If you’re like me and always on the hunt for clean haircare that actually works, let me put you on to something great: Rahua’s Volumizing Shampoo & Conditioner.

Everybody knows that a healthy diet will lead to clearer skin.

We’re told to cut out dairy, sugar, and even gluten if we want to glow. While that’s good advice, it’s usually only effective long-term. Sometimes, you just want “now” solutions for clear skin.

So, without further ado, here are some of my daily, best practices for clear skin that you can implement now.

Pillowcase
As a rule of thumb, I never use the same pillowcase more than 3 times. Just think about it. You sweat during the night, some of you may drool, and your hair products/oils cover the pillowcase. Unless you sleep on your back all night, your face is likely to come in contact with the oils left on the pillow. That means unnecessary bacteria on your face which leads to acne or at least amplifies the acne already present on your face.

If I don’t have time to wash my pillowcase, I usually just put a hand towel on my pillow.

Exercise
Getting your blood flowing with exercise of any kind is a great way to deliver oxygen, blood, and nutrients to your face. I always feel like my face clears up when I get a good workout in and leave the gym with a red face. For some reason, that’s my sign that I’ve got the blood flowing throughout my entire body and I literally feel my skin clearing (it may just be a personal mental trick!) 

Face masks
I like to think of face masks as foam rollers for your face. They stimulate your cells, deep clean, hydrate, and feed your face (if you’re using the right ingredients). Using face masks is also a great way to draw out impurities and reset your face. 

Water
I know it’s a cliché, but water really does help flush your system’s toxins out, and I have noticed changes in my appearance when I drink more water. For some reason, reaching my daily water intake has been difficult since moving to online school. The best tip I have is to drink water first thing in the morning and fill up a water bottle to drink throughout the day. Make drinking water more accessible to you.

Massage

I massage my face every night as part of my nightly routine. A massage can help strengthen your muscles and stimulates the movement of lymph fluids in your body. The lymphatic system helps remove waste and toxins from your tissues, thus helping you have clearer skin. In addition, massages are preventative measures against wrinkles! There are countless face massage tutorials on the internet you can follow! My favorite is Olga Toja on YouTube!

There is not a single fruit or vegetable I have encountered that I do not like.

 I tend to think of fruits and vegetables as non-negotiable features of a healthy diet because all fruits and vegetables contain essential vitamins and minerals needed to maintain proper bodily function.

When it comes to skincare, what you eat matters.

“Everything you eat becomes a part of not only your inner being, but the outer fabric of your body as well…” says Samantha Heller, MS, RD, a clinical nutritionist at NYU Medical Center in New York City.

There are certain foods I eat that actually create joy within me when I realize their benefits. I get the impression that my skin, and body, are thanking me. I have a habit of looking up all the benefits of whatever fruit or vegetable I am eating to motivate and perpetuate healthy eating patterns. It also amazes me to know how a single food holds so many life-sustaining properties.

I especially seek out food containing vitamins C, K, and E. 

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an integral part of the skin’s makeup. It stabilizes collagen levels in the body and contributes to skin elasticity. Vitamin C works to repair damaged skin, and its antioxidant properties protect the skin from aging and UV light.

My favorite fruits and vegetables to eat for their vitamin C content (this one is easy to incorporate!): 

Kiwi, Lemon, Cherries, Blueberries, Broccoli, Bell Peppers, Papaya (this one is AMAZING for skin), Beets, Sweet Potatoes

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is important for bone health and proper blood clotting. Since vitamin K is a healing agent, it may repair the skin and help in the production of collagen.

Avocado, Tomatoes, Figs, Cucumbers

Vitamin E

Vitamin E has strong antioxidant properties that protect ageist oxidative damage which aids the skin in healing wounds. Vitamin E works as protection for the skin.

My favorite fruits and vegetables to eat for their vitamin E content: 

Bell Peppers, Mango, Apricots, Sweet Potatoes

*Bonus Tip: The color orange indicates high vitamin A content. Vitamin A is converted by the liver to form retinol which prompts the production of new skin cells and hydrates skin cells. Eat fruits and vegetables that are orange for healthy skin!

What if I told you that your skincare products almost definitely contain ingredients that are contributing to and accelerating the aging of your skin’s cells?

The aging culprits in your skincare are polyunsaturated fats. To understand how this process works, I’ll take you through a mini science lesson.

To keep it simple, polyunsaturated fats, also known as PUFAs, are mostly plant fats that are deficient in hydrogen atoms, making them unsaturated. On the other hand, saturated fats have connected hydrogen atoms. PUFAs remain liquid at most temperatures. Read to the end to see a list of these “bad oils.”  

The missing hydrogen atoms in PUFAs make them very unstable and susceptible to oxidation if exposed to light or heat. Our bodies meet the oxidation requirement of heat, and when our skin comes in contact with sunlight while using PUFAs, further oxidation occurs. Oxidized oils damage the integrity of our cells. Oxidation is simply a chemical reaction with oxygen that changes the chemical structure of the substance. Oxidation creates free radicals, which damage and age the body as well as contribute to illness. Thus, using PUFAs can be incredibly damaging to our cells, immune systems, and even hormones. 

Hyperpigmentation, photo-aging, wrinkles, and liver spots are all examples of damage caused by oxidative PUFAs. 

Most of us use moisturizers, sunscreen, cleansers, lotions, and other products that contain PUFAs. Since PUFAs are heat and light unstable, as soon as those products using PUFAs are absorbed and processed in our bodies or exposed to sunlight, oxidation occurs. As a result, we have free radicals in our bodies, premature aging, skin spots, a slowed metabolism, and even cancer. 

Another issue found in many “clean” skin care products is that water is listed as the first ingredient. In such cases, water must always be accompanied by a preservative. Avoid any product that has phenoxyethanol, benzyl alcohol, benzyl benzoate, and sodium benzoate, among other things. These preservatives are toxic and very harmful to your body. 

Finding PUFA free skin care products is not easy. I challenge you to find one skincare product in your house without a PUFA. Let me know if you do find one. I’m always looking for clean brands! 

I have been consciously PUFA free for about two years now. I wish I had known this information earlier in my life, but it’s never too late to start this journey. Knowing this information motivates me to advocate for safe, clean, nontoxic products. You can find a quick shop list of NoKap’s favorite nontoxic, PUFA-free skincare brands on our beauty page. Or click here.   

I challenge everyone to modify their regimen to be as low PUFA as possible, and nourish their skin with truly helpful products. It’s worth it, you’ll see.

PUFAs Include:  

Argan Oil

Almond Oil 

Rapeseed Oil 

Canola Oil

Camelina Oil 

Black Cumin Seed Oil

Cottonseed Oil 

Corn Oil 

Evening Primrose Oil 

Flax/Linseed Oil

Grapeseed Oil 

Hemp Oil

Maracuja Oil

Peanut Oil

Pumpkin Seed Oil

Red Raspberry Seed Oil 

Rosehip Oil

Safflower Oil 

Sesame Oil 

Soybean Oil

Sunflower Oil