What sugar does to your skin
Do you ever have a profound truth bomb drop on you that is so uncomfortable that you promptly grab the broom to sweep it deep into your the dark corners of your mind so it can be conveniently forgotten, like metric conversions or trigonometry? I’ve been obsessed with skin beauty since I was a child and although the knowledge of skin glycation was discovered when I was still a wee lassie, I lived in happy oblivion until probably 20 or 30 years ago when I learned about it and promptly banished it to the aforementioned dark corners of my memory.
Glycation, discovered by Vincent Monnier and Anthony Cerami, is the process that happens when excess sugars in the body bind to proteins like collagen, forming harmful compounds that accelerate aging signs. (Source: www.skinceuticals.com). It make them stiff and non-pliable, and this stiffness contributes to skin not lying flat, but instead forming wrinkles. “When sugar molecules attach themselves to collagen and other skin-supporting proteins, the glycation process creates advanced glycation end-products, or A.G.E.s. A.G.E.s degrade collagen integrity, compromise its ability to self-repair, and cause these fibers to become weak and brittle. The result: visible signs of aging such as skin wrinkling and laxity.” (Source: www.skinceuticals.com).
Why would I not want to face this truth? Isn’t it good news that I am aware of a major contributor to wrinkles and can thwart it before it affects my skin? Yeeeeaah, well…..this means I/we have to face our sugar consumption and THAT, dear reader, is uncomfortable for obvious reasons.
I’m not one of those “sugar is evil” people, looking to cut every molecule out, but I AM practical. Wrinkles are complex. In TCM we believe that they are evidence of repeated facial expressions as a result of emotions that have now become concretized on the face. Of course Father Time makes his contribution, too. So if I can’t stop Time and I want slower-forming wrinkles, I need to look at the things I CAN control, and one of those is sugar. I’m going to focus only on added sugars, however, not sugars that nature has wisely bound to fiber to slow absorption and vitamins, as occurs in fruit.
Some sources of sugar are surprising, such as alcoholic bevvies. Just say, “No way” to Rosé all day (6g sugar per glass and you know we’re not stopping at one). Ciders and cordials are at the top of the charts in sugar content. Many years ago I experimented with significantly reducing sugar in my diet and found a brilliant article that talked about what keeps sugar constantly in our systems and how to get rid of it. (I can’t find the article now). She said that the source of most of the constant sugar consumption that keeps us hooked is NOT in “sweet” foods such as desserts, it’s hidden sugar such as tomato sauces, ketchup, salad dressings, etc. and that before you go giving up all your sweet treats (which we all know is so hard), START by reducing HIDDEN sugars. It is much less painful. Once you’ve significantly reduced that, then start looking at obviously sweet foods.
I like to think that there are various unsavory levers in our personality and emotions we can use to achieve good things. For instance, sometimes I can lean into anger to get myself motivated or to take action on behalf of something righteous. While Vanity is one of the 7 Deadly Sins, it may be just the thing to help you reduce sugar intake. I can “meh” it all day when it comes to the other reasons to reduce sugar consumption, but INCREASED SKIN AGING AND LAXITY—-that can stop me in my tracks.
You know what? I’m going to do a couple more posts on sugar because Spleen Qi and Dampness are critical issues in TCM and in Beauty, which is why you’re here in the first place so let me give you a little extra value for your kindness of stopping by. Soon to come……mood swings and sugar…..sugar substitute issues…..what the heckins is Spleen Qi, Dampness and how do they contribute to prolapse of organs, muscle tone, and skin?