SUGAR & AGEING

BY DR. CHARLES LEE
CONSULTANT PLASTIC, COSMETIC & RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGEON
KPJ SABAH SPECIALIST HOSPITAL

IT’S ALL ABOUT FOOD

Before and After Treatment

Anyone who is familiar with the wrinkle-free, blemish-free, perfect even complexions of Japanese women will be unsurprised that the key to redefining beauty in Japanese skin care is what you put inside the body. Traditionally, in Japan, beauty is natural, simple, and edible! The theory is that appearance reflects the food you eat and women should not apply anything on their skin that is toxic to the body because skin is porous.

Hence natural, plant-based skin care is of utmost priority in redefining beautiful skin. The secret to natural Japanese beauty is all in the ingredients of a well-balanced Japanese diet which is full of vitamin-rich vegetables like broccoli and lots of fish rich in omega 3 fatty acids and extremely low in meat and sugary foods. This helps to reduce the body’s production of the inflammatory chemicals involved in the ageing process.

ADVANCED GLYCATION END PRODUCTS (AGEs)
Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs) are a complex group of compounds formed when sugar reacts with amino acids, proteins or lipids. This occurs in everyone’s body and skin cells. Along with oxidation, glycation is one of the major causes of cell death and ageing because it affects the molecular and cellular mechanisms that promote and restore cell growth and development. Restriction of dietary intake of AGE’s and exercise safely reduces circulating AGEs with further reduction in oxidative stress and inflammatory markers thereby delaying the ageing process.


TOXIC SUGAR AND THE SKIN AGEING PHENOMENON
Of all the molecules capable of inflicting damage in our body and speeding up the ageing process, sugar molecules are probably the most damaging of all. The older we get, and the more sugars we consume, the more glycation damages our skin.

One of the most damaging AGE’s as a result of this metabolic process is the creation of 3-deoxyglucosone (3DG) which is responsible for much of the skin damage seen in ageing. Most of the 3DG gets sweated out of the skin during exercise but the residual product causes:

• Inflammation
• Decreased collagen production
• Collagen and elastin cross-linking
• Formation of further Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs)
• Oxidative stress and free radicals

IT’S ALL ABOUT SKINCARE
The most important beauty secret of Japanese women is a multistep skin care ritual that is as important to beautiful skin as the product themselves. The ritual of applying each product, from cleansing to face and neck massage allows the skin to detox the toxic effects of AGEs and de-stress the damage caused by free radicles. This helps you to beautify your skin from the inside out and at the same time allowing the body to restore and heal from the damage caused by the external environment.

A customized Anti-Glycation Therapy (AGT) will include: deep cleansing, exfoliation, extraction, toner, lymphatic detox, antioxidant mesotherapy, sheet mask, serums, moisturizer, and finally sunscreen.

The relationship between sugar and fine lines can be life changing. Esthe Twin’s Anti-Glycation Therapy harnesses the antioxidant and collagen-restoring powers of plant stem cells which activates the enzyme processes in the skin that restore flexibility and suppleness to glycated collagen fibers.

For more information, please contact KPJ Sabah Specialist Hospital at 088-322 000. 

Find them at Lorong Bersatu, Off Jalan Damai, Luyang, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. 

Website: www.kpjsabah.com

For the complete article about this subject can be read on this October to December 2016 issue of Parents Avenue Magazine. 

*Disclaimer: All information is for your general reference only. We (Parents Avenue) do not accept any responsibility whatsoever in respect of such information.