Vegetable first, or your collagen is damaged. (Koko)

For healthy skin, you should always eat vegetables(1) at every meal, eat them before you any other types of food, following protein(2) and carb(3). Following the rule also helps your overall health and keeps your weight down because your insulin spike is inhibited and you feel fuller faster.

By eating vegetables first, you reduce glycation reaction.

What's glycation?

It’s a process that sugar molecules attach themselves to protein molecules leading to a breakdown of protein including collagen fibers--fibers that are needed for taut and supple skin. Once healthy collagen fibers lose their elasticity, they become brittle and prone to breakage. This is visible as wrinkled skin. Minimizing the effects of aging requires reducing glycation.

So how do you minimize glycation?

By reducing your intake of simple carbohydrates and sweets, and choosing foods with low glycemic indexes. Also, by avoiding foods cooked at temperatures above 250 degrees.

1. Vegetables (ideally raw veggies) or fiber rich foods

2. Proteins

3. Carbohydrates


If your stomach is digesting vegetable fiber, the carbohydrates--which you eat after your veggies and proteins--get covered with this fiber. This slows down insulin spikes and the speed that sugar is transported into the blood.

Another benefit of eating vegetables first is that the fiber absorbs water in your stomach, making you feel full more quickly.  And raw vegetables have a digestive enzyme which aides in the digestion of proteins.

Protein is hard to digest, so they stay in the stomach too long, forcing other foods to remain in the stomach, and slowing down digestion.

You don’t have to eat all of each type of food (vegetable, protein and carb) to go on to the next one, but you should always start with vegetables and then go on to protein. After that, you can go on to the carbohydrate, or return to the vegetable. The most important thing is vegetables go in first!

In Italian restaurant, usually they serve bread at the beginning, but please don’t! Wait until you get appetizer at least.

Skin-fast once a week (Koko)

What is “skin-fasting?” It’s as simple as sleeping without moisturizer just one night a week!

Our skin has an inherent ability to take care of itself. Sleeping without moisturizer will help strengthen your skin’s recovery power. If you use moisturizer excessively every day, it makes your skin become lazy, because it doesn’t have to produce natural oils on its own. Without moisturizer, the skin will begin to produce natural oils without relying on moisturizer.

The purpose of skin-fasting is to strengthen the skin’s natural protective barrier that is weakened by excessive nourishing, to normalize the secretion of natural oils and support the natural rejuvenation process. This natural barrier protects your skin not only from dryness, but also from any other outside stressors, like UV rays, pollution, and cold temperatures.

How to Skin-Fast

1. Wash your face gently at night.

2. Try sleeping one night a week without any skin care products.

3. In the morning, wash your face gently, using only water.

4. Skin-fast only once a week. Excessive fasting can cause drier skin, so do it once or twice a week at most.

5. Make sure that your room has the proper humidity and is not too dry, particularly in the winter. Don't skin-fast, if you are not in good condition.

After skin-fasting, you can check your skin type, by placing tissue on the face in the morning.

A. If the tissue falls off your face just as soon as put in over face, your have dry skin.

B. If you put in on your face and lean over and it falls off, you've got normal skin.

C. If it doesn't fall off your face, even when you do lean over, you have oily skin.

Your goal is to get the result "B". If it's A, you should take extra care of your skin by protecting from UV damage, eating right… If it's C, use more moisturizer. WHy? Go to the next chapter.

Eat Your Veggies, and Eat Them First!

 Good nutrition is vital to your skin’s well being, but did you know that the order in which you eat foods is just as important as what you eat?

For healthy skin, you should eat vegetables at every meal, eat them before you any other types of food, and make sure that half of those vegetables are raw. Following these rules also helps your overall health and keeps your weight down because you feel fuller faster.

Have you heard of glycation? It’s a process that leads to skin aging. Sugar molecules attach themselves to protein molecules leading to a breakdown of collagen fibers--fibers that are needed for taut and supple skin. Once healthy collagen fibers lose their elasticity, they become brittle and prone to breakage. This is visible as wrinkled skin. Minimizing the effects of aging requires reducing glycation.

