So now you know that I great skin wasn’t something I was born with. I wish! Lol

You also know from Part 1 that breakouts on certain parts of your face potentially indicate that the corresponding organs in your body are not functioning at its best. Kindda’ scary, since it was true in my case.

Y’know how there are different formulas, products and schools of thought when it comes to good skin? Sadly, I’ve learnt that there’s not one that applies to all; since each individual is different, so if you’re looking for a permanent fix for your skin – good luck! You’ll have to keep searching and experimenting until you find one that’s right for you; and if your skin is anything like mine, it won’t be a simple journey. Lol

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-are-some-ways-to-prevent-pimples.ht

So I’ve tried different skincare products, ranging from cheap to expensive. I’ve also tried different types of “diets”, supplements, mineral makeup options, bla bla bla.

What’s the verdict?

After different detox, health and lifestyle adjustment experiments since my last surgery in 2010, this is what I’ve learnt:

1) The “inside out” theory

Good skin comes from inside out. Since our skin is a mirror of our internal health, you’ll need to make sure your body is clean so that it reflects just that on your skin.

Refer to the face map and get a full medical check. If there’s something wrong, you’ll want to know before it’s too late.

2) Habits – water

While there's no substitute for water, the rules to great skin are the same as having a great body. You’ll need to adopt the right habits.

In my second installment of the “How to get a beach ready body in 28 days” series, I shared my daily routine with you, together with the answer to these common questions:

3) Habits - sleep

Did you know that the best time to be asleep (not go to sleep, meaning you’ll need to head to bed earlier than that) is from 10pm to 2am? During that time (also known as the “regenerative sleep” period), our blood circulation is concentrated on the liver; and this is when the liver neutralizes and breaks down the toxins accumulated in our body throughout the day.

The bad news it that if you’re not asleep from 10pm to 2pm, your liver cannot do its job; so technically:

If you’re asleep by 10pm, you’ll have 4 full hours to detoxify your body
If you’re asleep by 11am, you have 3 hours; and so on (you get the idea)
Sleep after 2pm and you’ll miss the boat. Keep doing this and you’ll live to regret the compounded effects. No joke.

I was sharing this with #babybaby and he asked a rather interesting question:

“How does your body know what time it is, especially in different time zones around the world?”

Interestingly enough, our brain plays host to an internal clock that regulates our sleep, and it’s called the pineal gland. The pineal gland receives information about the sun through our eyes via the optic nerve. As the sun sets, the pineal gland is able to sense the change in light transmitted through your eyes and it begins to secrete a hormone – melatonin – to prepare our body for sleep. [Quoted from Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary]

4) Habits - stress management

From acne, eczema, hives, rosacea, psoriasis, alopecia (hair loss), vitiligo (depigmented white spots on the skin), etc. studies have shown that in many ways, our mind and skin are intimately intertwined.

Go ahead and Google "psychodermatology”.

Take acne, for example. When you are tense, your body releases stress hormones including cortisol, which may increase the skin's oil production, making you prone to pimples. [Quoted from Dr. Karen Mallin]

Spend some time in discovering an effective stress management technique that works for you (read more here) and incorporate that in your daily routine. I’ve found prayer/meditation to be very effective, not to mention free.

5) Food

Our body is designed to heal and repair itself. Nevertheless we need to feed it with the right raw materials so that it can do its job effectively and efficiently. There’s a long list of vitamins, minerals and nutrients that our human body requires on a daily basis…

…but fact is, is this even realistic?

Tell me, how could anyone possibly commit to eating (let alone afford in terms of $ and waistline) 5 cups of spinach, 5-4 ounces of salmon, 2.5 whole avocados, 1 cup of strawberries, 5 ounces of cheddar cheese, 10 cups of broccoli and Brussels sprouts, 1.5 ounces of cashew nuts, 24 spears of asparagus, 1 cup of black beans, 2 medium baked potatoes, 3 ounces of beef, half a cup of red peppers, 3 cups of yoghurt, quarter ounce of cooked liver, 4 cups of brown rice, 1.5 cups of pineapple, and a list of 20 to 30 other foods EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Crazy. Some people are able to do it, but that's another story.

Unfortunately, due to the 21st century lifestyle, cost and convenience, it would be impossible to give our body all it needs on a daily basis. Nevertheless, we can still do our best with a relatively balanced diet, while making up for the gaps with natural supplement. They key is to go natural (we’ll discuss on how to choose a natural supplement that’s right for you in another post).

http://www.helpguide.org/life/healthy_eating_diet.htm

You may also want to consider taking note of your food colours too. Yep.

