AVOID These 13 Foods If You Want YOUNGER Looking Skin!

Hey there viewers! Aging is a process that none of us enjoy. You may end up spending a lot of time and money on your skin, hoping to find the magic  combination of anti-aging products.

There are factors like stress, sun and smoking  which also contribute to speeding up aging. But did you know that apart from these, one of the  biggest contributors is bad and unhealthy foods. In today’s video we will tell you about 13  such foods that speed up the aging process.

From sugar, processed foods to certain meats,  we will tell about all of these and more. So stay tuned! Sugar: There is a reason it is on top of our list.

Sugar is the biggest aging contributing food. It interferes with collagen and elastin,  which are your skin’s favorite proteins. When sugar is broken down, it binds to collagen.

This binding to collagen can cause  wrinkles and sagging of the skin. Processed sugars are also metabolized faster in your body and can lead to high  insulin response in the blood. High blood sugar speeds up  your body’s ageing process, and is also responsible for  making your skin look wrinkly.

It also leads to weight gain,  making you look older than you are. It is better to keep away from sweets, candies,  chocolates with processed sugars and donuts. Dark chocolates are safe as long  as they’re without added sugars.

Energy Drnks: Energy drinks are loaded with refined  sugars, acids, and other harmful chemicals. They can damage your teeth, and your smile will  never be the same again, making you look older. They also contain high sodium and caffeine  content which lead to dehydration.

When you’re dehydrated, your  skin looks older and wrinkled. The high amount of sugar in these drinks is  also responsible for making you look older. Deep Fried Foods: Cooking foods at high temperatures  increases inflammatory compounds known as "advanced glycation end products"  or AGEs.

And yes, AGEs do indeed age you. They encourage oxidative stress and inflammation  in your body, which can speed up aging. High levels of AGEs in your body  has been linked to osteoporosis, neurodegeneration, heart disease,  stroke and other age-related diseases.

While some AGEs occur naturally in your body, increasing the load with deep fried  foods can accelerate their damage. To avoid them, try to cook the majority  of your foods at low temperatures. Eat wholesome, unprocessed  foods that aren’t deep fried.

This will allow your body to undergo its natural aging process rather than  throwing it into overdrive. Processed Meats: Processed meats like salami, bacon, and sausages  have become an integral part of daily diet. But they can really speed up the aging process.

This is due to the presence of preservatives and sulphites in these meats which are pro  inflammatory, making you look older. Additionally, the high amounts of salt in these processed meats boosts your water  retention and makes you look puffy. Processed meats also contain nitrates and other  compounds which are known to be pro-inflammatory.

Inflammation causes aging from the inside out. The saturated fat in these meats is  responsible for aging of your heart. You can replace processed meats with  lean meats such as chicken and turkey.

Or simply load up on more greens  instead for slowing down aging. Fast Foods: Your much loved fast foods like  pizza, hamburgers and French fries, don’t do you any favours in the aging department. They are loaded with harmful trans  fats which causes blockages within your arteries and results in  storage of fat in your body.

This makes your skin appear stiff and dull. Trans fats also reduce the fluidity of  your cells, put a burden on the liver and exert an inflammatory effect within your body  leading to older, stiffer, and more wrinkled skin. You can replace the unhealthier  versions of these fast foods with healthier versions like meatless  pizzas, quinoa burgers and baked fries.

Vegetable Oils: Vegetable oils like canola and soybean, are highly  processed and can lead to damaged cell membranes. This fastens ageing process and leaves you  with an increased risk of heart disease. Vegetable oils are also rich in trans  fats which promote inflammation, making your skin more vulnerable to UV damage.

A weakened skin barrier can lead to  hyperpigmentation and sunspot galore. Since vegetable oils are used on a  regular basis, their risks are increased. You can opt for healthier options like coconut and  olive to avoid harmful effects of vegetable oil.

Alcohol: Alcohol affects the functioning of your liver  the body's number-one detoxifying organ. When the liver is damaged or slowed in  its ability to function well and flush toxins from your system, the effects like acne,  wrinkles and sallowness are visible on your skin. Alcohol consumption can also prevent  you from entering into the deepest, most restorative stages of sleep which  is necessary for replenishing your skin.

When you're skimping on sleep, your skin  misses out on important repair time and the results are visible with effectively older  looking skin, dark circles and puffy eyes. You can replace heavy alcohol with light  beer and red wine, but don’t do it everyday. Spicy Foods: Spicy foods can aggravate skin conditions like  rosacea, and can even damage your skin further.

This is because they dilate your blood vessels,  leading to a more blotchy-looking complexion. Spicy foods can also make your skin look older  by causing broken capillaries or spider veins, puffiness, and permanent redness. Spider veins can be tricky and expensive  to treat, and apart from expensive laser or intense pulsed light procedures,  there's not a lot you can do about them.

The only way you can avoid spicy  food related flare ups is if you avoid it completely and opt  for mild or non spicy food. Carbohydrates or Wheat: Carbs and wheat products are converted  to sugar if you do not use them. This results in high blood sugar.

Not only will this lead to wrinkled skin, it could also lead to weight gain which  will make you look and feel older. Always try to keep your carbs in check — and  unless you need the energy for a workout, it’s best to grab fresh veggies  or grilled chicken to munch on. Salty Foods: Foods with too much salt in them lead to  an excess amount of sodium in your blood.

This, in turn causes water  retention in your body and the skin. This makes you feel bloated and makes  your skin look puffy, tired and aged. High-salt foods also cause dehydration.

They are also known to damage the DNA, by shortening the telomeres,  which accelerates ageing. This is the reason why most detox  diets involve little to no salt. Sodium is important for the body, but can wreak havoc for your skin and  health, if consumed in high quantities.

So always try to keep your  salt intake to a minimum. Dred Fruits: Dred fruits are loaded with sugars  which tend to get stuck in your teeth. And when sugar sticks to  your teeth, bacteria forms, causing discoloration and eventually  plaque and cavities if it's not removed.

This can make you look older than you are. They are also high in sulfites, which preserve  food but are not all that great for your skin. Sulfites increase free radicals which impede  collagen growth making your skin older.

So opt for whole fresh fruit instead. If nothing but dried apricots will do, brush your  teeth right after eating, or chew sugarless gum. Rice Cakes: Rice cakes are usually considered to be healthy food but they are not  as healthy as they seem to be.

They have a glycemic index of  more than 70 which is considered very high and are broken down by  your body the same way as sugar. Excessive levels of sugar in your body can deplete  collagen, exacerbating the signs of ageing. So try and go easy on those rice cakes next time.

Margarine: For a long time, margarine was  touted as a better choice than butter because of its lower saturated fat content. But it has been found that people who regularly  consumed heavy amounts of margarine had more wrinkles than those who ate less due to the  presence of harmful polyunsaturated fats. These polyunsaturated fats  tend to increase inflammation, leading to an increase in oxidative stress.

This damages your body's organs,  including the skin leading to a dry, dull appearance and the formation of wrinkles. Avoid margarine and opt for small  amounts of real butter instead. Do you eat a lot of these foods?

Are there any we missed? Let us know in the comments section below.