If you are a long-time Perricone reader you know that I am no fan of sugar or other foods that rapidly convert to sugar in the blood stream (bread, desserts, chips, rice and corn cakes, pasta, potatoes, baked goods, fruit juices, etc.).  Yet sugar, in its many forms, is everywhere. 

While it might be easy to walk past the sugar in its obvious forms—such as the products in the candy, baked goods, soda, cereal and cookie aisles of your supermarket—sugar, in one form or another, is in everything from yogurt to condiments such as salad dressing, mayonnaise, ketchup, relish, mustard, and barbecue sauce. 

In addition to the usual natural sweeteners—sugar (white or brown), honey, maple syrup, cane syrup, and molasses—there are many hidden sources of sugars, including corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, fructose, fruit juice concentrate, maltose, galactose, lactose, polydextrose, mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, maltodextrin, and invert syrup.  Most “processed” foods contain one or more of these forms of sugar, or high-glycemic carbohydrates such as corn starch and white flour.

As a physician, I am against sugary and starchy foods because they cause an inflammatory response in the body—a reaction that's proven to accelerate aging and promote dangerous degenerative conditions and diseases.  We are also in the midst of a major obesity epidemic affecting all age groups, from pre-schoolers and teens to adults and seniors.  Even our pets are pudgy!

As a dermatologist, I am against sugary and starchy foods because the inflammation they induce (which takes place on a cellular level) shows up on the skin as a loss of radiance, dark circles under the eyes, the loss of tone, puffiness, an increase in fine lines and wrinkles, the loss of facial contours and increased pore size.  These foods can also exacerbate acne, which is a systemic, inflammatory disease.   I am not exaggerating when I say that sugar can rob you of your youth, health, and beauty.

We have all had it drummed into our heads that sugary, starchy foods are bad for us.  In this newsletter I want to let you know exactly what effect they have on our skin.  Once we understand this, that doughnut or bagel may lose some, if not all, of its allure.

Glycation: The age-accelerating reaction to excess blood sugar

When foods rapidly convert to sugar in the bloodstream—as both sugar and high glycemic carbohydrates do—they bond to the protein in your tissues, via a process known as glycation. This is the same chemical reaction that browns meats and toughens food in storage.  Glycation can occur in skin as well, creating detrimental age-related changes to collagen—and that means deep wrinkles.

When glycation occurs in your skin, the sugar molecules attach themselves to the collagen fibers, where they trigger a series of spontaneous chemical reactions.  These reactions culminate in the formation and gradual accumulation of irreversible “cross-links” between adjoining collagen molecules.  This extensive cross-linking of collagen causes the loss of skin elasticity. 

Healthy collagen strands normally slide over one another, which keeps skin elastic.  If a young person smiles or frowns, creating lines in the face, the skin will snap back and be smooth again when she stops smiling or frowning.  But the skin of a person whose collagen has been cross-linked from years of eating carbs and sugars does not snap back and smooth out.  Those deep grooves remain, because that is where the sugar molecules have attached to collagen, making the fibers stiff and inflexible.

Besides being visible in our faces, we can easily see the aging properties of carbohydrates in the laboratory.  Fibroblasts are the cells that produce collagen and elastin fibers, the strands of tissue that give the skin its strength and flexibility.  If just a drop of sugar is added to a cell culture of fibroblasts, within a minute or two we can measure a sharp rise of inflammatory chemicals in the cells.

Sugar can also attach to components in the cell plasma membrane forming chemicals called “advanced glycation end products”, appropriately known as AGEs.  Accumulation of AGEs in a cell can lead to malfunction and, as the acronym indicates, aging.  In addition to producing wrinkled, sagging skin, glycation degrades other vital organs, including your kidneys, lungs, and brain.

The bond between the sugar and collagen generates a continuous stream of free radicals, which damage our cells and tissues and stimulate even more inflammation.  When glycation occurs in the skin, the ultimate effect is not unlike tanning a leather hide.  Over time, skin begins to resemble a cross between beef jerky and an old boot, unevenly discolored and heavily striated with deep lines and grooves. 

Excess sun makes matters worse

Excessive exposure to the sun produces a damaging double-whammy.  Sun damage to your skin accelerates the glycation process, while skin proteins modified by glycation sensitize your DNA to the damaging effects of the sun’s ultraviolet rays. 

Sun exposure also helps reduce collagen levels in the skin over time. The sun’s UV-A rays generate free radicals that oxidize the proteins, lipids, and DNA in the skin, while, UV-B rays absorbed by DNA promote the cross-linking of adjacent proteins.  The end result is an increase in a destructive enzyme known as matrix metalloproteinase and a shortage of the molecule the body uses to make collagen.  Limit unprotected sun exposure to 20 or 30 minutes per day, and protect your skin from the sun (with hats, clothes and UVA/UVB-blocking sunscreen) at other times: especially during the peak sun-intensity hours of 10 am to 2 pm.

Repairing the damage

We all are guilty of eating sugar and high glycemic foods, and most of us can also lay claim to our share of skin-damaging sun worship.  The good news is that it is never too late to begin the repair process.

Start with the Three-Day Anti-Inflammatory Diet for a quick fix.   Everyone who tries it reports that they not only feel rejuvenated, their skin starts to reclaim the radiant, healthy glow of their younger days.  It is a great motivator to change your way of eating for the long-term.

Next, log onto www.glycemicindex.com to learn which carbs are our best bets to reduce inflammation.  If we can keep our carb choices under 55 on the glycemic index we will greatly ameliorate the health and beauty destroying effects of the carbs on the upper end of the scale.  Fruits and vegetables that score under 55 (on a scale of 0-100) on the index are the best way to satisfy your craving for sweet food. 

The fiber in the fresh fruit helps slow down the absorption of the sugars.  These foods also contain anti-oxidants—which act as natural anti-inflammatories—as well as all kinds of amazing ”phytoceutical” compounds that provide protective, healing therapy to the skin and entire body.

Protein first!

Eat some protein at the start of any meal, and try to avoid eating fruit on an empty stomach, to prevent any rapid rise in blood sugar.  Remember this simple fact.  A rapid rise in our blood sugar from eating sweets and the wrong types of carbs is pro-inflammatory and results in a sharp rise in our insulin levels, after which the insulin drops to below normal levels.  This results in the cravings of more carbohydrates, creating a vicious cycle.  In addition to disease prevention and skin rejuvenation, you will quickly discover that you are eating less food because low glycemic carbs eliminate food cravings.  This can result in the loss of excess weight—an added benefit.

When you want to reward yourself with a sweet treat other than fruit, try a little ice cream.  The fat in the ice cream will slow down the absorption of the sugar.  Just remember to have it after your meal and not on an empty stomach.

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