“The more colors you have in your diet a day, the more kind of phytonutrients you’re getting, because each color is something specific. So blueberries are very specific for brains and skin, and citrus fruits are really good for the ears. And astaxanthin is really good for eyes and skin. So it’s important to get all those different colors in during the day — I call it your color IQ. So ask yourself how high can your color IQ be today? If you know you had 10 different colors in your fruits and vegetables, you’re doing well. ”

— Rebecca Adams

6) Skincare products

First, you need to know that most skincare products only help “mask” or provide superficial relief to the problem. Very few are capable of solving the actual problem.

Go back to the “inside out” theory (item #1 above) and sort your body out, but in the meantime, try and opt for products that have the least content of toxic ingredients (look at the whole list here).

Secondly, as much as you may be tempted to, don’t pile too much on your skin. Keep it simple.

Morning: Cleanse, tone and sun protection (sun block)
Night: Remove makeup, cleanse, tone and moisturize

A few people (including #babybaby) have questioned my use of sunblock, even when I’m indoors. Well, thanks to Hallie Levine Sklar, here are 6 common sun myths that you should know about this beauty must-have:

Myth #1: A suntan's fine, as long as you don't burn.
Myth #2: A beach umbrella blocks the sun.
Myth #3: Sun can't penetrate through windows.
Myth #4: Too much sunscreen causes vitamin D deficiency.
Myth #5: If it's cool or cloudy outside, you don't need sunscreen.
Myth #6: Eighty percent of sun damage occurs before the age of 18.

[Read the full article at http://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/10/living/guide-to-sun-safety/]

Finally, I don’t believe on spending ridiculous amounts of $$$ on skincare. In the many years of experimenting, I’ve spent anywhere between RM8 to RM400 on a cleanser, and to be honest I didn’t notice a difference between the regular cleansers and the premium ones (other than the fact that the latter caused a bigger damage to my pocket). Nevertheless, like everything, there are exceptions, and if you’ve found an expensive one that works for you (and you can afford it), by all means keep to it.

Take time to experiment with different products (keeping a journal will help you keep track) and find a combination that works for you. Mine costs no more than an average of RM50 (~USD16) a month so I can’t say that I’m not happy. *laugh*

Remember, no amount/cost of skincare products can give you the lasting effects of good skin if you don’t sort your body out first!

Hope this helps! :-D Mwah!

No, I don’t mean the taking-off-your-clothes kind of naked. Lol

I’m talking about stripping-your-skin-of-all-the-makeup kind of naked.

As a woman, I’m so used to that comforting coat of "paint" on my face, that I sometimes feel so strangely naked without makeup.

http://www.homezweethome.info/2011_08_01_archive.htm

I remember the days where I couldn’t bear to think about leaving home without makeup. Saying it was because of the work I used to do (TV hosting, commercial/print shoots etc) would be a lame excuse. *laugh* Truth is, I didn’t have the best skin, and that made me feel really inferior. Somehow, masking my bad skin with makeup gave me the confidence boost I so badly needed.

Then in the eventful year of 2010, I decided to go through a detox. I don’t remember breaking out so badly and continuously in my entire life! Not even during puberty. *laugh*

While Wall St. saw a list of mega-mergers that same year, I was experiencing the phenomenon on my face! It was so bad that I would have a ‘merger’ of 3-4 septic pimples on my chin and cheeks; so much so that a guy standing in line behind me at the airport immigration actually asked:

Baru kena accident ka?

So malu.

Anyway, to cut the long story short, I eventually discovered that our face mirrors of our internal health.

http://myflpbiz.com/esuite/home/balanstherapie/Story.htm

"Our skin can reflect what's going on inside our body," says dermatologist Anne Chapas, M.D., of Union Square Laser Dermatology in New York City. "As part of the immune system, the skin defends against environmental factors. But when your body is fighting an ailment, it can get overwhelmed and things like acne and redness can show up." [http://www.today.com/id/45361636/ns/today-today_health/t/check-mirror-sickness-shows-your-face/#.UzVGMtwuxG4]

So I decided to do a medical check up and guess what the doctor discovered?

Stones in my kidneys, problems with my liver, colon, stomach… the whole works.

