Elina Fedotova, founder and Chief Formulator of Elina Organics in Michigan and Florida, produces award-winning holistic skincare products that are praised around the globe. An extremely knowledgeable woman when it comes to health and wellness, Elina is the president of The Association of Holistic Skin Care Practitioners, founded in 2007. If ACNE is one of your skincare concerns, read on to learn Elina’s nine lifestyle, nutrition and skincare tips to combat this condition.
Nutrition
We start addressing inflammatory skin’s conditions like acne and rosacea by suggesting dietary changes. Reduce or completely eliminate soft drinks and processed foods, because they are packed with different synthetic additives like nitrates, artificial dyes and flavorings. All those ingredients could stimulate inflammatory processes in the entire body, including the skin. The majority of people see reductions in acne after they eliminate dairy and sugary foods. If indulging in a dessert, I would suggest choosing dark chocolate, fruits, or baked goods made from whole grains like oatmeal cookies.
Vegetables & Fruits
In general, you should increase eating foods that help to clean your skin from the inside out, and those foods include all organically grown greens like celery, cucumber, broccoli and spinach. Substitute these for pasta or potatoes with a clean source of protein. One of the most beneficial skin-purifying foods is artichoke. It has a high concentration of silymarin, which helps to detoxify and calm our skin. The most beneficial way to eat an artichoke is to boil it for 10 minutes with your favorite spices and to use the broth daily, at least a cup a day. Organically grown watermelon also helps to purify the body and improve your complexion. Organic berries such as red and black currants, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, pineapple, and papaya will help your skin as well.
Limit Stress
One of the main contributors of acne is stress. Cortisol and other stress hormones intoxicate our body and could be damaging for all aspects of our health, including skin.
Sleep
Generally good sleep plays an important role to ensure the body is producing all necessary hormones for healthy cellular function. We need to avoid going to bed too late and avoid sleeping in a room with a computer and TV screen and EMF-emitting devices. I also would suggest having a cup of relaxing herbal tea with rose, chamomile, or valerian root, which helps you to relax and calm down to have a restful sleep.
Skincare Routine
It’s important to have a healthy skin care regimen that includes cleansing products to remove excessive amounts of oil and pollutants without damaging your skin’s protective barrier. Avoid SLS ingredients, and use sulfate-free cleansing lotions. I also would not suggest people use bar soap for acne-prone complexions. If for some reason you cannot really find a natural and affective cleansing lotion, you can substitute it by mixing organic kefir with a little bit of baking soda and cleanse your skin. The baking soda will absorb excessive oil and impurities and kefir will help to balance the skin’s microbiome.
Skin Hydration: We’ve all heard that the skin needs to be hydrated, but people mistake hydration with emollience and use oil-based products on their skin as a moisturizer. I would never suggest doing that for acne or a rosacea-prone complexion because it can contribute to more break outs and redness. It is very important to use special treatment serums with ingredients like salicylic acid extracted from willow bark, herbal extracts of burdock, dandelion, red clover, peppermint, and essential oils of turmeric, tea tree, yarrow. They are all helpful for problem complexion.
Makeup/Beauty Routine: After using a healthy skin care regimen, don’t poison it with conventional makeup based on talcum and silicone. If you are using foundation, it should be water-based with zinc oxide as a main pigment that protects our skin from sun damage and has healing anti-antimicrobial effects. Crushed pearls and zinc oxide-based makeup powders would be the best choice. Avoid silicone-based ingredients like dimethicone or cyclomethicone in your makeup because they act as a plastic wrap over your skin, not enabling it to breathe or absorb moisture from the air, which can contribute to more inflammation. Look for ingredients like pearl powder, zinc oxide, sunflower phospholipids, herbal extracts, and essential oils.
Limit Sun Exposure:
Many people with an acne prone complexion are addicted to sun exposure and tanning. UV rays have antibacterial effect on the skin and help dry up blemishes and reduce oil. Tanning also helps to hide scarring and redness, but it is a very temporary benefit, because continued sun exposure will lead to premature skin aging and discolorations, or even skin cancer. I can’t say that sun exposure contributes to acne -in fact, it does not. It can even help for a short time, but I do not suggest using it as an acne therapy because it is a dangerous habit. Make sure your skin is protected with a zinc oxide-based sunscreen, which also contains pearl powder to keep moisture in the skin and absorb excessive amounts of oil from the pores.
Smoking Habits:
One of the main functions of the skin is elimination. Our sweat and oil glands are releasing toxins from the body through the pores. So, if we put more toxins into our system — like smoking a cigarette — more toxins will come out of our pores, which can result in worsening our skin.
All Elina Organics products are hand-made in a laboratory by Elina and her team. Formulations change seasonally for optimal effectiveness and can be customized. To discover more about Elina and see her remarkable acne-fighting skincare, visit ElinaOrganics.com.
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