How sugar affects your health and skin

Health experts have told us from time to time that sugar is bad for our health. But besides affecting your weight and increasing the risk of certain diseases, sugar also affects your beauty – your skin to be precise.

What if I never drink tea with sugar? You are wondering. But most of the foods we consume daily contain sugars. The cakes, biscuits, fruits, soft drinks, and your favourite chocolate bar contain sugar. The source of the sugar, however, usually is the problem. As such, you will want to cut your consumption of added and processed sugars but you can still enjoy those from fruits since they are also rich in nutrients that your body needs.

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While you may not quit sugar completely, you can try and work on the amount you consume per day to lower your risk of the health issues linked to a lot of sugar consumption and also keep your skin beautiful.

Too much sugar causes acne

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When it comes to skin, sugar has been linked to skin problems such as acne and ageing. One study found that there was a link between a high glycemic index/load and acne vulgaris. Consuming added sugars and refined carbs increase blood sugar hence leading to high levels of insulin. On the other hand, androgen hormones are made more active by insulin which results in more sebum production. As you might already know, sebum is great for protecting your skin and preventing dryness. Even so, too much sebum blocks the pores on your skin. When the pores are blocked, acne, blackheads, and whiteheads might be the next thing you notice on your skin.

Sugar and ageing

Now, now, we all shall get old some time and our skins will be wrinkly no matter how hard we try to resist it. But hey, you don’t want that to happen too soon which might be the case if you consume too much sugar.

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Elastin and collagen are major proteins that are also building blocks of your skin. Collagen, in particular, is responsible for skin elasticity. That is to say that when collagen is damaged, skin loses elasticity thus becoming saggy.

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Sugar binds collagen

When you take too much sugar, it binds collagen fibres (glycation) making it impossible for them to self-repair. Also, fructose and glucose which are the main elements present in sugary foods link with amino acids present in elastin and collagen hence producing advanced glycation end products (AGEs). These products make you age faster.

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Now that you know, the ball is now on your side. Will you continue being the sweet tooth you are or are you going to cut your sugar intake? Quitting sugar can seem difficult but it’s something doable. Some people quit sugar many years ago and you can at least cut the amounts not just for beauty purposes but also for the sake of your health.