We seem to have found ourselves in a world of filters. When I was growing up we of course had the experience of heavily photoshopped models on the covers of our magazines but the focus really was on photoshopped bodies rather than skin at the time from my perspective anyway. Now I wonder how my younger self would have coped in this new world where “normal” people have the ability to alter their appearance to an almost unrecognisable state, giving us all an altered perspective on what we should look like and how we should feel.

It’s that time of year. Love is in the air. Whether you love or hate valentines day, lets use it as an excuse to spend a whole week looking after ourselves, allowing a moment to listen to our minds and our bodies in a hope we can start to punctuate every day with moments of self love.

If you’ve popped into my inbox with a skin condition you just can’t get to the bottom of, along with a specific skincare routine, some reflexology and lots of questions for you to answer i’tve probably suggested keeping a skin journal.

Wanting a little extra self nurturing at the moment? Needing to look after your skin? Well look no further! I have collated some top ingredients to help with your skin so that you can get glowing inside out. So here’s what you need to look out for which will help with your specific skin type:

Moving is so important for us getting the glow. It helps to boost blood to our skin which in turn then starts to help move any toxins out of our body through sweat, our liver and urine. 

Ideally you’re looking for 30 minutes of movement four to five times a week. This doesn’t have to be a spin class, but if it floats your boat go for it. Can be a walk in the park, or taking the stairs instead of the lift. Or getting off your bus stop one stop early. Or parking a little further away from the office. We are keeping it simple, but it’s so effective. It helps our mental health, our physical health and will ultimately give our skin that glow that we know and love! 

Stress is such a big glow killer in our lives and not only that, it throws our hormones out of whack, disrupts our thyroid, can lead to weight gain, takes away your energy and kills your sex drive, and dulls that glow of yours, all the things you just don’t want to happen. So to help each day with the stresses and strains that life may throw at us, I want to introduce you to meditation.

We all know that water is the basis of life, or do we really? Our bodies are 75% water but this is the ratio when we are born, scientists believe that by the time we are 30, most of our total water content has dropped to 57-60%! So if this drop has occurred, imagine the impact of dehydration on our bodies, our skin and our sparkle! Our bodies rely on us getting the hydration needed to function properly, to carry the nutrients around our body, reduce inflammation and help our skin to feel plump like that plum!

Did you know that two thirds of the population in developed countries don’t get the required 8 hours of sleep a night which may or may not surprise you. The problem is, even just having six or seven hours sleep reduces your immune system, raises certain hormone levels to make you crave sugar and reduces other hormones that tell you when you’re full and satisfied and research is even saying that it can double our rate of cancer, but I’m not into scare mongering over here so it’s up to you whether you take that on board or not.