Some of you may remember the surgery I underwent to remove a cancerous ovarian cyst later that year.

I didn’t know I was sooooooo sick inside my body. Clocking in 3-4 hours of daily sleep for the last decade prior to that didn’t help, but fact was, I was oblivious to my health. I took for-granted the fact that being young (at that time) meant I didn’t have to jaga my body as much. I mean, after all, I didn’t feel like there was anything wrong with my body. I obviously got it all wrong.

And, I suffered the consequences. Boo-hoo.

But ever since, I’ve been more aware and diligent about what I eat, how much water I drink, how much sleep I clock in, how much exercise I get, how positive I am, etc. Yes, the combination of ALL that makes the difference, and I notice it very significantly in my skin.

I’ll talk about my skincare regime in my next beauty blog post, but for now, I’d like to share a new personal discovery on a natural drink that was first scientifically researched over 100 years ago by Nobel Prize winner, Elie Metchnikoff .

Okay, compared to that, I’m a bit lambat la, but better late than never; and I’d love to dedicate this post to my supermum who never fails to impress me with her natural home remedies.

Mum was the one who introduced me to this simple yet powerful source of probiotics called kefir [pronounced “kuh-feer”], a.k.a. the “magic/miracle milk”.

Basically, our immune system is like the gatekeeper to good health, and probiotics help fortify these gates against diseases.

Ooooo~ Sounds so canggih right? Lol

Anyway, kefir helps to regulate our immune system and can potentially be our colon’s best friend.

It’s a yoghurt-like drink/food; although many times stronger with more enzymes and friendly bacteria as compared to yoghurt.

Who can benefit from kefir:

Babies (kefir is an excellent and nutritious food for babies)
People experiencing digestive disorders, constipation and flatulence (kefir has a cleansing effect on the whole body)
People on antibiotics
Patients suffering from AIDS, chronic fatigue syndrome, herpes, and cancer (kefir is the strongest natural antibiotics without the side effects and contributes to a healthy immune system)
Patients suffering from sleep disorders, depression and ADHD (kefir is said to have a tranquilizing effect on the nervous system)
People with unhealthy food cravings
People who want to shave unwanted weight faster (kefir helps utilize carbohydrates, fats and proteins for cell growth, maintenance and energy; speeds up the your body’s metabolism)
People with allergies and skin problems (kefir has antifungal properties to promote healing of various dermatological issues)

Besides regulating cholesterol/blood sugar levels and having the capabilities of stopping the growth of cancer cells, the benefits of kefir are endless. Make an effort to find out more about it, but in the meantime, here’s what mum taught me – How to DIY homemade kefir in my kitchen :-D:

1) First, you will need a live “starter” which is also called kefir “grains”.

These active grains contain the bacteria/yeast mixture clumped together with casein (milk proteins) and complex sugars. They look like pieces of coral or small clumps of cauliflower and range from the size of a grain of wheat to that of a hazelnut.

Kefir grains are naturally occurring in nature and they cannot be made. I got my kefir grains from mum, but I believe you can also buy them in local health shops and online.

Once you have the grains, you can keep reproducing them forever.

2) Place the kefir grains into a glass jar and pour fresh milk into it; then cover with a cloth (it needs to breathe to reproduce)

3) Leave at room temperature (away from direct sun) for 24-48 hours to allow the fermentation to take place

4) After 24-48 hours, use a wooden spoon and give it a good mix; then use a plastic strainer to strain the contents of the glass jar.

Technically, we should avoid using anything “metal” because it reacts with kefir, but since I don’t have a plastic strainer and wooden spoon at hand, I’m using these for illustration purposes.

5) Transfer the remaining grains from the strainer back into the glass jar and repeat process #2, #3, #4 and #5 for your next batch.

You can share your grains with your family/friends like how mum passed me some of hers to get mine started.

6) You can drink the strained kefir as it is (it’s a sour and a somewhat “smoked” version of plain yoghurt) or mix it with your favourite fruits/flavours.

I like mine with a teaspoon of Ribena and black cherry jam. Yum!

[If you’re lactose intolerant, you can try the non-milk version – water kefir.]

Hope that helps! I’ll share my simple formula to healthy skin in my next health and beauty post, so stay tuned; but in the meantime, big Panda hugs from #babybaby and I! Mwah!!!!

Look great naked (Part 2): 6 Must-know’s for great skin