There are two main culprits that accelerate the aging process of our skin; sun exposure and Advanced Glycation End-products (AGEs), AGEs form when protein or fat combine with sugar. While these aging culprits aren’t 100 percent in our control, using moisturizing cream and taking mind of your overall diet can help with how our body protects and heals our skin.

And although minding your diet is easier said than done, it always helps to have a little reminder of certain foods that can affect your skin health. This list can help with that.

Margarine

Butter got a really bad reputation some years ago due to its saturated fat content. Margarine was supposed to be the answer that would let us enjoy buttery flavor without the fat. Unfortunately, margarine is actually quite a bit worse for your body.

Margarine is packed with trans fats that raise your risk of chronic disease. It also messes with the hydration level of your body. Chronic dehydration is a prime driver of wrinkles, definitely an unwanted.

Sugar

Sugar is responsible for weight gain, creating wrinkles, making your skin saggy, and harming your health in general. Eating too much sugar starts a process that called glycation: consuming more sugar that you can process makes glycose bind with proteins and lipids. This process damages your skin’s collagen (because these proteins are responsible for the firmness of the skin) and encourages the development of wrinkles.

Processed meat

Hot dogs, sausage and bacon are some of the examples of processed meat you should avoid. They are high in sodium, saturated fats and sulphite, all of which causes inflammation that can weaken collagen and dehydrate the skin. 

Deep fried/grilled foods

Cooking foods at high temperatures increases inflammatory compounds known as "Advanced Glycation End-products" aka AGEs. And yes, ironically, AGEs do indeed age you. They encourage oxidative stress and inflammation in the body. High levels of AGEs in the body are linked to osteoporosis, neurodegeneration, heart disease, stroke and other age-related diseases. While some AGEs occur naturally in the body, increasing the load with heavily cooked foods can accelerate their damage. To avoid them, try to cook the majority of your foods at low temperatures, although indulging in something deliciously fried or charred on the grill is certainly alright for a healthy person in moderation.

Alcohol 

Drinking too much alcohol can lead to several skin problems including wrinkles, loss of collagen, puffiness and redness. It also leads to depletion of certain nutrients including vitamin A which is an important nutrient responsible for new cell growth and production of collagen. 

Potatoes and grains

Both potatoes and grains ultimately break down into sugar in our bodies and also use up valuable minerals when they are metabolised, such as zinc, which is crucial for skin health. Not to mention they give us almost nothing in return except calories!

Caffeine

Most of us love a good cup of coffee to a certain extent, anything (in moderation) that gives us pleasure is good for us. Just remember to drink an extra glass of water for each cup of coffee you have to counteract caffeine’s dehydrating effects on the body.

Content created and supplied by: TeeOoh (via Opera News )