Alicia Keys Credits Avoiding These Foods For Her Clear Skin
"I don't want to cover up anymore. Not my face, not my mind, not my soul, not my thoughts, not my dreams, not my struggles, not my emotional growth. Nothing." Alicia Keys wrote these words for Lenny Letter in 2016, explaining she was done wearing makeup. In a stance against the pressure and judgment exacted on women by the media and society, Keys started appearing at events and in photos without a stitch of cosmetics, prompting the #NoMakeup trend to take off and inspiring women worldwide to embrace the skin they're in.
According to a November 2020 interview with Glamour, Keys is back to sometimes wearing different makeup looks, all part of expressing herself as she chooses and embracing different aspects of her style. The artist is in control: makeup or no makeup, it's all up to her and how she feels in the moment.
Keys' natural look reveals her glowing skin, inspiring many to focus less on covering up and more on improving their own skin health. Lucky for us, the singer is spreading the wealth. She shared her best beauty tips for a Vogue video, and three of them are all about what to eat, or rather what not to eat.
"I've cut out dairy, and also, believe it or not, getting rid of the breads," Keys says in the video. "Let me tell you...I am a bread-aholic," she sighs about the sacrifice, before continuing, "and then obviously the fried foods, the oil and all that for the skin is never really good."
How dairy, bread, and fried foods can affect your skin
We hate to be the bearers of bad news for all you fans of dairy, bread, and/or fried food (so...everyone?), but Keys is right.
Studies have proven that there is a link between dairy consumption and acne. Acne is an inflammatory condition. Oil clogs your pores and allows bacteria to grow inside follicles, Director of Cosmetic and Clinical Research at Mount Sinai Hospital Joshua Zeichner, MD explained to Men's Health. The hormones in milk can also cause inflammation. This might not mean you have to cut out all dairy, though. Yogurt has probiotics that actually calm inflammation, and cheese is still being studied. Plus, whole milk is a safer bet than skim milk if you don't want to give up your morning cereal.
Bread is indeed another acne-causing culprit, although, again, this applies to white bread, so you can make some substitutions. White bread has a high glycemic index, giving "you a sugar rush that will be terrible for your skin," Ava Shamban, an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at UCLA, told Allure. She added that any sugar the liver doesn't extract can end up causing break outs.
Rounding out all of Alicia Keys' foods-to-avoid list with hard evidence is nutritionist Dana James, MS CNS, who told Yahoo!, "Consistent consumption of fried foods causes damage to the cellular structure of the dermis and epidermis, and this leads to sallow, aged skin and more cystic acne." More proof is in the artist's radiant complexion: Better skin requires paying attention to our diets.