Blood Sugar and Aging Skin
Our lifestyle choices impact the quality of our skin. Past writings have taught us that inflammation, microbiome imbalance, and oxidative damage can set the stage for unwanted outcomes like acne, dermatitis, skin cancers, and accelerated aging. This week we learn how blood sugar issues also impact the health of our skin. The information is inspired by Dr. Trevor Cates, author of Clean Skin From Within: The Spa Doctor’s 2-Week Program to Glowing, Naturally Youthful Skin.
Under most conditions, our body prefers to use glucose (AKA blood sugar) as its primary fuel choice (1). Pretty much everything we eat is turned into glucose and used for energy. If there is an excess of sugar in the blood, like occurs when we eat too much sugar and simple carbohydrates, the extra sugar can bind to the skin’s collagen and elastin, and accelerate signs of skin again; and this process is further stimulated by unprotected sun exposure (2). Sugar attaching to skin cells is termed glycation, and its end products, named advanced glycation end products (AGE’s), lead to less elastic and unhealthy skin (3). Glycation and AGE”s lead to thin, cracked, red skin, with less capability to heal, and more prone to wrinkles and aging. The literature also reveals that this process is very hard to reverse (4).
Glycation may be influenced partly by genetics, but it is more importantly influenced by lifestyle choices (5). This is good news because we have the power to influence glycation and its aging effects on the skin with the choices we make. When we eat sugar, processed foods, simple carbohydrates, alcohol, etc., sugar in our blood goes up and glycation is more likely to take place. How we prepare food also contributes because dry and high heat cooking leads to AGE formation. For example, poached or steamed chicken has a quarter the AGE formation compared to roasted or broiled chicken. Limit cooking methods like frying, broiling, grilling, and roasting and choose instead boiling, poaching, stewing, and steaming (6). It’s also recommended to add an acidic ingredient like lemon or vinegar to help reduce AGEs.
In addition to the age-accelerating effects of glycation, when our blood sugar rises, so does the hormone insulin. Insulin can cause acne breakouts by stimulating oil gland production and inflammation. In other metabolic pathways, too much blood sugar and glycation leads to inflammation which we know can trigger a host of other unhealthy skin issues.
A diet that is low in sugar is termed a ‘low glycemic diet.’ Low glycemic foods tend to have more fiber, are less processed, and less sweet. In the presence of fiber, blood sugar rises slowly, and this is a positive thing.
Glycemic Food Examples (7):
Low Glycemic Foods: Green vegetables, most fruits, raw carrots, kidney beans, chickpeas, lentils, and bran breakfast cereals
Medium Glycemic Foods: Sweet corn, bananas, raw pineapple, raisins, oat breakfast cereals, and multigrain, rye bread, and oat bran.
High Glycemic Foods: White rice, white bread, and potatoes
Thanks for reading,
Heather
Resources
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK560599/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20620757/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27224842/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19896301/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25701333/