At one of my all-time favourite training sessions, Jacquie Carter, Herbalife’s dynamic “Worldwide Outer Nutrition Trainer” gave some fabulous insights this weekend into just why it is SO important for us ALL to take care of our skin.
Here are some key skin facts:
- The skin is the body’s largest living organ
- On average, your skin will weigh around 7 to 8 lbs
- The skin represents 12% to 16% of a body’s total weight!!!!
- It covers between 12 and 20 square feet of body
- The skin is made up of approximately 26% protein
- Your skin can be subject to around 200 attacks from free radicals every hour
The skin’s main purpose is to provide a protective waterproof layer between your body and the environment that keeps out various harmful chemicals and foreign materials, so by it’s very nature, it is under continuous attack! To function properly, the skin’s cells are replaced constantly and by the time they get to the surface layers they are actually already dead. Cell renewal and division is of course also essential in the process of healing wounds.
Additionally, the skin is important for temperature control and has a VITAL role in screening potentially harmful rays from the sun which of course is needed for Vitamin D synthesis which each body needs to grow healthy teeth and bones and to properly absorb calcium.
Oh, and of course your skin also stores fat – which means it can be affected by any changes in your weight (including pregnancy – a shock for many women’s skin)!
Despite the many important roles it performs for us, we do things to our skin that we would never dream about doing to our other organs. Can you imagine piercing your heart or kidneys? How about picking at a blemish on your lungs until it bleeds and eventually gets infected? (This is what many people do with pimples and blackheads). Would you apply permanent dye to your liver with a pneumatic needle (tattooing)? And had you thought about the effect of using the same bar of soap on your face that you use on your bottom which is a breeding ground for bacteria? All in all, it seems as though most people’s skin gets a bum deal(!!!)
The really sad thing is that 80% of skin damage occurs before you are 18 years old – the time when it is generally the least of your concerns – and as it takes a very long time for the majority of the damage done to the skin to show up in an obvious way, it’s often something that we tend to neglect until it’s too late for prevention and we resort to trying to cover it or, more drastically, by treating it with harsh chemicals, poison such as botox or even surgery!
Throughout April, I’ll be posting additional articles with a special focus on the skin, how you can help to prevent further skin damage yourself and in particular, how you can use Herbalife’s philosophy of Total Nutrition to maximum effect for your skin, including a combination of:
- Healthy diet and exercise
- Nutrition supplements to feed the body’s cells from the inside
- Skin nutrition which involves applying antioxidant vitamins on the outside to help prevent free radical damage
Hi Sarah! I am so happy to read that you enjoyed the training! And I am thrilled to see you are educating everyone on the importance of skin care. Herbalife has the best products and the best distributors. You are a shining example of that. Thank you for all that you do. ~ Jacquie
Hi Jacquie!
Thanks so much for your comment. You were a real inspiration to many of us at Manchester and it’s this type of training and support as well as the INCREDIBLE products that make Herbalife such a fantastic company to work with.
I am hoping you might come to the UK again soon!!!!!!
Sarah
x