So how do you minimize glycation?

By reducing your intake of simple carbohydrates and sweets, and choosing foods with low glycemic indexes. Also, by avoiding foods cooked at temperatures above 250 degrees.

If your stomach is digesting vegetable fiber, the carbohydrates--which you eat after your veggies and proteins--get covered with this fiber. This slows down insulin spikes and the speed that sugar is transported into the blood.

Another benefit of eating vegetables first is that the fiber absorbs water in your stomach, making you feel full more quickly.  And raw vegetables have a digestive enzyme which aides in the digestion of proteins.

Protein is hard to digest, so they stay in the stomach too long, forcing other foods to remain in the stomach, and slowing down digestion.

If you want to maintain healthy, youthful skin, make vegetables the first part of your meal. If you don’t follow this eating order, you may be prone to more glycation and skin damage.

There are 2 types of enzymes: digestive and metabolic.

The digestive enzyme--which is contained, for example, in raw vegetables--is necessary to digest food. The metabolic enzyme works to metabolize, detox, and to anti-oxidize the body. Antioxidants are very important for anti-aging.

These 2 enzymes are produced in the body, and in raw and fermented food. There is a fixed amount of enzymes produced in the body, so if too much enzyme is used for digestion, the enzyme cannot be used for metabolism, including the antioxidant function to prevent aging.

Dry Skin Needs Less Moisturizer, Dehydrated Skin Needs More

What’s the difference between dry and dehydrated skin and how do you treat them? You might be surprised at the answer…

 Do you know the difference between dry and dehydrated skin?

Dry skin means your skin’s surface is dry. Inside your skin might be relatively hydrated, but because the surface doesn’t contain enough natural oils, the moisture evaporates.  You need natural oils to hold the hydration inside. The solution is to use less moisturizer on the skin’s surface.

Why less? Doesn’t that seem like exactly the wrong thing to do?  For the best long-term result, your skin needs to produce a sufficient amount of its own natural oils, instead of relying on moisturizer. You need to “teach” your skin to produce more natural oils. So don’t use too much moisturizer.

You natural oils are just that, a natural moisturizer produced by your skin. Your ability to create natural oils is affected by the amount of the moisturizer you use.  That’s why too much moisturizer won’t cure the cause of your dry skin. You’ll just become permanently dependent on moisturizer. You do need some moisturizer to prevent dryness, but use a little less so that your body will produce more natural moisture to cure the cause of the dryness, not just the symptoms.

On the other hand, dehydrated skin means that the inside of your skin is dry. Your skin surface can be dry, moist or even oily. But you don’t have enough moisture under the surface of your skin.

If your surface skin is oily, it usually means your inner skin is dehydrated. Even though it may seem counter-intuitive, you should use more moisturizer. Why more?

Your skin is dehydrated, so your surface skin is trying to protect the little moisture that there is in your inner skin by producing too much natural oils. If you use more moisturizer on the surface, your skin thinks it has enough natural oils, so it doesn’t have to produce as much. Drink plenty of water as well as using more moisturizer!

If your surface skin is dry and your interior skin is dehydrated, that’s the worst combination. This might be seen in aging skin. Drink plenty of water and use less moisturizer. This will make your skin produce more natural oils, which will help with the dryness and dehydration.

Avoid Over-washing Your Skin

Did you know that over-washing is bad for your skin? Keep soap and cleansing to a minimum for a more youthful look.

 

You should wash your face with cleanser in the morning and then again at night, right? No! And shouldn’t you take a shower once a day  (or more if you exercise and get sweaty), and lather up with body wash all over your skin? Again, no-- not if want youthful, healthy skin. Excessive washing rinses off your skin’s natural oil and this oil is absolutely the best skin-care cream for your skin.

