As a child, you were probably asked:
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Whenever someone asked me that question, my answer was immediate. I’d tell them, “I want to be a dermatologist!”
As young as 11 or 12, I was obsessive about my skin.
I’d wash my face every night before bed and again first thing in the morning. I’d steam my face and put on face masks.
I began amassing a huge collection of cleansers, creams, moisturizers, serums and toners.
All toxic of course. Haha. You don’t know til you know, right?
Later, in my early-20s and 30s, I started spending a fortune on high-end cosmetics, skin spas (my favorite was Face Place in West Hollywood), and even plastic surgery.
(I’ll share my plastic surgery nightmares with you soon.)
It took me years of (sometimes painful) trial and error to figure out what really makes skin healthy and beautiful.
And all this week, I’ll be sharing some of my best beauty and skincare tips with you.
Let’s start with a tip that might surprise you:
Get more sun!
Yep, that’s right. One of the best things you can do for your skin is to soak up more rays of beautiful sunshine.
As you may know, sunlight exposure is the main way your body produces vitamin D. In fact, vitamin D is also known as the “sunshine vitamin”!
Vitamin D helps regulate calcium for healthy bones, it helps regulate insulin levels, and it’s essential for maintaining a strong immune system.
But vitamin D is also a little-known skincare superstar.
That’s because vitamin D acts like a switch that tells your body to produce new skin cells. These fresh new skin cells then replace the outer layer of your skin that’s shed over time.
As a result, your skin looks brighter, clearer, and healthier.
Remember, our main source of vitamin D is sun exposure. But if you shun the sun, you’re not alone.
For years, I avoided the sun like I was part vampire. I’d slather my face with sunscreen every morning. I carried a sun umbrella when I walked outside. And I wore gloves while driving! I got NO sun.
And, yes, you should be careful about sun exposure. But don’t overdo like I used to do.
These days, I try to get at least 20-60 minutes of sun exposure per day, mostly on my arms and legs. (I often wear a hat and sunglasses to protect my face.)
You want to get sensible sun exposure but not to the point of burning. This point will be a bit different for everyone.
It’s the BURNING, not sun exposure itself that ages you and causes skin cancer. Get out of the sun or apply sunscreen before that happens.
Another source of vitamin D is your diet. Fatty fish like mackerel and salmon, mushrooms and egg yolks are all rich in vitamin D.
Note: I DON’T like vitamin D supplements - they’re a synthetic form of vitamin D. This does NOT work the same in the body. There are over 20 forms of vitamin D and you’re not getting them in a pill. If you do need to supplement, do cod liver oil for your vitamin D.
But whether you get it from sunshine or mealtime, make sure you’re getting adequate vitamin D.
This vitamin replenishes your skin, making it naturally softer and healthier.
Of course, just as you want to add things like vitamin D for more beautiful skin, there are other things you’ll want to avoid.
There’s one thing in particular you’ll want to avoid because it ages you up to 10x faster…
Trouble is, this one thing is everywhere (including your home). So avoiding it is almost impossible.
Fortunately, you CAN protect yourself against this one thing and stop it from aging you prematurely. I explain how in this short video:
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Whenever someone asked me that question, my answer was immediate. I’d tell them, “I want to be a dermatologist!”
As young as 11 or 12, I was obsessive about my skin.
I’d wash my face every night before bed and again first thing in the morning. I’d steam my face and put on face masks.
I began amassing a huge collection of cleansers, creams, moisturizers, serums and toners.
All toxic of course. Haha. You don’t know til you know, right?
Later, in my early-20s and 30s, I started spending a fortune on high-end cosmetics, skin spas (my favorite was Face Place in West Hollywood), and even plastic surgery.
(I’ll share my plastic surgery nightmares with you soon.)
It took me years of (sometimes painful) trial and error to figure out what really makes skin healthy and beautiful.
And all this week, I’ll be sharing some of my best beauty and skincare tips with you.
Let’s start with a tip that might surprise you:
Get more sun!
Yep, that’s right. One of the best things you can do for your skin is to soak up more rays of beautiful sunshine.
As you may know, sunlight exposure is the main way your body produces vitamin D. In fact, vitamin D is also known as the “sunshine vitamin”!
Vitamin D helps regulate calcium for healthy bones, it helps regulate insulin levels, and it’s essential for maintaining a strong immune system.
But vitamin D is also a little-known skincare superstar.
That’s because vitamin D acts like a switch that tells your body to produce new skin cells. These fresh new skin cells then replace the outer layer of your skin that’s shed over time.
As a result, your skin looks brighter, clearer, and healthier.
Remember, our main source of vitamin D is sun exposure. But if you shun the sun, you’re not alone.
For years, I avoided the sun like I was part vampire. I’d slather my face with sunscreen every morning. I carried a sun umbrella when I walked outside. And I wore gloves while driving! I got NO sun.
And, yes, you should be careful about sun exposure. But don’t overdo like I used to do.
These days, I try to get at least 20-60 minutes of sun exposure per day, mostly on my arms and legs. (I often wear a hat and sunglasses to protect my face.)
You want to get sensible sun exposure but not to the point of burning. This point will be a bit different for everyone.
It’s the BURNING, not sun exposure itself that ages you and causes skin cancer. Get out of the sun or apply sunscreen before that happens.
Another source of vitamin D is your diet. Fatty fish like mackerel and salmon, mushrooms and egg yolks are all rich in vitamin D.
Note: I DON’T like vitamin D supplements - they’re a synthetic form of vitamin D. This does NOT work the same in the body. There are over 20 forms of vitamin D and you’re not getting them in a pill. If you do need to supplement, do cod liver oil for your vitamin D.
But whether you get it from sunshine or mealtime, make sure you’re getting adequate vitamin D.
This vitamin replenishes your skin, making it naturally softer and healthier.
Of course, just as you want to add things like vitamin D for more beautiful skin, there are other things you’ll want to avoid.
There’s one thing in particular you’ll want to avoid because it ages you up to 10x faster…
Trouble is, this one thing is everywhere (including your home). So avoiding it is almost impossible.
Fortunately, you CAN protect yourself against this one thing and stop it from aging you prematurely. I explain how in this short video: