My tips for healthy hair, glowing skin & strong nails
Becca Crawford
I often get complemented on my skin. But I didn’t always have beautiful skin. In fact, in my early 20s I had the worst case of acne any dermatologist in Queensland had ever seen. It didn’t only affect my self esteem (I was so embarrassed about how I looked that I wanted to wear a paper bag over my head for many years at uni), but it also hurt to smile and to sleep on my side. – that’s how large and painful the cysts on my face were. Of course the prescription back in those days (and remains the case today under the conventional medical model) was for the dermatologist to put me on the contraceptive pill (goodbye natural hormone regulation) and a powerful drug called Roacutane which came with some hideous side effects (and I was asked to sign a disclaimer that if I accidentally fell pregnant I would need to abort the foetus as it would most likely be deformed by Roactune) – nasty stuff. There was no mention of what I was eating or drinking or whether I was stressed. And certainly no mention of gut health or a gut skin axis. Yes my skin radically cleared up on Roactune but it came at a huge cost to my health and the real kicker was that once I finished the course the acne simply returned. That was my first real taste of the “band-aid” approach of the conventional health model as instinctively I knew that the underlying issues were never addressed.
Once I understood that health was multifactorial and I addressed, one by one, the underlying environmental factors (listed below) that directly affect our health, all my skin issues (and other health issues) “miraculously” disappeared. Yes it takes longer than popping a pill but you are addressing the root cause of the issues with lasting effect (and with no side effects). Hooray!!
In terms of my hair, it’s been a long sorry saga. I went from being a Redkin hair model in my teens and featured in run way hair shows (with long thick lustrous hair) to now having very thin hair that doesn’t grow beyond my shoulders. I attribute this to my vegetarian days and in particular I started losing a LOT of hair (in huge clumps) during my vegan pregnancy and while I remained vegan for 20 months after my son’s birth. While I was breastfeeding my son I become increasingly alarmed by the volume of hair I was losing (as well as eyebrows thinning and gums receding). There was a point when I was so self-conscious about my hair thinning that I wondered if people could notice it and if I would go bald. I now know this was due to mineral deficiency and lack of animal fats and why I became so passionate about educating mums and mums-to-be on the importance of eating a nutrient-dense omnivorous diet replete in livers and naturally sourced animal fats. I had no further hair loss or gum recession during my second pregnancy when I switched to a traditional wholefoods diet so I am 100% confident that my hair loss and gum recession was indeed dietary related. While my hair loss and gum recession came to a halt with my diet change, I have found that the regeneration of my hair has indeed been slow but steady.
I set out below are the factors that have helped me in strengthening my hair, skin and nails. I hope they help you too!
Nutrients: Eat a sold nutrient-rich traditional wholefoods diet
Our hair, skin and nails require nutrients for optional growth so the more nutrient-rich your diet, the healthier your hair, skin and nails will be. Consume pastured animal products (including organ meats such as livers, wild seafood especially oysters, natural fats, eggs), chemical free veggies, a little fruit, activated nuts and seeds, unsprayed herbs and spices, fermented foods and drinks and, if tolerated, full fat dairy (fermented if possible e.g. kefir). Remove all processed and refined foods especially industrial seed oils (e.g. canola, cottonseed oil) and refined sugar – these radically age the skin!
Collagen: Consume bone broth
Collagen is the primary structure element of our hair, skin and nails and production of it drops dramatically after the age of 25. Collagen is responsible for giving skin that plump youthful appearance. Collagen is found abundantly in bone broth. I coined the phrased over a decade ago “Bone broth is my botox”. Make your own or purchase from Broth Bar & Larder or our online store. Our broth is made from reverse osmosis filtered water, organic herbs, and 100% pastured organic chicken bones or 100% grass fed beef bones.
Hydration
Drink plenty of pure water to flush out toxins and keep skin hydrated. Invest in a reverse osmosis water filtration system with alkalizer which provides the highest level of water filtration in Australia (purchase from The Water Shop and mention my name for a 20% discount). Be sure to add 1/8-1/4 tsp unrefined salt (e.g. sea salt or Himalayan salt) to every 1L of pure water to add back minerals lost through filtration and to keep the electrolyte concentration of the blood constant. Adding salt will provide you with energy as well as obviate the need to constantly pee! I drink 6+L per day in between meals. Read more in this blog here.
Movement, sleep, fresh air and managing stress
Address all other lifestyle factors that play a key role in our health. Movement improves circulation and helps to flush toxins from the body. A lack of sleep and stress saps minerals from the body and ages you then just about anything.
Healthy swap to all natural products in your home
Healthy swap all conventional personal care products (shampoo, conditioner, body lotions, face moisturizers, make up, leave in hair styling products, perfumes etc) with all natural, toxic free, versions. Toxins in conventional products wreak havoc on our system (ranging from endocrine disruptors, carcinogens, allergens, and neurotoxins). They are also incredibly damaging to the planet which is where they all end up. You can conveniently streamline the purchasing of all your personal care products and cleaning product to Young Living’s* comprehensive range for ease, simplicity and peace of mind without leaving your home.
Young Living* copaiba oil on skin (neat on wrinkles and diluted in a carrier oil all over face and body). Other Young Living* oils that are divine for the skin include elemi, helichrysum, lavender, geranium and myrrh. YL also make a range of super nourishing oil-infused face moisturisers including Dry Skin Serum, Sandalwood moisture cream, Boswellia wrinkle cream, and Rose Ointment which I often use on face and hands for intensive hydration.
