Embrace Your Coffee Addiction and other Stuff for Your Skin

Oh, how I love Paula Begoun. She just sent me (and everyone else on her no doubt massive list) a piece on food that's bad for your skin and food that's good for your skin. I'll skip the bad stuff (I think you know what it is). But just look at what tops the good list:

What to Eat to Look Better (and Feel Healthier)

I get seduced by potato chips and chocolate cake as much as the next person, but by keeping in mind what is really important I can pay attention to a vast array of healthy foods that work to reduce inflammation. And these foods are far from flavorless or boring! Quite the contrary, you may find that eating these foods coupled with antioxidant-rich spices to be a culinary adventure for your taste buds! The next time you're jotting down your grocery list, be sure to add these anti-inflammatory, appearance-boosting foods:

* Coffee (believe it or not, coffee is a tremendous source of antioxidants) and green tea
* Deeply-colored berries (blueberries, blackberries, raspberries)
* Deeply-colored vegetables, especially leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables such as red cabbage
* Red, green, yellow, and orange bell peppers (plus all types of hot peppers)
* Salmon and other cold water, oily fish (a bountiful source of omega-3 fatty acids; choose wild caught rather than farm-raised)
* Walnuts (most nuts have health benefits, but they're calorie dense, so be mindful of portion control)
* Olive oil (also recommended: grape seed, walnut, rice bran, and canola oils)
* Whole grains (the fiber boost reduces inflammation)
* Spices such as ginger, turmeric, cardamom, curry, cumin, garlic, oregano, basil, and tamarind
* Flax or pumpkin seeds
* Yogurt (preferably plain or those with reduced sugar)


COFFEE. I'm so happy. Various bloggers that elicit my admiration have been trying to kick--or succeeding in kicking the coffee habit. I love coffee, either expensive GOOD coffee, or New Orleans coffee with chicory. I generally have the latter since it is local, plus it is very cheap around here. I tried to give up coffee when I was pregnant; it took me about 1 day post-babies to re-establish my addiction.

When I was plodding through a German class in college, my teacher--Herr Rudolf--always said of my errors. "That's a GOOD mistake." Now we have Paula Begoun telling us that coffee is a GOOD addiction. It's full of antioxidants. Plus, in the frugal department, it's a lot cheaper than fancy creams and vitamins, and really a lot cheaper than botox. All that, and it enabled me to almost finish those 70 papers that have been hanging over me.