1. Low-Fat Foods
Yep, you read that right. Although low-fat foods are popular for their weight loss benefits, they may be doing damage to the skin.
“50% of your cells (the membrane of the cells) are made out of saturated fat. We’ve been told to avoid saturated fats, so we replace those with other types of fats or go low-fat, and that is one way to make your skin look very unhealthy,” Dr. Berg reveals.
He says that saturated fat is actually “totally okay to eat” as long as it's not filled with sugars and processed ingredients. “You get all the fat-soluble vitamins, which are really important for your skin.” They include vitamin A, which is “essential” for your skin,” vitamin D, an anti-inflammatory, vitamin E as an antioxidant, and vitamin K.
2. Sugary Foods
Foods with high sugar are a disaster for collagen, wrinkles, and even acne.
“If you want to get rid of your acne, most of the time all you have to do is get rid of the sugar because the sugar increases the insulin,” and insulin increases androgens that enlarge sebaceous glands. The oil glands are directly involved with acne.
Sugar is found in many foods like pastries, cereals, and soda, but it’s also hidden in foods that seem healthy, such as fruit juice. Dr. Berg says fruit juice is probably “the worst; it’s all pasteurized and sterilized,” making it equivalent to drinking soda.
3. Grains
This one may be a surprise, as some people believe grains can be good for the skin and overall health, but Dr. Berg disagrees. “What part of that grain is good for the skin? Is it the gluten that ends up creating bowel issues that then create all sorts of problems with your skin,” such as psoriasis, eczema, etc.?
Then you have lectins in these grains. “They turn into sugar, and that will increase the blood sugars,” prompting a similar reaction to sugary foods.
Grains are also high in omega-6 fatty acids. These are inflammatory, making them a bad choice for your skin and gut health.
4. Vegetable oils
Vegetable oil, aka seed oils, may be marketed as a healthy alternative, but Dr. Berg says otherwise. These include corn, soy, canola, cottonseed oil, etc. “These are really badly processed. They have solvents in them, and they create inflammation of your skin. They also compete for the omega-3 fatty acids that you need as anti-inflammatories because if you look at a really important food for your skin, people will say salmon or things that are high in omega-3 fatty acids,” however, when you’re eating things with omega-6, they will end up competing with the omega-3, therefore wreaking havoc on your skin.
5. Processed Proteins
Dr. Berg notes that, based on his experience with patients, consuming soy protein isolates or a diet rich in them means “they’re consuming something very unnatural, a highly processed, super low-fat, plant-based protein” that may benefit those looking to lose weight, but when they do lose the weight, “they don’t look good."
“It dries out their skin, their hair; they look older,” adding that it's usually low-quality proteins that are being consumed in this diet. They could also promote bloating, indigestion, and even diabetes. He instead recommends proteins such as eggs, fish, seafood, grass-fed meats, etc.
6. Milk/Whey
Dairy can be a problematic food to digest for many individuals; Dr. Berg says the hormones in milk “can affect sebaceous glands and give you problems with your acne.”
7. Low-Antioxidant Foods
There’s a reason our mothers encouraged us to eat plenty of veggies as kids. Dr. Berg explains that if you skip vegetables and opt for white bread, processed foods, and junk food, you're hardly getting any antioxidants.
“The antioxidants that come with foods,” not just vegetables, it could be grass-fed meats as well, “protect the skin against damage from the sun or pollution.” He goes on to note that when you don’t protect your skin from the sun, you could put yourself at risk for getting skin cancer.
8. Gut flora-destroying foods
The gut has a direct link to skin health. Gut-destroying foods include artificial sweeteners, sterile foods such as boxed items, canned products, pasteurized juices, refined foods, etc.
Anything that has a long shelf life could impact your gut health in a negative way. “When you destroy the gut flora, you end up with rosacea,” which makes your skin dull and unhealthy-looking. “Your microbes live on fiber, so a wide variety of different plants, like salads combined with protein," would be an excellent combination for helping your skin look radiant and youthful. The more diverse your vegetable intake is, the more it helps the diversity of your microbes.