Anti-aging skin care is simple. But there are steps you’ll need to take. Your skin is the largest organ of your body and the only one exposed to the elements. It’s also the only one exposed to the view of others, so you’ll want to make sure it ages as slowly as possible.

As time goes by, your skin tends to get thinner, dryer, more wrinkled and, eventually, age spots may appear. Although you can’t stop the process, you can slow it down dramatically. Besides using high quality skin care (mild cleansers and effective moisturizers), there are two other secrets to your skin’s fountain of youth.

Since “garbage in, garbage out” applies to your body as well as your computer, healthy skin requires a healthy diet. Reduce your over all fats to under 30%, replacing processed and saturated “bad” fats with “good’ essential fatty acids. Eliminate sweets and other processed carbohydrates and add more whole grains and carotenoid rich fruits and vegetables. Exercise carries the essential nutrients to your cells and eight glasses of water a day keeps cells hydrated and flushes out harmful toxins.

Carotenoids are a family of phytonutrients that have been proven over and over again to protect human cells from oxidative free-radical damage - one of the major causes of skin aging. That’s why the National Institutes of Health recommends eating nine daily servings of brightly colored fruits and vegetables - peaches, strawberries, broccoli, etc. rather than iceberg lettuce, bananas and French fries. To make sure you’re getting optimum skin benefits, a good whole food carotenoid supplement will help.

The other important guideline for anti-aging skin care is to avoid sun exposure. Just driving with your arm out the window of your car can cause sun damage and accelerate aging. So get UV tinting on your car windows and keep your arm inside. Wear sunglasses, a hat, long sleeves and long pants and always use sunscreen with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of at least 15.

Carotenoids have also been found to help prevent sunburn, so get more into your diet. Years from now, your magic mirror on the wall will confirm that you’ll be glad you did.

Moss Greene makes it easy for you to create buoyant, vibrant health. Learn the simple things that make a big difference in how you look and feel. To receive your free newsletter visit her Health and Fitness Newsletter page.

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