In the last few years, diet as a big contributor of ageing, is making news! In fact, it’s not just about what is in your food, it is also about how your food is prepared and how and when you eat that food!

To get to that we have to learn a new concept today fittingly called, AGE! – AGE stands for advanced glycation end products, which can cause skin pigmentation, collagen breakdown as well  as reduce skin collagen regeneration, skin sagging, skin wrinkling,  dull skin and skin thinning – literally, all of the features that define skin ageing and loss of skin’s youthfulness. The AGE’s carry this out by binding to specific receptions called RAGEs which then begin the cycle of destruction, inflammation and skin damage.

But where do these AGE’s even come from?

AGE’s can occur in the body naturally as a normal outcome of physiological ageing. They usually start around the mid 30s.  But they can also occur in an exaggerated way due to sun exposure, which we discussed in detail in the last 2 episodes. These are what we would call as endogenous AGEs (Endogenous simply means produced within the body!) Endogenous AGEs can also be produced by a high sugar diet.

Of all the enemies of youth, sugar in the diet seems to be high on the list.Several studies have demonstrated that a lower sugar intake gives a healthier, youthful appearance. So if you are looking at healthy skin, keep the sugar low, Sugar apart, if you are looking at specific recommendations, a diet high in olives, vegetables and legumes like peas and beans have been studied to slow down ageing. In contrast, red meat, butter and dairy have been shown to speed up ageing.

Also, it is not just what you eat, it is also how your food is cooked that is important. In contrast to the endogenous AGEs we just discussed, exogenous AGEs can be created by cooking processed such as deep frying, roasting, grilling, and simply by prolonged heating of food! Barbecued, Toasted and seared food are also high in AGE. Cooking methods like poaching, steaming, boiling and stewing are recommended over grilling and roasting, as a better way to retain the nutrients in diet, and also to prevent harmful glycation products.

As the third point, timing of when you have your food matters a lot. Skipping breakfast and eating late into the night, are both associated with increased insulin resistance, which is associated with hair loss, skin dullness, ageing of muscle with associated sarcopenia and sagging, and so on. The best way to have food to reduce insulin resistance to promote skin youth, is to have a big breakfast on time, and have an early dinner – basically avoid all carbs and sugar after 6 pm! Reduce overall fat and sugar content in diet for youthfulness.

How effective are antioxidants in preventing ageing? Antioxidants are great for giving a headstart to prevent ageing, especially for micronutrients which are not easily available in foods, however, the best way is to have a combination of both diet and supplements for sustainable antiageing. Vitamin C, for example is very easily absorbed from fruits than from supplements. On the other hand, we may have to consume more than a few cups of of tea before we get all the polyphenols and flavonoids we read about.

It is not just diet, but also dietary habits like consumption of alcohol that make an impact on ageing. Studies on twins have shown that the twin who consumed less alcohol appeared younger than the other twin!

There is one big catch though, for nutrition to work as an effective promoter of skin health, consistency is the key feature. With so much enticing junk, processed food options, and not having enough time to plan for meals, or prepare meals, makes nutrition a big challenge to over come on a daily basis. With so much going on in our lives, all asking for a slice of our time, how do we prioritize nutrition?

The idea is to see nutrition not as an essential chore, but as a part of self care. Unless the habit of eating healthy become automated, it will always look like an external effort. Meal planning, shopping per plan, cooking per plan all need to be thought through, before you can make healthy eating a regular routine!