You might not realize it, but clean skin doesn’t mean that it can better absorb the active ingredients in beauty products. (Clean skin absorbs active ingredients, but it just doesn't keep it, because the roof (natural barrier) is broken. Koko) And if your protection barrier is broken, your skin can’t keep moisture in. So in effect you’re washing off the natural oil that really helps this skin, then applying cosmetics that will just sit on the surface.  You’re spending money on products, and you skin’s broken natural barrier fails to keep the active and beneficial ingredients inside.  Your weakened protection barrier means more damage from environmental factors--UV rays, dry weather, bacteria, dust or synthetic chemicals in cosmetics.

This applies to your face and body. You don’t have to wash with soap all over the body daily. Once a week is enough! By washing excessively, the good bacteria are rinsed off. Good bacteria teach your cells to make antibiotics, which will kill off bad bacteria.

The only 7 areas you should wash with soap every day are:
1. Behind the ears.
2. Behind the neck.
3. Your back.
4. The décolletage and breast area.
5. Your underarms.
6. The groin area and anus.
7. Your feet.

 Just rinse areas like your legs, arms or stomach with water, because sweat is water-soluble. But oxidized natural oils (where abundunt in these 7 areas, Koko) are water IN-soluble, meaning you need to clean with soap and then rinse. It’s important to rinse off dirt, sweat, and oxidized natural oils by a taking shower, but don’t wash with soap too much. Amazingly, excessive washing can cause more body odor!

There’s good bacterium on your skin’s surface. This prevents growth of bad bacteria and protects your skin’s immunity. By taking a shower or bath, 70 to 95% of the bacteria are rinsed off. When this happens, bad bacteria increases, causing body odor. The good ones regenerate in a few hours.

Skin-Fast Once a Week2

What’s a great way to take care of your skin? Take a break from your moisturizer—really!

You fast to cleanse and detoxify your body, why not “skin-fast” to detox your skin? And what exactly is “skin-fasting?” It’s as simple as sleeping without moisturizer just one night a week, and changing the way you clean your skin.

Skin-fasting strengthens the skin’s natural protective barrier that’s weakened by excessive cleansing or excessive nourishing. By skin-fasting, you’ll normalize the secretion of natural oils and support the rejuvenation process. These natural oils form a barrier that protects your skin from dryness, and outside stressors: UV rays, pollution, and cold temperatures. If the barrier is damaged, you’ll be more prone to sunspots, wrinkles, and other symptoms of aging of the skin. If you use too much make-up and moisturizers, it interrupts normal skin cell renewal, which occurs every 28 days.  And your skin cells need renewal every month to look healthy. 

Dry skin is dry on the skin’s surface. The skin becomes dehydrated because there aren’t enough natural oils to keep moisture inside. Too much moisturizer means the skin stops producing its own natural oils, causing even drier skin--a vicious circle.

How to Effectively Skin-Fast

1. Wash your face gently at night and avoid excessive washing.

2. One night a week, don’t use any skin care products. This will help strengthen your skin’s recovery power. If you use moisturizer every day, your skin relies on it. Without moisturizer, the skin will begin to produce its own natural oils.
3. In the morning, wash your face using only water to keep the natural oils on your skin. Don’t use cleanser.

4. Skin-fast only once a week. Excessive fasting can cause drier skin. And skin-fasting can be applied to your body, too. The face is more affected because of sun exposure, make-up, and overuse of synthetic skincare and cleansers, but if you usually moisturize your body every day, your body’s skin will not produce natural oils.

6. Drink lots of water. Hydration is key to healthy skin. Eat healthily and be sure to get enough sleep while you’re skin-fasting. And even when you’re not!

7. Your room should have enough humidity, particularly in the winter.

8. Don’t skin-fast if you have any serious skin condition, or have had a recent chemical peel or face treatment.  When in doubt, consult a dermatologist.

Skin Fast Once a Week

What’s a great way to take care of your skin—take a break from your moisturizer—really!

