Are you detoxing to start the year? 

That can be a loaded question. With so many trending strategies going around–and a unique set of benefits and risks for each–it can be confusing to narrow down which option (if any) is best for you.

Detoxing, when done safely, is great for brightening your skin’s complexion and reducing acne breakouts as your body adjusts to a more skin-friendly internal environment. I’ve detoxed a few different ways to stay on top of the game and let my clients know what’s hype and what has value, and there are a few that I recommend often to my skin friends when we’re troubleshooting for frequent breakouts and scarring.

How does detoxing help to clear acne?

First, let’s be clear about how detoxing helps to promote healthy skin. Detoxes generally involve removing one or more unhealthy foods or habits to eliminate their effect on your body and skin. 

For example, processed sugar is a common culprit for acne for two reasons: 1. It causes blood insulin to spike in the body, which triggers inflammation and overproduction of oil within the body, and 2. It’s in pretty much everything we eat. We even become addicted to processed sugar, constantly triggering our bodies to produce more oil and clogging pores.

Once you eliminate processed sugar from your diet over time, your body begins to respond by reducing inflammation and producing less oil. Over time, breakouts stop happening as often, which means less opportunities for scarring and hyperpigmentation and more for healing.

To sum it up, detoxes help improve your skin’s health by removing the triggers that cause your body’s hormonal signals to misfire, which returns your skin’s barrier to a healthier state over time. 

Juicing for healthier skin

Juicing as a detox is one of my personal favorites because it eliminates processed sugar, it reduces your sugar cravings because the juice itself is naturally sweet, and your energy levels are noticeably higher. Here’s how I do it:

• Drink 2 8fl oz cold-press juices every 2-3 hours. You can make these yourself if you have a juicer, or purchase them pre-made. Remember, only juices with no processed sugar.
• Eat one plant-based dinner loaded with nutrient-dense vegetables.
• Do this for 3-4 days at a time once a month and limit acne-triggering foods in between detoxes.

Colonics for detoxing

Cleansing the colon is literally working from the opposite end to rid the body of toxins. Instead of eliminating the intake of toxins, a colonic procedure flushes out toxins with water and sometimes herbs and caffeine through a tube insert. Yep, that way.

The colon is a large portion of the intestine that absorbs nutrients from the food you digest. If your diet is heavy with processed food, dairy, and processed sugar, a colonic could help remove leftover buildup that your body is struggling to release. It’s understandably intimidating at first, but colon cleansing also leaves you energized and can remove gastrointestinal toxins that cause a variety of diseases like arthritis and high blood pressure. And less toxins means a healthier internal environment that radiates through your face.

Create your own skincare detox

Now that you understand how detoxing helps the skin, you can personalize a detox for yourself that you can commit to. Try removing one acne trigger from your diet for one month, whether it’s sugar, soda, fast food, or processed food. Take note of any changes to your skin’s texture, not just if you’re breaking out or not. Breakouts can live under the skin for up to 30 days before popping up so remember to give yourself time and patience.