Holistic Approach To A Healthy And Safe Sun Tan!
It"s that time of year; shorts and t-shirts, the beach and BBQs but it"s really my favorite time because I get to be out in the sun as much as possible. I love basking in the sun, absorbing the rays and getting a dark tan after a long, dreary winter. Many of us have seen the damage of over-exposure in the sun can do to our skin. I am here to share with you not only my healthy tips to getting a great tan but protecting your skin as well.Keep The Water Flowing: We all know that water is essential. Yet, many people today drink coffee, alcohol, soft drinks and artificial, man-made beverages that actual dehydrates us. The cells need water for cellular function and elimination of toxins. When we drink anything else besides water, our cells lose their integrity and actually become vulnerable, especially for those who drink a great deal of alcohol. Beer, for example, is a strong diuretic and draws water from the skin, leaving it unprotected from the sun"s rays. Stay well hydrated at all times and drink a lot of water if you are sunbathing. The general rule of thumb is half your bodyweight in ounces of water but some tend to need more if they are in the sun for too long.
Eat Those Fats: Why, you wonder, eating healthy fats is great way to protect my skin from the sun? The cells in your body consist of saturated fat which gives them its natural integrity. Think of it as a balloon made of saturated fat. Fats like raw butter, olive oil, coconut oil, or lard have a great deal of natural anti-oxidants that protects us against free radicals. The standard diet consist of man-made, polyunsaturated oils, which floods the body of not only free radicals that destroy our cells but the accelerate the aging process. The sun"s rays and polyunsaturated fats is a toxic cocktail for wrinkly skin and the high risk of developing cancer. Eat plenty of these fats to start protecting your skin.
Antioxidant Stockpile: When I was in the restaurant business, it was necessary to always have a back up of everything, so you don"t run out. Stockpile of ingredients were there to cover the possibility of running out during the dinner service. We should look at antioxidants this way as well. Our bodies are always creating free radicals but are we replacing and protecting ourselves from a backup of antioxidants? For most, that"s not the case. The sun creates a great deal of free radical damage to the skin if exposed to it too long. That is why it is necessary to have a constant supply in case of an emergency. A diet rich in vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, plus enzymes and thiols is important. Vitamin antioxidants such as vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E are very powerful antioxidants to neutralize a great deal of free radicals. They should work in unison to help regenerate each other. Vitamin C will regenerate vitamin E and vice versa. Alpha-lipoic acid constantly renews the antioxidants without being renewed itself. Flavonoids in fruits, vegetables and herbs can help assist with all this. Stockpile now so you don"t run out just in case of an emergency.
I Wear My Sunglasses at Night:Â Corey Hart"s song "Sunglasses at Night" is probably the best advice he gave us then actually wearing them when the sun is out. UV radiation from the sun is very important for normal cell division, with no cell growth, this can lead to cancer. Sunglasses as well as UV-reflecting spectacles are responsible for certain eye disease as well as skin damage. The optic nerve senses sunlight and produces melanocytes, which in turn produces melanin. Melanin is the pigment that gives you a tan and protects you against sunburn. Wearing sunglasses disrupts this process. Instead of making melanin to protect your skin, the pituitary gland thinks it"s dark outside and reduces the melanocyte-simulating hormone. So our skin is less protected because we are not producing enough melanin to protect us from getting sunburned. Go to South or Central America, for example, you will hardly see anyone wear sunglasses and they have the most beautiful dark skin and minimal skin cancer. Our grandparents just wore large hats to protect their eyes, so should we. Leave the sunglass at home.
Would You Drink Sunscreen? : Then why would you put it on your skin? It"s actually probably safer to ingest it because your digestive system would filter out most of the poison. Rubbing it on the skin dumps these carcinogens right into the circulatory system, which overloads the liver, kidneys, heart and brain. My favorite sunscreen protection is coconut oil. Yes, coconut oil. Coconut oil should be consumed and used topically on our skin, it helps our bodies absorb other nutrients more effectively as well, such as vitamin E, another powerful antioxidant nutrient that protects the skin. Go visit the Philippines or Thailand, and you will see that coconut is a main staple not only in their diet but the oil is used on their skin. They have almost no signs of skin cancer and obtain beautiful skin. Even the people of the Mediterranean and Roman times used oils like olive oil and other essential oils to protect and lavish their skin. The sunscreen industry is a multi-billion business; selling us ideas that we need to protect ourselves from the sun"s rays or will die from skin cancer which is an outright lie!!!!! The sun heals cancer and it"s our natural healer. We just need to know how to protect ourselves naturally.
So, when you want to get a dark tan and protect your skin, follow these simple points:
*Drink plenty of water. (Do not consume alcohol, coffee or soft drinks.)
*Consume a lot of healthy fats (Coconut oil, olive oil, raw butter and lard.) Avoid all processed oils.
*Consume plenty of antioxidants from whole, organic foods and nutraceutical supplements.
*Apply a generous amount of coconut oil on your skin before lying out in the sun and also afterwards. You can use an essential oil like Lavender oil to help relieve the skin and cool it down before going to bed.
*Avoid wearing sunglasses.
*Only lay out for an hour at the most. The sun is the strongest between 11am-3pm. Laying out for an hour at a time 2-3 times a week will help create a dark tan. Imagine painting a car; you need to let each layer dry before applying the next coat to get that beautiful finish. You need to do the same to obtain a dark tan.
*Everyone has different skin types; some are more sensitive then others. Those that are more sensitive to the sun should also wear light clothing and limit their sun exposure to limited time until you acquire the proper tan.
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Chris Dillon
http://www.nuhealthstrategies.com