7 Natural Beauty Tips for a Smooth and Glowing Face

Our skin can be one of the best indicators of overall internal health. After all, it’s your body’s largest detoxification organ! Because of this, when your internal and external environment are healthy, your skin will reflect that.

1. Grass-Fed Collagen

Collagen is a protein that the body produces. It plays an essential role in the structure and function of skin. As you age, collagen production decreases significantly! But adding a scoop of grass-fed collagen powder into your morning smoothie or coffee can be extremely helpful in maintaining your skin’s integrity and glow! A grass-fed collagen powder is the most absorbable type of collagen. Like liquid supplements, powder supplements are more rapidly absorbed by the body due to having no barrier, like a pill.

Consuming grass-fed collagen is also extremely important, as research has reported that grass-fed beef contains more antioxidants, minerals, omega-3s, and vitamins than grain-fed beef. Given that bovine collagen is extracted from various organs, choosing a 100% grass-fed and grass-finished collagen powder will help you reap collagen's full benefits.

2. Healthy Fats

Salmon, avocado, and ghee, oh my! Healthy fatty acids feed your skin! Thus, getting optimal omega-3s strengthens skin cell membranes, which can help to keep your skin supple, elastic, and youthful-looking.

There are two sub-classes of polyunsaturated fats, Omega-3s and Omega-6s. Sufficient quantities of both are needed in the diet for optimal health, but the ratio between the two is just as important as the quantity of each! Ideally, the ratio between Omega-3s and 6s should be between 1:1 and 1:4. However, many people today eat between 1:10 and 1:25 due to overconsumption of convenience foods, which usually are rich in omega-6s. Getting the right ratio is critical for managing inflammation of the skin. Research has shown that omega-3 fatty acids have been linked to an approximately 80% reduction in malignant melanoma risk!

3. Movement

Yes, exercise can give you a glow! When your blood starts pumping from a workout, circulation and collagen increase. Blood flow also helps support the discarding of waste products, including free radicals, which helps support smooth and glowing skin.

One study exhibited that exercise can even improve the skin’s ability to retain moisture. So next time you want to get your face glowing, try heading to yoga or going for a jog!

4. Bone Broth

If there is any food out there that can help give you a skin glow up, it would be bone broth. Bone broth is much more than an overhyped food fad. Bone broth has been known for its beautifying qualities for centuries. Some people even recommend trying a bone broth facial if you don’t want to drink it!

So what makes bone broth so magical? For starters, bone broth is chock-full of minerals and collagen, which are essential nutrients for keeping skin vibrant! Bone broth is also well known for its anti-inflammatory mechanisms due to it being rich in glycine and arginine, which are two amino acids that have been shown to reduce inflammation, and science backs this anti-inflammatory theory up!

5. Say no to Tap Water

Yes, contaminants in your tap water may be causing your skin to look a bit duller. From chlorine to pharmaceuticals, to herbicides lingering in tap water, avoiding them and reaching for a filtered and mineral-rich cleaner water is key. While it depends on where you live, most tap water contains high amounts of chlorine, and chlorinated water can disturb your skin's pH and deplete the skin of its natural oils and hydration. Once this natural barrier is disrupted, moisture from the inside is lost.

Over time, this can lead to premature aging and the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Investing in a shower filter can help you reduce your exposure to tap water.

Drinking tap water can also heavily affect your skin health. How? Mostly by destroying good bacteria in your gut due to the various contaminants, such as arsenic, that may be potentially present in tap water, and the continuation of drinking it over time. Emerging research indicates that more common exposure to tap water may also be related to both non-cancerous and cancerous changes to the skin.

6. Say yes to Coconut Water

Hydration is key when skin looks smooth, and one of the most hydrating beverages you can drink is coconut water! Coconut water is rich in electrolytes, which are key as we need electrolytes for water to get into our cells.

One study conducted found that consumption of coconut water supports antioxidant systems, which neutralize the effects of free radicals and promote anti-aging!

7. Prioritize Your Gut

The gut and brain are in direct communication with one another via the gut and skin axis. This means that if your gut health is less than stellar, your skin may reflect this. Much of the gut and skin communication is done through our body’s microbiome. Thus, prioritizing your gut microbiome health may help support your skin health!

A 2017 study reported that individuals with rosacea have a higher incidence of gastrointestinal disease. This further proves that the skin is an excellent parameter of what systems are working optimally inside the body. So, how can you prioritize your gut health? Eating fermented foods, limiting stress, and cutting out inflammatory oils is an excellent place to start!