There appears to be no obvious connection between skin, inflammation, and blood sugar. However, they are closely linked because blood sugar affects inflammation, which in turn can affect the skin's appearance.
It may surprise you, but did you know that the skin is the largest organ in the body?
The outer layer of the skin, the epidermis, is constantly changing and replacing dead or damaged cells.
This layer is important for the human body as it protects it from various factors such as bacteria and chemicals. So, it's safe to say that healthy skin is very important.
Many lifestyle and dietary factors impact skin health and influence the risk of certain skin diseases. An unhealthy diet can promote inflammation and the onset of certain skin diseases such as dermatitis, acne , or psoriasis. Although these diseases are clinically very different, they have a chronic inflammatory background. Therefore, let's first explain some of the basics of inflammation.
What is inflammation?
Although it causes unpleasant side effects, inflammation is actually a good and healthy response of our immune system to a foreign invader. Inflammation becomes harmful when it persists and begins to damage healthy cells, creating a pro-inflammatory condition.
In this context, proper nutrition can suppress the inflammatory response and reduce inflammation.
So what should you eat to reduce inflammation?
The key is to eat a variety of anti-inflammatory foods rather than focusing on one or two specific foods or nutrients. Ideally, your diet should include a combination of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, legumes, red wine, fish, and olive oil.
The modern Western diet, characterized by a high proportion of processed foods rich in saturated fat, refined carbohydrates, and added sugar, has been shown to promote inflammation. This is undesirable and should therefore be a smaller part of your diet.
What does this have to do with your blood sugar?
Recently, it has been shown that elevated blood sugar contributes to inflammation. The mechanism is complex, but simply put, high blood sugar can lead to the formation of free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that lack an electron. To stabilize their own structures, they "steal" an electron from neighboring molecules, which then damages surrounding tissue, such as the skin, and leads to chronic inflammation.
Monitoring your blood sugar levels can improve your skin health by using it as a real-time tool for adjusting your lifestyle and reducing inflammation.
