Article by: Dr. Meg Haworth

A gazillion skin creams, scrubs, masques, cleansers, and oils are on the market today.  They all boast they possess the secret to helping you look much younger than you are and keeping you that way. There are so many of these products that most of us are completely confused as to what to use.  The message is consistent.  Youth and beauty are delivered through the skin by something you put on top of it.  But does that really work?

As a Wellness Coach and former Celebrity Chef, while moisturizing your skin is super important, the real “secret” way to turn back the clock in terms of glowing, beautiful skin is to start from the inside and work your way out.  How do you do this?  Exactly the way celebrities do it and how its's been done for ages - with food, of course.  

Here are three things you can do today to begin the path towards that gorgeous glowing skin you’ve always wanted.  

#1 - DRINK PLENTY OF WATER

 
We hear about the importance of drinking water but how much is enough?  The general rule says to drink eight glasses a day.  This may or may not do the trick for you.  Perhaps the best way to tell if you’ve had enough water daily is to let your urine be your guide.  If it is yellow, thick, and smells like what you’ve just eaten, you’re not getting enough of this essential liquid.  Your urine should be clear and trips to the bathroom somewhat frequent.  

As a good gage, you may want to consider drinking half of your body weight in ounces of filtered water each day.  For example, if you weigh 120 pounds, drink around 60 ounces of filtered water a day.  That’s about seven, eight ounce glasses of water each day for a 120-pound person.  You can adjust this amount based on the feedback your body is giving you. You may feel you need more or less than that.  Some days you will need more, particularly after a hot yoga session or extended cardio.  

There is no substitute for water.  Iced tea or sports drinks cannot replace the goodness of filtered water for every cell in your body.  My nutritionist told me decades ago that drinking water is like giving your stomach a bath and there is no substitute for good clean bath water.  Water can move toxins out of your system and help your skin glow from the inside out.  

#2 -SLEEP LONG AND WELL  

When you sleep, you give your body the rest to needs to repair itself.  The body has its own wisdom and when you give it just what it needs, it can heal itself.  With busy families, jobs, and long hours working to do it all, sleep is one of the first things to go to the wayside.  Many Americans are only getting four or five hours of sleep a night and it’s often not quality sleep.  

Sleep deprivation can age you prematurely.  When you’re chronically sleep deprived, it can lead to cognitive impairment, poor decision making, and a number of health conditions including high blood pressure and stroke.  This kind of stress on the body can wear you down over time, making your skin look unhealthy particularly in your face where the skin is more delicate and needs extra loving care.

A good rule for how much sleep you need has traditionally been eight hours.  Scientists are now saying that the amount of sleep a person needs varies but some are recommending up to ten hours of good, deep sleep each night.  Consistent deep sleep can be a challenge for most people to get for many reasons.  Perhaps the most frustrating reason is you simply cannot fall asleep and you have to get up the next morning at a particular time.

To get more sleep, consider cutting something out of your day like watching television late at night.  You may have to say no to some activities that have you over-scheduled and stressed out.  Give yourself permission to love and care for yourself more deeply by allowing more time to fall asleep and stay that way.  Take a warm bath before bed or meditate to get your brain and body focused on quiet time.  You will be very thankful when you look at yourself in the morning and see a rested, glowing face and rejuvenated skin.

#3 - EAT CLEAN AND GREEN

 Eating clean is something we hear a lot in the world of wellness.  I think the definition of that is a little confusing to people.  What it means is eating whole, fresh, organic vegetables and fruits. This is the very best way to detox your body and help your skin glow. Focus on fresh spinach, kale, chard, field greens, mustard greens, celery, cucumber, and collard greens.  Make sure you get them in your diet every single day.

Green drinks and green juices are made differently with varying levels of nutrition in them.  Green juices, made with a juicing machine, use a lot more vegetables than green drinks do.  Because green juice is concentrated, it packs more nutritional value.  Green drinks are blended and strained, containing more fiber to help assimilate the nutrients into your system.  Juicing machines extract the fiber and discard it.  

If you have issues with sugar, a green drink is usually safer than a green juice that can spike blood sugar levels quickly, especially if you’re using fruit, carrots or beets with your green vegetables.  The fiber in plants is designed by nature to load sugar into your system more slowly and to move food through your intestinal tract.  Either way you do it, you will get multiple servings of vegetables in one glass and that’s a wonderful tonic for your skin.  

A great way to get the concentrated energy from green plants is through juicing.  Not everyone has a juicer or access to places that make fresh juice for sale.  If you want an easy way to get your greens at home, try this simple green drink recipe.  The only tools you will need are a blender, a large mixing bowl, a wire mesh strainer, and Mason jars for canning.  

Dr. Meg’s Organic Green Drink for Glowing Skin
3-4 Large Kale Leaves
1 Handful fresh Spinach Leaves
3 Stalks of Celery Chopped into Large Pieces
½ a Cucumber
2 Carrots Chopped into Large Pieces
¼ Inch Fresh Ginger
3 Cups Filtered Water
¼ Fresh Lemon Juice (large lemon wedge)

Wash you produce very well in a large bowl several times.  Add a little apple cider vinegar to the water to help kill bacteria.  Add well washed ingredients to your blender.  Turn on high for one minute or more, until ingredients are well blended.  Place a large strainer over a large mixing bowl.  Pour contents into the strainer.  Using a spoon, stir the contents in the strainer to help the water into the bowl.  Get as much water out as you can then discard remaining pulp.  
Pour the ingredients into small Mason jars to have single servings on hand.  Refrigerate. Drink at least one a day, shaking well before you drink it.  Three a day is much better for detoxification purposes.  The fresher the better with these drinks.  Do not store in the refrigerator for more than five days.
Try these things together and watch your skin begin to glow in short order.  You will also find that you have more energy to do the things you love when you add greens, fresh, clean water, and plenty of sleep to your routine.   Overall health and wellness doesn’t come from a jar.  It comes naturally from our beautiful Earth and your desire to take the very best care of yourself.  

ABOUT the AUTHOR

Dr. Meg Haworth is an author, Wellness Coach, and former Celebrity Chef who teaches people how to eat to heal their bodies, lose weight, and reduce environmental toxins.  After healing herself of over a dozen illnesses including fibromyalgia and brain and nervous system injuries from a lightning strike, she has learned the secrets to getting well and staying that way and shares them in her coaching programs. You can find her on the web at www.meghaworth.com