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Vata Skin
* Description: Vata is composed
of the elements of air and space. If you have a vata skin type,
your skin will be dry, thin, fine pored, delicate and cool to
the touch. When balanced, it glows with a delicate lightness
and refinement that is elegant and attractive. When vata skin
is imbalanced, it will be prone to excessive dryness and may
even be rough and flaky.
* Potential problems: The greatest
beauty challenge for vata skin is its predisposition to symptoms
of early aging. Your skin may tend to develop wrinkles earlier
than most due to its tendency to dryness and thinness. If your
digestion is not in balance, your skin can begin to look dull
and grayish, even in your 20’s and 30’s. In addition,
your skin may have a tendency for disorders such as dry eczema
and skin fungus. Mental stress, such as worry, fear and lack
of sleep, has a powerful debilitating effect on vata skin leaving
it looking tired and lifeless.
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* Recommendations for care
With a little knowledge, you
can preserve and protect the delicate beauty of your vata type
skin. Since your skin does not contain much moisture, preventing
it from drying is the major consideration. Eat a warm, unctuous
diet (ghee and olive oil are best) and favor sour, salty and
sweet tastes (naturally sweet like fruits, not refined sugar)
as they balance vata. |
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Avoid drying foods like crackers.
Drink 6-8 glasses of warm (not cold for vata types!) water throughout
the day and eat plenty of sweet, juicy fruits. Going to bed early
(before 10 PM) is very soothing to vata and will have a tremendously
positive influence on your skin. Avoid cleansing products that
dry the skin (like alcohol-based cleansers) and perform Ayurvedic
oil massage to your whole body (abhyanga) in the morning before
you shower.
Pitta Skin.
* Description: Pitta dosha is
composed of the elements of fire and water. If you have a pitta
skin type your skin is fair, soft, warm and of medium thickness.
When balanced, your skin has a beautiful, slightly rosy or golden
glow, as if illuminated from within. Your hair typically is fine
and straight, and is usually red, sandy or blonde in color. Your
complexion tends toward the pink or reddish, and there is often
a copious amount of freckles or moles.
* Potential problems: Among the
many beauty challenges of pitta skin types is your tendency to
develop rashes, rosacea, acne, liver spots or pigment disorders.
Because of the large proportion of the fire element in your constitution,
your skin does not tolerate heat or sun very well. Of all the
three skin types, pitta skin has the least tolerance for the
sun, is photosensitive, and most likely to accumulate sun damage
over the years. Pitta skin is aggravated by emotional stress,
especially suppressed anger, frustration, or resentment.
* Recommendations for care
Avoid excessive sunlight, tanning
treatments and highly heating therapies like facial or whole
body steams. Avoid hot, spicy foods and favor astringent, bitter
and sweet foods which balance pitta. (Again, naturally sweet,
not chocolate and refined sugar!) Sweet juicy fruits (especially
melons and pears), cooked greens and rose petal preserves are
especially good. Drinking plenty of water helps wash impurities
from sensitive pitta skin. Reduce external or internal contact
with synthetic chemicals, to which your skin is especially prone
to react, even in a delayed fashion after years of seemingly
uneventful use. Avoid skin products that are abrasive, heating
or contain artificial colors or preservatives. Most commercial
make-up brands should be avoided in favor of strictly 100% natural
ingredient cosmetics. And be sure to get your emotional stress
under control through plenty of outdoor exercise, yoga and meditation.
Kapha Skin.
* Description: Kapha dosha is
composed of the elements of earth and water. If you have a kapha
skin type your skin is thick, oily, soft and cool to the touch.
Your complexion is a glowing porcelain whitish color, like the
moon, and hair characteristically thick, wavy, oily and dark.
Kapha skin types, with their more generous collagen and connective
tissue, are fortunate to develop wrinkles much later in life
than vata or pitta types.
*Potential problems: If your
skin becomes imbalanced, it can show up as enlarged pores, excessively
oily skin, moist types of eczema, blackheads, acne or pimples,
and water retention. Kapha skin is also more prone to fungal
infections.
* Recommendations for care
Kapha skin is more prone to clogging
and needs more cleansing than other skin types. Be careful to
avoid greasy, clogging creams. Likewise, avoid heavy, hard to
digest foods like fried foods, fatty meats, cheeses and rich
desserts. Eat more light, easy to digest, astringent, bitter
and pungent (well-spiced) foods as they balance kapha. Olive
oil is the best cooking oil and a little ginger and lime juice
can be taken before meals to increase your characteristically
sluggish digestive fire. Take warm baths often and use gentle
cleansers to open the skin pores. Avoid getting constipated and
try to get some exercise every day to increase circulation and
help purify the skin through the sweating process.
Inner Beauty: Gunam.
