Happy skin, happy hair, happy me!

Yea, inner beauty is important, but lets be honest - outer beauty is kinda a big deal...

Hair, skin, nails - besides our figure, us women have a lot to worry about when it comes to beauty. If you are anything like me, you've got a stockpile of creams, lotions, conditioners, scrubs, masks, toners - and the list goes on of various beautifying products. And despite the economic crisis, sales of such beauty products has not decreased, but rather increased! 

Women and their beauty products -
transcending decades, if not centuries.

"What is surprising, however, is a spending phenomenon called the “lipstick effect,” which is a cute way of describing how women surprisingly spend more on beauty products during recessions. For example, did you know that L’Oréal was one of the few companies to experience growth in 2008? When all other sectors were approaching rock bottom, the beauty market was actually thriving." -Fashion Magazine, June 20th 2012


On top of the products themselves, I pay upwards of $75-100 for a deep-cleaning facial when I feel like I can afford the luxury - and I won't even start on the waxing, pedicure, and hair appointments. And despite all of this, in the past few weeks it seems as though my teen years have had a renaissance on my face with a blemish or three, everyday feels like a bad hair day, and my skin is drier than normal.

The conclusions I came to was that, despite all the products us women buy, most women (myself included!) are neglecting the most basic form of beauty care out there: Our diet! Right along side all those magazine advertisements and articles highlighting our new favorite beauty products, there are dozens of articles telling us how what we eat can has a substantial effect on our skin, hair, and overall glow.

Best foods for your hair!

Most detox diets are designed to cleans the inner organs and digestive system, but my plan now is to try a new kind of detox - this time focused on cleansing my skin, hair, and nails (from the inside out)!

Here are the basics:

Best foods for healthy hair:

• Salmon (and other fatty fishes)
• Dark green vegetables (think spinach, kale, broccoli)
• Nuts
• Oysters
• Carrots
• Eggs
• Bananas
• Yams

You can wear it AND eat it!

Best food for healthy skin:

• Yellow and orange fruits and vegetables (also red bell peppers!)
• Blueberries and pomegranates
• Tomatoes
• Legumes
• Nuts (especially walnuts and almonds!)
• Salmon (and other fatty fishes)
• Olive oil

Many of the same foods are found on both lists, and most foods I like. Oysters, however, I will have to pass on, and legumes I find difficult to enjoy. Even so, I will try to incorporate at least 3-4 of these foods into each day, and at least one from each list in every meal.

Also:

• Green tea every morning + 1 small cup of coffee at some point in the morning. Dermatologists are increasingly agreeing that caffeine is beneficial for skin, especially with regard to calming redness.

• Body scrub twice a week!
• I'm using the olive body scrub from The Body Shop

• Natural hair mask twice a week!
• 1) Eggs! That's right, eggs are excellent for your hair. And in fact, eggs + mashed bananas makes a great hair mask - add a little bit of water and let sit for 20-30 minutes. Then shampoo out.
• 2) Avocado mask: Avocados + 2 tablespoons olive oil + dash of honey - leave on for 20 minutes, then shampoo out.

• All natural face mask twice a week, recipes found here: http://beauty.about.com/od/skinflaws/a/facemasks.htm

• A LOT of water - I don't drink sodas, and rarely drink juice, so this shouldn't be a problem. Even so, I'm going to up my H2O intake like it's my job!

• SPF everyday. I'm guilty of often "forgetting" to put on sunscreen -or at the very least, a daycream with SPF - as I run out the door in the morning. 

Check back in two weeks to hear about my results!

Not only is it better for the body,
but a healthy diet is the cheapest beauty remedy there is!