Those damned little red marks that show up all over the human body..
The nasty little bastards that make life hell for so many teenagers and adults.
Why? Why do we have zits? Well, I know one thing about it, and it's related to the digestive system. When your stomach is over worked your body will look for other ways to expel and process waste. This has all sorts of effects on your physical health. It's no secret that what you eat deeply affects how you feel in all sorts of ways, both physical and mental.
Here's a fun fact: drinking cold beverages shocks your stomach and shuts down the digestive process. As it happens, drinking liquids with meals in any amount depletes your ability to digest. The reason for this is that liquids dilute your digestive juices. Luke warm water isn't necessarily bad, as water is always good for you, but drinking liquids before a meal (ideally by at least 1/2 an hour) makes the job of your digestive juices much easier, as they become unimpeded by excess liquids.
I rigidly followed a diet of proper digestion for about 3 months. I was testing out the way to do it, and because I'm already used to cooking all my meals at home and not eating out a lot, I was prepared to stock up and change what's in my fridge.
I separated proteins and carbohydrates into different meals. Protein takes the longest to digest, about 1.5 hours. I did my best to not even mix different proteins. I'd eat a meal of chicken and salad, or nuts and vegetables for lunch, then have pasta/potatoes with other greens at dinner. I stopped eating meat sandwiches, or meats in buns, or meat with potatoes. I wouldn't drink with meals, and would wait around 2 hours after meals to drink anything cold, which I continue to do most of the time without it being much of an issue.
After 2 weeks I noticed that I had no acne. None. It was gone. I don't have terrible acne as it is, but there's always blemishes of some kind showing up somewhere. They are persistent. But as my stomach was given a break, I ate no garbage food, and my stress was pretty low - I was clean. It was exciting!
Eating for proper digestion is difficult though. I've been gluten-free for years, and it's a lot easier to just avoid one thing than it is to revolutionize the whole approach to meals. Not to mention that I became really skinny. I'm already skinny! So I decided I would be less rigid about mixing proteins and carbohydrates. Eventually, my body adjusted, but the zits returned when I slipped back in to old habits.
Before long I was eating pizza and drinking beer with meals.
... just a lot less often.
I continue to be mindful of this method. It serves as an underlying thought in how I approach food. Really, when it comes to diet, I think that everyone kind of 'knows' what's good and what's not good. Junk food = bad, vegetables = good, raw food has many nutrients, cooked food is easy for the stomach to digest, etc.
It's good to give the stomach a break. Let yourself get hungry before you eat again (this is the thing that is most difficult for me - I love to taste things endlessly!) Your stomach works like any other muscle; it gets tired. Imagine you are exercising your arm all day long without a break. Even if you are not lifting weights and just going through the motions, your arm will get tired. This is how it is for your stomach if you 'graze' all day long. It needs to rest between 'jobs'.
To summarize this post; when your stomach cannot properly process what you put into it, the body will find another way to expel the waste/toxins. Acne is a sign that your body is unable properly digest and deal with what you're consuming.
Treat your stomach well, and your body will rejoice.
The nasty little bastards that make life hell for so many teenagers and adults.
Why? Why do we have zits? Well, I know one thing about it, and it's related to the digestive system. When your stomach is over worked your body will look for other ways to expel and process waste. This has all sorts of effects on your physical health. It's no secret that what you eat deeply affects how you feel in all sorts of ways, both physical and mental.
Here's a fun fact: drinking cold beverages shocks your stomach and shuts down the digestive process. As it happens, drinking liquids with meals in any amount depletes your ability to digest. The reason for this is that liquids dilute your digestive juices. Luke warm water isn't necessarily bad, as water is always good for you, but drinking liquids before a meal (ideally by at least 1/2 an hour) makes the job of your digestive juices much easier, as they become unimpeded by excess liquids.
I rigidly followed a diet of proper digestion for about 3 months. I was testing out the way to do it, and because I'm already used to cooking all my meals at home and not eating out a lot, I was prepared to stock up and change what's in my fridge.
I separated proteins and carbohydrates into different meals. Protein takes the longest to digest, about 1.5 hours. I did my best to not even mix different proteins. I'd eat a meal of chicken and salad, or nuts and vegetables for lunch, then have pasta/potatoes with other greens at dinner. I stopped eating meat sandwiches, or meats in buns, or meat with potatoes. I wouldn't drink with meals, and would wait around 2 hours after meals to drink anything cold, which I continue to do most of the time without it being much of an issue.After 2 weeks I noticed that I had no acne. None. It was gone. I don't have terrible acne as it is, but there's always blemishes of some kind showing up somewhere. They are persistent. But as my stomach was given a break, I ate no garbage food, and my stress was pretty low - I was clean. It was exciting!
Eating for proper digestion is difficult though. I've been gluten-free for years, and it's a lot easier to just avoid one thing than it is to revolutionize the whole approach to meals. Not to mention that I became really skinny. I'm already skinny! So I decided I would be less rigid about mixing proteins and carbohydrates. Eventually, my body adjusted, but the zits returned when I slipped back in to old habits.
Before long I was eating pizza and drinking beer with meals.
... just a lot less often.
I continue to be mindful of this method. It serves as an underlying thought in how I approach food. Really, when it comes to diet, I think that everyone kind of 'knows' what's good and what's not good. Junk food = bad, vegetables = good, raw food has many nutrients, cooked food is easy for the stomach to digest, etc.
It's good to give the stomach a break. Let yourself get hungry before you eat again (this is the thing that is most difficult for me - I love to taste things endlessly!) Your stomach works like any other muscle; it gets tired. Imagine you are exercising your arm all day long without a break. Even if you are not lifting weights and just going through the motions, your arm will get tired. This is how it is for your stomach if you 'graze' all day long. It needs to rest between 'jobs'.
To summarize this post; when your stomach cannot properly process what you put into it, the body will find another way to expel the waste/toxins. Acne is a sign that your body is unable properly digest and deal with what you're consuming.
Treat your stomach well, and your body will rejoice.
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