Most of us are familiar with the concept of fasting, and the many benefits achieved by it. In case you don’t know, fasting is abstaining from all food, or sometimes allowing yourself nothing but small amounts of fruit juice or other flavored beverages. Fasting is thought to be beneficial as a preventative measure to increase overall health, vitality and resistance to disease. There are many reasons that fasting is a benefit to one’s health--including the elimination of toxins, repair to damaged organs and contributing to a longer life. This is because the anti-aging growth hormone is produced more efficiently during a fast. In fact, Hippocrates believed fasting enabled the body to heal itself.  With this in mind, it’s logical that the same applies to your skin.

So, what exactly is “skin-fasting?” It’s as simple as sleeping without moisturizer just one night a week!  Our skin has an inherent ability to take care of itself. In fact, it is common for pimples and other skin conditions like eczema to clear up faster when a person fasts. In fact, you may see evidence of toxins leaving your body in the form of a blemish. The purpose of skin-fasting is to strengthen the skin’s natural protective barrier that is weakened by excessive cleansing (particularly with synthetic ingredients) or excessive nourishing, to normalize the secretion of natural oils and support the natural rejuvenation process. This natural barrier protects your skin not only from dryness, but also from any other outside stressors, like UV rays, pollution, and cold temperatures. With weakened skin protection, you’ll be more prone to sunspots, wrinkles, sagging or other skin-aging symptoms. You become more dependent on products that provide hydration, as well as oils, skin care aids and makeup. This lessens your skin’s natural maintenance system. Overuse of make-up and moisturizers interrupts the normal skin cell renewal, which occurs every 28 days.

The Japanese have studied the skin’s monthly regeneration and have proved that ‘skin-fasting’ will improve your skin’s condition and detoxify skin impurities. Dry skin is dry on the skin’s surface. The moisture inside the skin becomes dehydrated because there’s not enough protection (natural oils) to keep the moisture inside. With too much added artificial moisturizers, the skin ceases to produce its own natural oils. This leads to even drier skin. 

How to Effectively Skin-Fast

1. Wash your face gently at night. Of course it’s important to clean off make-up, but excessive washing can remove ceramide or the NMF (natural moisture factor) by breaking the natural protective barrier, resulting in dry or sensitive skin.

2. Try sleeping one night a week without any skin care products. This will help strengthen your skin’s recovery power. If you use moisturizer every day, it makes your skin become lazy, because it doesn’t have to produce natural oils on its own. Without moisturizer, the skin will begin to produce natural oils without relying on moisturizer.
3. In the morning, wash your face gently, using only water.  There is no need to use face wash or cleanser. Just use lukewarm water to keep the natural oils on your skin.

4. Skin-fast only once a week. Excessive fasting can cause drier skin, so do it once or twice a week at most. Skin-fasting can be applied to your body, too. Generally the face is more affected because of sun exposure, make-up, and overuse of synthetic skincare and harsh cleansers, but if you usually moisturize your body every day, your skin might be in a lazy mode as well. Why not skin-fast on your body, too?

6. Remember that hydration is key to the health of your skin.  Drink plenty of water, eat healthily and be sure to get enough sleep while you’re skin-fasting. Or even when you’re not!

Skin-Fasting Do’s & Don’ts

• Do make sure that your room has the proper humidity and is not too dry, particularly in the winter.

• Don’t skin-fast if you have atopic skin or any other serious skin condition, or have had a recent chemical peel or face treatment.  When in doubt, consult a dermatologist.

• Don’t skin-fast if you’re not feeling well.

Do you know your skin type? It's important that you know. Here's a great simple way to find out. Place a tissue on your face. If it falls off your face just as soon as put in over your face, you have dry skin. If you put in on your face and lean over and it falls off, you've got normal skin. And if it doesn't fall off your face, even when you do lean over, you have oily skin. Choose your skin care products carefully.  Be sure that you are using moisturizers that are specific to your skin care needs.