Massage Young Living* frankincense oil into nails to make them rock hard. Avoid conventional nail hardeners as leading brands may contain formaldehyde (a known carcinogen).
Spritz you face throughout the day to keep it hydrated with a facial mist made with filtered water and a few drops of one or more of Young Living* frankincense, lavender, copaiba, elemi, helichrysum, geranium and myrrh.
Address gut health
Acne and other skin issues can be a sign of gut dysbiosis (an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in your gut) and /or leaky gut (with large particles crossing into the blood stream instead of being kept out, potentially resulting in an auto immune response where the body starts attacking its own skin or other tissue). There is a clear “gut skin axis” meaning that an unhappy gut can lead to unhappy skin. Work with an integrative practitioner (such as Emily Rose Yates or Marieke Rodenstein) to address gut issues.
Additional support
Nutritional support:
Young Living* mineral essence - contains over 60 trace minerals, royal jelly and YL therapeutic grade essential oils.
Young Living* Ningxia Red - the world’s highest antioxidant food source and also rich in nutrients.
Young Living* Sulfurzyme contains MSM (the biologically active form of the element sulphur) which produces generous quantities of keratin and collagen, both of which are essential for healthy hair, skin and nails. Watch this to learn more about MSM.
White spots on nails might indicate low zinc. A quality zinc supplement I take recommend by an integrative GP is zinc picolinate by Pure Encapsulations.
Collagen support – single ingredient Gelatin Australia collagen powder made from collagen from grass fed cow hide (or their Peruvian Superfoods blend which contains added superfoods like raw cacao powder, maca, lacuma etc). Purchase from Broth Bar or online. 1 heaped tablespoon to be added to hot or cold drinks e.g. smoothies.
Young Living* Mirah lustrous hair oil supports hair growth - massage through scalp and leave in overnight as a hair masque to wash out next day or use as a leave in hair oil especially in the ends of dry hair. Finger comb a little YL conditioner into hair after you wash it as a leave in hair styling product to reduce fly aways and frizz.
I am about to trial ASEA redox signalling molecules in their water and gel product which numerous people tout provide exceptional benefits to hair and nails. I’ll keep you posted if I see any difference.
Additional tips and hacks
A really good general rule of thumb is “if you can’t eat it don’t put it anywhere on your body”.
Avoid constantly tying hair back especially when wet. This creates an additional stress on the hair. I made this mistake and it further weakened and thinned my hair. I’m currently challenging myself to not tie my hair back for at least 30 days.
Rinse hair as soon as possible after swimming in the ocean or chlorinated pools. Chlorine in particular dries out skin and hair and destroys beneficial bacteria.
Apply magnesium lotion (e.g. Elektra Magnesium charge lotion) on skin before swimming in chlorinated pools as magnesium is the antagonist of chlorine.
Get your hair trimmed every 6-8 weeks preferably at a low toxicity hairdresser such as Salon de Joy. They use YL products and the owner Ernest gives the best hair cuts and scalp massages of anyone I have any met. 10% discount offered to all YL members in my team.
Avoid wearing nail polish and let nails breathe!
Avoid hair dryers and hair straighteners as much as you can – I damaged and thinned my hair big time with overdoing the blow-drying and straightening!
Lap up the sun ray’s but avoid getting burnt. If you have a tendency to burn, cover up, wear a hat and/or use a natural sunscreen like Young Living* Mineral Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50. Avoid conventional sunscreen as these contain harmful chemicals like oxybenzone which are toxic to our system as well as our reefs.
Avoid over-cleansing face and skin which strips it of natural oils and beneficial bacteria (our skin has its own microbiome independent of the gut microbiome). In response to the resulting dryness, the skin then compensates by producing even more oil thus creating a vicious cycle. I personally don’t cleanse my face at all unless I am wearing make up or sunscreen in which case I will use a natural cleanser such as Young Living* Orange Blossom Facial Wash (or Mirah Luminous Cleansing Oil for dry skin). I only apply body wash to my armpits, private parts and feet. I use an unscented Young Living* bath & shower gel such as this one and get kids to add their own YL essential oils to it as a fun activity.
Avoid touching your face with your fingers throughout the day.
Avoid chemical peels and other chemical treatments. If you want to brighten your skin, occasionally apply Young Living* lemon oil to the skin in a carrier oil at night only as a natural chemical peel. Avoid wearing lemon or other citrus oils during the day on skin as they are photosensitive.
Embrace a positive mindset about your hair, skin and body
Cultivate a mindset of loving the skin, hair and body you’ve been blessed with. Every wrinkle, scar and freckle is a sign of a life well lived and well loved. After resisting my curls for decades I realised that everyone wants what they don’t have so embrace what you have and be grateful for it. After almost losing all my hair I am grateful to have hair. Appreciate that the airbrushed photos in print and social media are not realistic. Age gracefully. Don’t feel pressure to wear make up, unless of course you want to. It is important for mums in particular to role model to their daughters that make up is merely an optional decoration but not a precondition for feeling and looking beautiful. Role model to your daughters that you accept and love your body unconditionally and never talk negatively about your body in front of your children (they role model and parrot everything). Create healthy self talk and really own it and believe it. Your most beautiful asset is a radiant smile and a kind and open heart. This will flow through to the rest of you!
* To purchase YL products, you need to set up a wholesale account online which my team do for you so that you obtain the benefit of my team’s IP, exclusive member resources and personalised support. Complete the contact form of this page and we will call you to answer all your questions about setting up a wholesale account for you. Please do not sign yourself up independently on the Young Living website as Young Living will assign you to a random team and you will NOT get the benefit of my teams’ exclusive resources and personalised support.