Food For Health, Beauty and Beyond

Health and beauty are inextricably linked. Eating certain foods can dramatically improve the appearance of our skin, hair, nails and even our eyes.
Beauty is dependent on the overall health of your body – a balance of the body, mind and spirit.

In order for our outer beauty to look radiant we need to make healthy lifestyle choices. Adequate rest, clean water and daily exercise; high quality natural cleansers and lotions; laughter and love; stress management, and eating foods that nourish your body from the inside out all work together making us look and feel vibrant, youthful and radiant.

You are what you eat

“You are what you eat” is such a profound saying that nearly every culture and civilization throughout history has known. What we eat now has dramatically changed from what our great grandparents ate.

Nowadays, the typical Western diet is largely based around meat, dairy, sugars, alcohol, saturated fats and caffeine. Because of these poor dietary choices our body’s pH level has become unbalanced. When the body’s pH level is too acidic almost any area of our bodies can be negatively affected creating results such as cancer, heart disease, obesity, weight problems, allergies, fatigue, acne, dry skin, weak nails, dry hair, itchy skin and premature aging.


Ugly foods

Acidity in the body is the underlying cause of all aliments that negatively affect beauty. Acidity creates inflammation and puffiness. The only way to correct this imbalance is to eat a ratio of foods that are more alkaline than acidic and to drink plenty of clean, fresh and alkaline water. This is referred to as, the Alkalarian approach.

What are the symptoms of excess acidity?

• Low energy, chronic fatigue
• Excess mucous production
• Nasal congestion
• Frequent colds, flus and infections
• Nervousness, stressed, irritable, anxious, agitated, anger, short tempered
• Weak nails, dry hair, dry skin, acne, itchy skin
• Formation of cysts, such as ovarian cysts, polycystic ovaries, benign breast cysts (fibrocystic breasts)
• Stress headaches
• Joint pain or arthritis
• Muscle pain
• Hives
• Leg cramps and spasms
• Gastritis
• Addictions to coffee, cigarettes, recreational drugs.
• Chronic negative thought patterns

To find out what your pH level is, look for a pH paper kit in your local health food store. The test is relatively straightforward and will help you determine your acid/alkaline balance.

Acidifying Foods – the lower the acid the better.

Dairy and Dairy substitutes
Slightly acidic -  cow’s milk, rice milk, soymilk.
Highly acidic – cheese (including: cottage cheese, hard cheese, aged cheese and goat cheese), ice cream, soy cheese, whey protein powder.

Animal Meat and products
Moderate acid – wild fish
Highly acidic – beef, chicken, duck, eggs, farmed fish, lobster, organ meat, pork, seafood, turkey veal, squid, pheasant, venison.

Grains
Slightly acidic – amaranth, millet.
Moderate acid – oats, rice (brown and white rice), rye, wheat.
Highly acidic – barley, corn, rye.

Legumes
Slightly acidic – black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans.

Vegetables
Highly acidic – mushrooms, potatoes.

Fruits
Slightly acidic – cantaloupe, fresh dates, nectarines.
Moderate acid – apples, apricot, banana, all berries, fresh figs, grapes, mango, papaya, orange, peach, pineapple, tangerine, watermelon.
Highly acidic – dried fruit

Nuts, seeds oils
Slightly acidic – brazil nuts, flaxseeds, hazelnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds and oil, grapeseed oil.
Moderate acid – butter, ghee, corn oil, margarine, walnuts.
Highly acidic – cashews, peanuts, pistachios.

Condiments
Moderate acid – ketchup, mayonnaise, table salt.
Highly acidic – jam, mustard, soy sauce, vinegar, white sugar, aspartame, molasses, sugar cane, barley malt syrup, honey, maple syrup, brown rice syrup, yeast.

