. Genes
. Inner nutrition – what we eat and drink
. Exercise
. General health and well-being
. Emotional health, and
. Outer nutrition – how we take care of our skin

While we can’t alter our genes, we can improve our skin by making the necessary adjustments in the areas we can influence. Read on to discover the basic components of a healthy outer nutritional plan for your skin.

If you seriously want great skin the very first thing to do and wear a hat and good quality sunscreen when out in the sunshine. Having said that, let’s move on to understand the next three basic foundations to great skin.

If you want your skin to look and feel great, careful cleansing is very important. This should be done first thing in the morning and last thing at night to remove pore-clogging dirt. Don’t cleanse enough and you could find yourself prone to spots. Cleanse to often and you could be stripping away essential oils and be susceptible to dry skin or even eczema. Understanding your skin type (normal, dry or oily) and using a cleanser to match is the best foundation for great looking skin. Remember to rinse your face with warm water after using a cleanser, as any residue will continue to work on the skin if not completely removed.

Our grandmother’s used soap and water…isn’t that good enough? Soap is not very good at removing makeup because it does not contain enough oils to dissolve the staying power that most cosmetics have today. Remember the ‘tight’ feeling after your have washed your fact with soap? Soap can be very drying on your skin and may wash away essential oils. Another reason not to use soap is that it is not matched to the natural balance of our skin. Soap is generally alkaline, whilst skin is naturally acidic.

The second step to great outer nutrition for your skin is to tone. Toners are designed to remove any last traces of cleanser, while also helping to tighten and refine pores and prevent the build-up of dead skin cells. After toning your skin should fee and look revitalised and refreshed, and ready to be moisturised. Again you will need to apply a toner that matches your skin type.

The third foundation step is to apply moisturiser to help restore the moisture loss caused by the drying effects of sunlight, central heating, wind, cold and pollution. A good daytime moisturiser would contain a sunscreen and will be easily absorbed into the skin. At night you should use a richer, more nourishing cream, as this is when your skin more readily absorbs moisture.

Despite the plethora of products on the market and the myriad of additives…. the most important ingredient of any moisturiser is water! If water is just splashed on the skin it will not say there. Moisturisers are basically oil and water emulsions which contain a humectant (a substance added to another to make it moist), which attracts water and helps ‘fix’ it in the upper layers of the skin.

Moisture that is lost firm the skin needs to be replaced quickly so that the surface of the skin is kept both soft and smooth. The living cells in the layers need water so that they will not shrivel up and die. A moisturiser can protect the skin by providing a varier between the skin and the external environment. It also prevents the loss of moisture from the deeper layers of the skin.

Should people who have oily skin use a moisturiser? Moisturisers are particularly recommended for people with dry skin but everyone can benefit from using a moisturiser. You simply need to ensure that you choose the correct moisturiser for your skin type. People with oily skin should choose a moisturiser that hydrates their skin whilst helping absorb any excess oil.

We are exposed to perfume or fragrance throughout the day. We may not wear perfume ourselves, but our shampoo, soap, shower gel and cosmetics are likely to contain synthetic perfumes, unless we look at the label and shop carefully.

We encounter more smells in our household products – cleaners, washing powders, polish, air fresheners, etc. If we go out, we experience these smells on other people and in offices and stores.

Perfume mixes added to products are listed in the ingredients as ‘parfum’ or ‘fragrance’ depending on the part of the world you live in. Even some products that appear to be unperfumed will contain synthetic perfumes in order to cover an unpleasant odour from one of the active ingredients, or to ensure that the product always smells the same. The exact composition of these may vary over time even for the same product, as the manufacturer adjust the fragrance mix in relation to variations in the smell of the raw ingredients.

Even some essential oils are not entirely natural, as harsh chemicals may be used in their extraction process. Chemical solvents such as hexane and heptane are used to extract the maximum amount of oil from the plant, so it is important to buy good quality oils from a source you trust.

Allergies to fragrances are very common. The main organs affected are the skin and the respiratory system, but neurological damage has also been reported. Some people feel that we should have a right to fragrance-free air as well as tobacco-smoke-free air. There are also concerns about the impact of synthetic chemicals on the environment, as they do not necessarily break down easily.

Of course, there is a role for fragrance. The power of aromatherapy oils to heal and lift the spirits is well documented, but the widespread use of synthetic fragrances should be seen as pollution of both our bodies and our environments.