Apparently sugar, especially too much of it, can actually cause premature skin aging.
Sugar molecules in our bloodstreams attach to protein molecules. The new molecules formed are called advanced glycation end-products, or AGEs. AGEs damage collagen in skin, cartilage, and ligaments and promote a loss of elasticity. Skin becomes dry, saggy, and wrinkles form. Ack.
And sugar has even more power when it comes to our skin. The type of collagen you have determines how resiliant our skin is. The most abundant collagens in the skin are types I, II, and III, with type III being the most stable and longest lasting. Glycation transforms type III collagen into type I, which is more fragile.
AGEs also mess with your body's natural antioxidant enzymes, leaving you more vulnerable to sun damage — which is still the number one cause of skin aging.
So if you are beginning to see more wrinkles than you care to on your face, you probably need to work on cutting some sugar out of your daily diet.
To cut back on sugar and improve sugar damage to our skin, experts give this advice:
Try and keep sugar to 10% of your total calories, which is roughly 10 teaspoons f added sugar ( think one 12 oz. can of soda ). Check for hidden sugar in food by reading labels. Sugars will be listed by grams under total carbohydrates on a food label. Take that number and divide it by 4 (each teaspoon of sugar is equal to 4 grams ). So if sugars are listed at 12 grams, you will be getting 3 teaspoons of sugar in each serving.
Stay Away from High Fructose Syrup -- a common ingredient in breads,crackers,snacks,sodas, and fruit-flavored drinks. This type of sweetner is thought to produce more AGES than regular sugar.
Vitamins B1 and B6 fight AGES (yea!) so take at least 1 mg daily of each. B1 and B6 are plentiful in food, but taking a multivitamin — most of which deliver at least 1 mg of both Bs — ensures you're getting the daily value of 1.1 mg for B1 and 1.3 mg for B6 (1.5 mg after age 50).
Use a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 every day.
Antioxidants help keep sugar molecules from attaching to protein molecules ( causing AGES ), so repelnish those antioxidants constantly. Eat foods high in antioxidants like Walnuts, Cranberries, and Red Bell Peppers.
And you can apply antioxidants to your skin with vitamins C and E, and even apply some Green Tea! This is a great way to make sure those anioxidants reach the dermal layer of skin, where collagen and elastin are located.
And, lastly, skin exerts say using products that contain retinoids can help build new collagen. So look for retinol in serums and lotions that you buy over the counter.
Read the complete article on sugar and it's effects on skin here!