Shun the Sugar for Sweeter-looking skin!

Shun the Sugar for Sweeter-looking skin!

By Leanne Rangel, MA, Aesthetician

Here are a few reasons to really watch sugar, not only for your waistline but your skin too!

1. Aging
I believe that inflammation is at the basis of aging in all organ systems, including the skin. One of the reasons inflammation occurs is from a rapid rise in blood sugar, which causes biochemical changes in the cell that result in accelerated aging. You can have deterioration of the brain or the heart muscle, and likewise of the skin. Of the internal causes of inflammation, one of the big ones is diet. In addition to biochemical changes, sugar causes damage to the skin in another way: When blood sugar goes up rapidly, sugar can attach itself to collagen in a process called "glycation," making the skin stiff and inflexible. Losing this elastic resilience of young skin will give you deep wrinkles and make you look old.

2. Acne
Acne is caused by a number of different factors, and is not limited to oily skin patients. Patients with dry/sensitive or normal skin types may have acne symptoms too. One driver of acne is the skin trying to protect itself. When the skin barrier is damaged, the skin reacts by creating inflammation and producing more oil (sebum). The inflammation and excess sebum creates the perfect environment for bacteria and yeast to grow, causing infection and leading to acne. Sugar changes our hormone status in our body by increasing insulin. This causes many other hormonal changes, some of which can result in acne.

Again, we want to eliminate sugar as much as possible to help alleviate the above factors.

-Leanne Rangel, MA, Aesthetician