Beauty Benefits of Detoxing

Most people don’t associate detox dieting with beauty benefits but when you think about good health benefits you will see that shiny hair, glowing skin and white teeth are also benefits of clean and healthy living. The tenets of a good detox diet provide significant rejuvenation to the skin, and when undertaken as a lifestyle can enhance natural beauty.

It should be noted that a fresh food detoxifying diet will not make you more beautiful by transforming your features, but rather by enhancing them. Following a detox diet lifestyle will improve health, vitality and overall appearance. The cleansing properties of a detox diet contribute to beauty in a number of ways, which we will discuss today.

Why Raw Foods Make You Pretty

You’re probably wondering what it is about raw fruits and vegetables that can make your skin glow and look years younger than your driver’s license indicates. The truth is that the toxins in your environment that are absorbed into your skin contribute to premature aging, reduces skin elasticity and increases the appearance of acne and blemishes. This is all in addition to the cancerous chemicals floating in the air or that come in direct contact with your skin in the form of lotions, creams, soaps and makeup.

By removing as many of those toxins as you can, specifically in your home, you can reverse those negative beauty effects. A raw diet is the ideal way to cleanse your body from the inside out. Fresh fruits and vegetables give your skin, hair, nails and your body in general, all the vitamins and minerals that provide significant beauty benefits without any of the chemicals and their negative side effects.

Since the skin is the largest of the detox organs, which means it is the perfect exit for harmful toxins. Since the skin is so expansive there is little worry about congesting the systems as the body dumps out toxic body waste. The water content of raw fruits and vegetables provide an excellent method of hydrating the skin and flushing out all the gross stuff the body picks up on an average day.

Another reason raw foods make you pretty is because they are packed full of active enzymes that boost metabolism and increase vitality. Most of the standard methods of cooking are done at such a high temperature that nearly all enzymes are inactivated, which means you’re only getting a small fraction of the nutrients you need to feel and look amazing. Eating a diet of raw fruits and vegetables aid the gastric, digestive and saliva enzymes in breaking down starches, fat, proteins, carbohydrates and fats so they are absorbed quickly in the body and they can help clean out toxins and heal compromised systems within the body.

Hydration

Eating a raw food diet as recommended by the healthiest detox diets is due to the high water content found in most fruits and vegetables. When you cook your vegetables in a traditional diet, much of the nutrients and water is cooked right out, providing you with almost no nutritional value.

Additionally raw organic fruits like melons (watermelon, cantaloupe & honey dew) have a high water content and taste delicious in their most natural form, making it a simple way to get the beauty benefits of detox dieting.

The reason so many physicians recommend 8 glasses of water or 64 ounces is because the now traditional cooked food diet deprives you of natural ways to hydrate the body. But if you stick to raw and organic fruits and vegetables you won’t have to diligently measure each glass to make sure you’re consuming enough water.

Hydrated skin shines and is often found without blemishes. Although it isn’t as simple as drink water and your skin will glow, regular hydration will give skin a glowing and youthful look.

The BIG Four

When it comes to the beauty benefits of detoxing there are “the big four” nutrients that can contribute to what I will call ‘beauty health’ because of the impact they have on your physical appearance. Finding foods that have significant amounts of these nutrients in them can help you see the improved skin results you desire.

Check the nutritional information of your favorite fruits and vegetables online to find out about these nutrients:

• Zinc rebuilds the collagen in the body, giving the skin a more tightened and toned appearance so you look younger and more vibrant.
• Iron improves the circulation of blood in the body to even out skin tone and rid the surface of the skin of uneven color and blood splotches.
• Silicon makes the nails, skin and hair stronger, which reduces breakage, bruising and split ends.
• Magnesium works to detoxify the body, removing and cleansing environmental and food toxins that create skin problems. Coconut oil is an excellent source of magnesium and it helps the body absorb it efficiently. If you need more reasons to add coconut oil to your diet: it has awesome anti-aging properties that will leave you looking and feeling 20 years younger! Potassium also performs this role and should be mentioned as essential for beauty health.

Other essential nutrients that are part of a detox diet and beauty health include vitamins E and C, plus the fantastic omega-3 fatty acids. These nutrients protect the skin against sun damage, erase blemishes and soften wrinkles. The key however is finding the right food combination to maximize these benefits…

What To Eat

Unfortunately there is no magic concoction of foods that will automatically give you the beautiful and glowing skin you and glossy hair you want, but there are certain foods that will help you achieve your beauty goals. The important thing when choosing what to eat and drink during a detox is that it is totally organic and (mostly) raw. In fact when it comes to your beauty regiment in general you should follow this same rule. 

Almonds are packed with vitamin E which is an antioxidant that will protect the skin from sun damage that includes sun spots, sunburn and skin cancer. Additionally the oils in almonds contribute to shiny hair and helps stave of weight gain.

Sweet potatoes are a great source of collagen-boosting vitamin C. Furthermore, when combined with the carotenoids, sweet potatoes can strengthen skin, increase its firmness and flexibility.

Dark Greens like kale, spinach and mustard greens are so packed with a variety of nutrients that you can be sure to get a little of everything you need for improved beauty health. Either a raw organic salad or a refreshing green plant smoothie can help you get more than your daily dose in one glass.

Peppers are a great source of nutrition in general, but particularly for the skin. Bell peppers, the red ones, have more vitamin C than the much praised orange, and are packed with antioxidants to protect your skin from the elements. Then there are the make-your-eyes-water peppers like jalapenos, Serrano chills and habanero peppers; these will improve blood circulation and encourage the release of toxins from the skin.

Throw In A Little Exercise…

The key to using detoxifying for beauty benefits is to use all the foundational tenets; exercise, diet and sleep to maximize the benefits received. That means adding yoga or any other type of exercise to help you sweat out additional toxins. Your diet combined with ‘sweating it out’ will help you flush more toxins from your system each day.

Exercise also helps improve the circulation of oxygen-rich blood so your skin tone is more even and retains that rosy glow. It will help you get more hours of beauty sleep each night. Enjoy the beauty benefits of exercise by doing aerobic exercises such as walking, swimming, running, circuit training or even the much loved elliptical machine. Combine your regular workout with at least 5 minutes of breathing exercises and yoga to give your skin a healthy boost.

Your Path To Beauty Health

Starting a detox diet to improve your overall beauty health will give you the confidence you need to start living a raw vegan lifestyle. Once you see how radiant your skin looks and how shiny your hair glows, you will be reaching for the nearest cantaloupe to munch on instead of greasy potato chips.

Getting started is easy; just make sure you keep these tips in mind as you start to detox:

• Drinking coconut water is an excellent source of hydration and it will help you stay nice and cool on a sweltering summer day.
• Brushing the skin twice each week will remove dead skin cells and toxic waste that is released through sweat. You’ll need a brush with natural bristles and a handle long enough to help you get to places hard to reach like your back. Brush all of the skin other than the face before you shower so your skin is nice and dry.
• Use only all-natural organic products in your beauty regiment. When in doubt follow this rule: if you can’t eat it, then it should not be put it on your face, in your hair or on your body. Mash up an avocado and mix it with lemon juice and coconut oil for shiny bouncy hair. Use cucumbers and tomatoes to get rid of puffy eyes and remove toxins from skin.