feel better and more alert.
Content provided by Alternative Medicine Magazine |
posted by Maggie @ 8:35 am   |
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