Beautiful foods

“There is absolutely no nutrient, no protein, no vitamin, no mineral, that we know of, that can’t be obtained from plant-based foods.” Michael Klaper, M.D., author, lecturer

An alkaline diet is composed of approximately 75-80% alkaline foods and 20-25% acid foods. The foods we eat directly have an effect on our blood pH levels. The ideal blood pH range is from 7.35 to 7.4. Other tissues in our body are generally more acidic, such as our muscles and skin with an average pH of 6.8. Ideally in a perfect world and perfect body, when added together (blood, tissues, muscles and skin) we should be around a 7.0 pH.

Remember too much of a good thing can be bad.

What are symptoms of being too alkaline?

• Laziness
• Spaciness (“Flighty”)
• Excessively passive
• Unmotivated
• Low body temperature (always cold)

Alkaline Foods – the higher alkaline the better

Vegetables
High Alkaline – wheat grass, barley greens, alfalfa sprouts, broccoli sprouts, cucumber, kale, parsley, sea vegetables.
Moderate Alkaline – avocado, arugula, beets, bell peppers, broccoli, cabbage, celery, collard greens, garlic, ginger, onion, spinach, green beans, lettuce, and tomato.
Slightly Alkaline – artichoke, asparagus, brussels sprouts, carrot, cauliflower, leeks, peas, rhubarb, watercress, zucchini.

Fruit
Slightly Alkaline – coconut, grapefruit, lemon, lime.

Legumes
Moderate Alkaline – lima beans, soy beans, white beans.
Slightly Alkaline – lentils, tofu.

Nuts, seeds, oils
High Alkaline – pumpkin seeds
Slightly Alkaline – almonds, sesame seeds, borage oil, coconut oil, cod liver oil, evening primrose oil, fish oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil.

Grains
Moderate Alkaline – buckwheat, quinoa, spelt.

Dairy
Slightly Alkaline – goat milk

Herbs and Spices
Most herbs and spices are somewhat alkaline.
Moderate alkaline – cayenne, red chili pepper, stevia, sea salt.


Foods for Beauty Grocery List

Strawberries: help protect our skins collagen structures. Collagen is what keeps our skin firm. Wrinkles form when our collagen levels start depleting.

Blueberries: help keep the skins elasticity, strengthen the gums, and contribute to the health of our eyes.

Salmon: promotes soft smooth skin, free from dry itchy patches. Also contains DHA-Omega-3 that makes skin and hair healthier.

Avocados: contain folate which helps blood formation. This is essential for cell regeneration.

Broccoli: contains a compound called sulforaphane that protects our bodies cells from injury.

Cucumber: A great source of essential vitamins and minerals necessary for increasing collagen production.

Dark leafy greens: are loaded with vitamins and minerals like beta-carotene, vitamin C, folate, iron, magnesium, phytochemicals, and antioxidants. Antioxidants combate free radicals. Free radicals alter our DNA, which results in aging and illness.

Flax, grapeseed, walnut, seaweed, spirulina, watercress: high in zinc which is vital for the health of our skin. Also known to help clear up acne.

Green Tea: has polyphenols and free oxygen radical scavengers that thicken the epidermis (skin’s outer layer).

Grapeseed oil: contains trace elements of selenium, zinc, copper, and iron. Also a unique source for oligomeric procyanidine, which is known to improve our skins elasticity.

Millet: high in silica, which is good for our skin, hair, and nails.

Oats: high in iron, manganese, phosphorous, calcium, vitamins B and E, and silicon. ( crucial for healthy skin by maintaining collagen levels).

Pomegranate: thickens the epidermis, prolongs fibroblast to produce more collagen and elastin which accelerate wound healing. Very good source of polyphenol antioxidants.  These antioxidants help neutralize free radicals that can damage the skin.


Foods for Beauty Kale Avocado Salad

What you'll need:
2 ripe Avocados, cubed
1 head curly Kale, cut into 1-inch ribbons
1 ripe Tomato, diced
1 small Red Onion, diced
Juice from Half of a lemon
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tsp Agave Nectar
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper to taste

How to make the salad:
So easy. Here it goes....
Place all vegetables in large salad bowl.
Add lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Toss.
Drizzle with agave nectar.
Serve.
Eat!