{Book Review} Skintervention Guide ~ Purely Paleo Skincare by Liz Wolfe, NTP

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a beauty product junky.

A sucker for self-care products that make promises they never keep.

I could spend hours wandering through a CVS or RiteAid looking for the product that would give me the softest, shiniest hair or the smoothest, most flawless complexion.

I would always tell myself that when I won the lottery, I would spend some serious money at the drugstore with the hopes of finding that magic product that would finally clear my skin and make my hair grow longer.

All of this started the year I graduated from college.

I moved to Boston and developed adult acne.

I moved to Boston and started finding more hair in the shower drain than usual.

I was convinced it was the city water.

Looking back, and knowing what I know now, I’m sure it was my lifestyle and the food I was eating.

Honey Bunches of Oats, and Reduced Fat Blueberry Muffins.

An hour on the elliptical machine every single day.

Missing home and trying to be as busy as possible.

Back then I had no idea that the foods I was eating and the stress I was putting myself under could be responsible for my skin and hair troubles.

I tried everything to fix it. Pro-Active (the burning means it’s working, right?), professional deep conditioning hair treatments– nothing made a difference.

After adopting a Paleo way of eating, my food choices became naturally more instinctual and rooted in love for myself and my body.  My self-care plan gradually followed suit.

With lots of help from a certain lady named Liz of the little blog you may have heard of called Cave Girl Eats.

Liz has been a huge influence on me in the natural self-care department.  She’s turned me into a giant hippie. Her post “WAP Me Pretty” was what first got me hooked on oil cleansing my skin, and I no longer wash my hair…with shampoo…because Liz told me I didn’t have to.

Since I started a more Paleo skin care routine, I’ve had less problems with breakouts– and my hair is thicker and healthier than ever.

When I found out she was writing a skincare guide, I was pretty excited. I had cleared up a lot of my skin issues, but I wanted the inside scoop on what might be causing my lingering troubles, and how to spot treat them using natural remedies– like vitamins, minerals and oils.

Liz’s eBook, The Skintervention Guide {Purely Paleo Skincare} does not disappoint.

The guide is separated into three parts: Nutrition, Digestion and Body and Skin Care.

Liz goes through a thoughtful explanation of how the foods one eats directly affects her skin health. In addition to descriptions of the basic–protein, carbohydrates and fats– Part One  also includes a detailed list of ancestral super-foods that support skin and overall health and HOW to incorporate some of these foods into your day. Ever wonder what Brewer’s Yeast is? Or why kombucha is so great for skin health? Wonder no more…

While the foods you eat are important to your skin health, how well you digest and absorb the nutrients from these foods is even more important. If you’re eating within a Paleo Framework, but your gut is unable to absorb nutrition from the foods you’re eating, then the food really doesn’t do you much good. In Part Two, Liz goes through digestion step-by-step, from tip to tail, troubleshooting along the way. This part of the book is useful for everyone– skin troubles or no. Healing your body with whole foods is the first step toward overall health– not just healthy skin.

Once you have a solid background in the foods that support healthy skin, and how to heal yourself so that you can digest these foods, Liz goes into a comprehensive description of everything from oil cleansing, to hair coloring to teeth brushing in Part Three– Body and Skin Care. My favorite part about this section of the book is that Liz outlines three levels of care– which level you choose depends on whether you want to use the basic ingredients (baking soda, coconut oil, and apple cider vinegar), add some extra care (like essential oils and homemade balms) or add some “traditionally cherished ingredients” like clays, and treatments.

Part three also has some nuggets of information from Trina Felber, the creator of Primal Life Organics, an amazing Paleo skincare product company. Trina lends her expertise to debunk skin myths and provide product recommendations for specific types of skin.

 All in all, this guide is wonderful.

Not only is it full of useful (and easy to implement) suggestions, Liz’s encouraging, nurturing, understanding approach makes the information incredibly accessible and not intimidating at all. There’s something for everyone in this guide– whether you’re new to paleo skincare, or on the verge of being a full-blown hippie.

This book is a wonderful reminder that “beauty is a manifestation of health.”

That it’s important to work toward your best health possible from every angle– what you eat, how you move, how you manage stress. Everything is important. We in the paleo community do so much to take care of ourselves from the outside in, this book is a wonderful reminder that the stuff you put on the outside is important too.

I highly recommend this guide to any and everyone interested in taking care of themselves from the outside in.

Want to get your hands on a copy? Head on over the Skintervention.com to check it out!

Do you use a Paleo skincare methods? If so, which ones? Feel free to share in the comments below.