Why Organic Skin care and how can it benefit the skin?
By guest writer Kristen Leigh, Aesthetics and Cosmetology

With " Organic" being a trending word, often times we get confused on what does Organic actually mean.

If I buy Organic Skin Care, how do I know if the products are Organic and why would it be better for my skin? These are great questions that come up often. Let us talk about Organic for your skin and how to know what you are buying is really Organic.

Growing up in a small town, my family was fortunate enough to grow many of the wonderful vegetables and fruits we loved. This truly is a great thing to have access to fresh, whole food. Now a days, farming has changed so it is no surprise that you hear about Organic Farming more and more due to the growing amount of pesticides and synthetic seeds that have made their way into our food source.

In simple terms, Organic means grown without chemical fertilizers and pesticides. With the Genetically Modified Seeds being a controversial issue many are also looking for the NON GMO certified label as their are currently no requirements for food to state if they were grown from GMO seeds. For skin care products the ingredients should show they are grown from Organic and Biodynamic Farms and the best way to ensure your products are Organic it is best to look for certifications such as USDA Organic, NON GMO verified, Demeter and Biokontroll.

When using Organic Skin care, it is similar to that of eating healthy Organic foods, the high content of nutrients, minerals, enzymes and fatty acids help to correct skin conditions while promoting overall skin health. With no water added to the products, you are able to gain quicker results with instant skin recognition of the vitamins from organic all grown plants and herbs. All Organic skin care should be free of chemicals, parabens, Phthalates, SLS, Propelyne Glycol and never tested on Animals.

With skin care products not being regulated by the FDA , the consumer must be their own advocate in choosing healthy skin care and cosmetics. I believe in avoiding harsh chemicals & synthetics that are not beneficial to the skin while also being toxic to our body and endocrine system. When treating skin conditions with Organic based skin care products you are not only correcting skin ailments, you will be preventing aging and onset of further conditions. Correction is not enough when you are trying to improve skin issues as you must also be targeting the root cause.

Stay tuned in our next blog for more information on specific Organic Ingredients and how they relate to certain skin conditions. One of my favorite ingredients to use in my skin care practice is topical Probiotic Care for protecting the skin barrier, acne correction and calming inflammation.

Healthy, Beautiful Skin: What it Takes to Glow

We are constantly bombarded with messages about our skin. From healing embarrassing bouts of acne, to increasing collagen for more glow and elasticity, warnings to fight the aging process, beware of the sun, minimize your pores, and the list goes on and on.

These messages encourage you to "fix" your skin by using products and/or drugs that are laden with harmful ingredients and toxins. This mis-information can come from sources with less-than-altruistic motives: to sell products. It's important that we educate ourselves about skin from sources we can count on. At Healing Arts, we believe skin health starts from within, so we support your skin health from the inside out.

We find skin is truly incredible. It’s the largest organ in the body and has too many important functions to count. It regulates temperature, protects the internal organs, helps the body flush out toxins, turns sunlight into vital vitamin D, keeps us hydrated, and acts as a barrier against attacking micro-organisms. Most people look at the skin and believe it functions independently from the rest of the body. They assume it's more like a shield that protects us. That implies that damage comes from external sources, and therefore must be fixed from the outside. This, however, isn't the case. Our body works as a whole - like one intricate machine, and all the parts are interconnected. The skin is just as important to your health as your heart, liver, and brain, and what makes it extra special is its ability to show us when there is something off balance.

And that’s just where we find the typical issues with skin originate: some function or system in the body has been thrown off balance. Toxins and lifestyle are two factors that affect this balance. Harmful toxins activate the immune system where the white blood cells can attack these toxins and increase inflammation.

Here at Healing Arts, we see many toxins affecting the heath of the skin stemming from food, chemicals (that are most likely in your skin care products), heavy metals, bacterial infections, and viral infections. If your toxin intake is consistent, inflammation in the body will be constant and your skin will visibly react as a cry for help.

Our skin is the largest detox organ and these toxins have to go somewhere, as they don't belong in the body. So all these skin conditions (acne, psoriasis, dermatitis, eczema, rosacea, hyper-pigmentation) are simply a way for the body to tell us somethings off balance on the inside.

We see a lot of clients who feel stuck with there skin issues as they they feel that have tried everything else. Nutriton response testing picks up on a cellular level what's affecting the body form healthy function and causing these unwanted skin issues. We help the body to open its Natural detox pathways so this toxins can be elimanted and you start to heal.

With the detox pathways supported, the second contributor to skin health comes down to what we put in our body; we truly are what we eat. Food is our body’s way to feed, nourish and grow, so if we consume a diet high in sugar, highly processed foods, sodas, and poor quality meat, we create cells that are unable to function and throw the body out of balance.

So what can we eat to support skin health? Think back to a diet similar to that of our ancestors, eating whole food, organic produce, grass feed organic meats, and good quality fats and carbohydrates in moderation. Cut out the sugar and processed food and you'll likely start to see your skin come back to life.

Guidelines for healthy skin:
1. Incorporate greens - they are high in many micro nutrients as well as anti-inflammatory flavonoids that will help the skin heal.
2. Good quality fat - the fat you eat helps regulate energy, processes fat soluble vitamins, and is needed for every cell to function.
3. Increase water consumption - helps the body detox and keeps your cells hydrated so they can function correctly.
4. Include spices and herbs - they increase blood flow and circulation, are packed with vitamins and minerals, fight inflammation, and improve your body’s ability to fight free radicals.
5. Fermented foods - feed your body amazing probiotics to help balance the good and bad bacterias in the gut, and in turn aiding digestion and decreasing bad bacterial growth.

When it comes down to it, your skin is capable of regenerating itself and healing. You can get back that youthful glow and eradicate your skin issues. Detox support and a wholesome diet are the keys to healthy skin