Happy, positive, loving, caring
individuals have a special beauty that is far more than skin
deep. Conversely we all experience the quick and deleterious
effect on our skin from fatigue and stress.
Inner beauty is authentic beauty,
not the kind that shows on a made-up face, but the kind that
shines through from your soul, your consciousness or inner state
of being. Inner beauty comes from a mind and heart that are in
harmony, not at odds with each other, causing emotional confusion,
loss of confidence, stress and worry. Inner peace is the foundation
of outer beauty.
Maintain your self-confidence
and a warm, loving personality by paying attention to your lifestyle
and daily routine and effective management of stress (I highly
recommend the TM technique for its scientifically-verified benefits
on mental and physical health and reduced aging.) You will also
be healthier and feel better through the day if you eat your
main meal at midday and make a habit of going to bed early (by
10 PM is ideal.)
Remember, kindness, friendliness
and sincerity naturally attract people to you. On the other hand,
being uptight or tense makes people want to walk the other way,
regardless of your facial structure, body weight, or other outer
signs we associate with attractiveness.
Lasting Beauty: Yayastyag
In order to slow the aging process
and gain lasting beauty there are two additional key considerations
beyond those already discussed.
1. Eliminate toxins and free
radicals in the body: The main deteriorating effects of aging
come as toxins and impurities (called ama in Ayurveda) accumulate
throughout the body. These toxins may begin as free radicals
in the body, or over time may become oxidized into free radicals,
all of which contribute to premature aging in the body. For lasting
health and beauty it is essential to avoid and neutralize free
radicals, to prevent impurities of all kinds from accumulating
and to remove those that have already become lodged in the body.
The most powerful cleansing therapy
in Maharishi Ayurveda is "panchakarma" therapy, a series
of natural treatments ideally performed twice yearly, that involves
5-7 days in a row of massage, heat treatments and mild herbal
enemas. Ayurveda emphasizes the importance of undergoing this
cleansing program once or twice a year to prevent impurities
from accumulating, localizing and hardening in the tissues. Just
as we change the oil in our cars regularly for optimal performance
and lifespan, Ayurveda recommends that we cleanse the “sludge”
from our tissues on a regular basis through panchakarma treatments.
Best of all, panchakarma treatments
are luxurious, blissful, and make you feel (and look) completely
rejuvenated in just a few days time. I have had many a patient
who told me that friends asked them afterwards if they had gotten
a facelift, they looked so fresh and youthful!
Other free radical busters include:
reducing mental stress, eating antioxidant foods like leafy green
vegetables, sweet, juicy fruits and cooking on a daily basis
with antioxidant, detoxifying spices like turmeric and coriander.
2. Add rejuvenative techniques
to daily living:
The daily activities of life
in the modern world systematically wear us down and speed up
the aging process. Ayurveda maintains it is crucial to practice
daily rejuvenative regimens to counteract the stressful wear
and tear of everyday life. According to Ayurveda the most important
rejuvenative routines for your life are:
a) Going to bed by 10:00 PM.
This simple habit is one of the most powerful techniques for
health and longevity, according to MAV.
b) Meditate daily. Any meditation
that does not involve concentration (which has been shown to
increase anxiety) can be very helpful. I highly recommend the
twice-daily deep rest and enlivenment of the Transcendental Meditation
(TM) technique, whose benefits have been verified by over 700
published research studies.
c) Eat organic, whole fresh food
that is freshly prepared. There is an Ayurvedic saying: "Without
proper diet. medicine is of no use. With proper diet, medicine
is of no need." Be sure to avoid those leftovers, processed
and microwaved foods for better nutrition and vitality.
d) Perform Ayurvedic oil massage
in the morning (abhyanga). Morning oil massage purifies the entire
body, reduces anxiety and stress, helps prevent and heal injuries
and supports circulation. It is especially helpful in creating
a radiant complexion and keeping your skin youthful. Research
shows it may also help prevent skin cancers.
e) Practice yoga asanas. Maintaining
flexibility and circulation is key to health.
f) Practice pranayama (yoga breathing)
techniques. Pranayama enlivens the mind and body. Ideally practice
the following sequence twice a day. Asanas, pranayama and meditation.
Summary
Everyone's unique beauty shines
forth when they have radiant health and personal happiness. Beauty
is a side effect of a balanced, fulfilled life. Supreme personal
beauty is accessible to everyone who is willing to take more
control of their health in their day-to-day life through time-tested
principles of natural living.
For most of us, beauty is not
a gift but a choice. Every woman can be radiantly beautiful simply
by beginning to lead a healthier life. You will be rewarded by
the glowing effects you will see in your mirror each day and
the powerful, bliss-producing effect your special beauty has
on everyone in your life. |
Beauty Secrets of the World