The practice of Yoga has long been part of our Indian heritage and culture. Recently, we’re uncovering more of its merits and effects on our body, apart from just supporting mental stability. These merits extend to our external body too – mainly, our skin and hair. Well-nourished skin and hair aren’t just about products and supplementations, the care for it must start from within. The values of yoga and diet coupled together can naturally enhance your skin and hair health. Simple practices like face yoga for glowing skin and mindful eating can nourish your body from inside out. Let’s explore how it works.
The Connection between Inner Health and Outer Beauty
Have you ever been feeling unwell, and your parents tell you that it’s all “in your head”? Well, it’s true, our mind is much more powerful than we might think. And our inner state of mind strongly influences our outer appearance.
For example, some skin and hair disorders can develop as a reaction to our emotional states, like stress. These include:
· Acne
· Alopecia: hair loss
· Psoriasis: skin inflammation and thickening, leading to scale-like formations
· Hives: itchy bumps on the skin
These are all heavily influenced or even directly caused by stress. This implies that improving our mental health is important for maintaining our skin and hair. Yoga helps us accomplish this, restoring our inner balance and strengthening our mind. Practicing yoga for glowing skin and strong hair is a wholesome way to simultaneously restore our mental peace. (1)
How Yoga Supports Skin and Hair Wellness
The change in mental attitude, specific postures (asanas), breathing practices (pranayama), and meditation that yoga entails has shown several benefits for improving our skin and hair. Yoga postures and breathing techniques regulate the nervous system and build strength and flexibility in the muscles. This has an impact on improving our skin and hair condition. (2)
Face Yoga for Radiant Skin
Remember the phrase, “it takes 72 muscles to frown, but only 13 to smile”? Strained facial expressions literally impact both our muscles and skin layer. This is where facial yoga comes in – to relax our muscles and rejuvenate our skin.
Practicing face yoga for glowing skin helps in a lot of ways : (3)
1. Slows Skin Aging Process: We naturally develop wrinkles with age. But exercising the face gives us tightened and toned skin, fading the wrinkles.
2. Increases Oxygen Supply: Face yoga boosts oxygen supply to our facial muscles, enriching the skin and keeping it young and radiant.
3. Reduces Wrinkles: Stress and anxiety have become a normal part of modern existence. Sometimes we’re frowning without even realising it, out of habit. Yoga aids in relaxation of the mind and body, reducing overall levels of stress.
4. Cheap and Easy to Do: Rather than spending money to get youthful skin through products or surgeries, face yoga is a cheaper practice that can easily be done at home.
The best part is – face yoga doesn’t even take much time! It can be done even in between tasks as a quick relaxing method to refocus your mind. It’s a simple way to support bright healthy skin without much effort.
Yoga for Hair Growth
Hair loss often results from weakness in the bone tissue. The principles of yoga maintain healthy, strong hair by : (4)
1. Boosting Hair Growth: Some yoga poses are helpful for stimulating blood circulation to the head and scalp. This increased blood supply prevents hair loss.
2. Reducing Stress and Tension: Anxiety and mental stress can cause alopecia. The relaxation techniques and meditation that yoga entails are effective in reducing this stress.
3. Maintaining Hormonal Balance: Our hormone balance is crucial for healthy hair. Abnormal hormone levels, or stark changes in levels, can lead to hair loss. But certain asanas and breathing practices can restore hormonal balance.
4. Refreshing the Brain and Senses: Alternate nose breathing exercises in yoga refresh your entire body, especially the brain, leading to strengthening of hair and hair follicles.
By improving blood flow, reducing stress, and supporting internal balance, yoga plays a key role in enhancing your skin and hair from the inside out. It’s no surprise that many turn to yoga for glowing skin and healthy hair as part of their everyday routine.
How Diet Can Nourish Your Skin and Hair
Yoga and diet go hand-in-hand. Maintaining a wholesome diet is also part of the principles of yoga. A nutritious diet acts as a preventive remedy against anything that threatens our body’s health and efficiency.
Food For Your Skin
Apart from yoga for glowing skin, there are some healthy (and tasty!) foods you should be eating to support skin health:
1. Berries: Strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries are packed with antioxidants, which reduce skin damage and keep it hydrated.
2. Avocado and Nuts: These healthy fats help keep your skin moisturized, leading to a youthful look for us.
3. Citrus Fruits: Rich in Vitamin C, these fruits promote collagen production and facilitate sun protection, giving your skin a healthy glow.
4. Almonds, Nuts, Seeds: These supply us with “biotin”, a nutrient vital for maintaining skin health. (5)
Nutrients to Feed Your Hair
Micronutrients are the main elements that nourish the hair follicle, so a nutritious diet is imperative to prevent hair loss. Sometimes, deficiency in certain nutrients and vitamins can also lead to hair loss or thinning. Some of these nutrients are :
· Iron
· Fatty Acids (Omega-3s and Omega-6s)
· Vitamin A
· Biotin
So nourishing the body with these nutrients can lower the risk of hair loss and improve its health.
Final Thoughts
When practiced together, yoga and a balanced diet create a powerful foundation for long-term skin and hair health. By addressing both internal balance and external nourishment, this approach helps manage stress, improves circulation, supports hormonal harmony, and provides the essential nutrients needed for skin and hair vitality. Rather than relying solely on external treatments, embracing these mindful lifestyle choices allows beauty to flourish from within – by creating harmony between physical movement, nutrition, and inner peace of mind.
FAQs
Q1. Which yoga is best for glowing skin and hair?
The asanas (yoga postures) that promote oxygen levels and blood circulation are the best to achieve glowing skin and strong hair. Stimulating blood flow to the head and scalp also sends nutrients towards it, nourishing the skin and hair follicles, leading to hair growth.
Q2. Does yoga make skin glow?
Yoga helps your skin by promoting detoxification of the body, reducing mental stress, and boosting blood circulation. There is also face yoga, which directly impacts the facial skin – toning the facial muscles and improving skin elasticity, leading to brighter skin.
Q3. Which diet is best for glowing skin?
A diet balancing foods with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats is the best for glowing skin. Antioxidants help protect the skin barrier, and the essential vitamins and minerals promote collagen production and support skin health.
Q4. Which yoga gives beauty?
There are certain yoga poses that are believed to enhance beauty and skin health. Some of them are “Sarvangasana” (Shoulder Stand), “Halasana” (Plough Pose), Downward-Facing Dog Pose, “Dhanurasana” (Bow Pose), and more. These poses stimulate blood circulation towards the face; contributing to brighter, glowing skin.
Q5. How to glow in 7 days?
To achieve a healthy skin glow, follow a consistent skincare routine, healthy lifestyle choices, maintain a balanced diet, and incorporate yoga into your efforts. Face yoga shows favourable results for promoting healthy skin and enhancing facial glow.