We’re incredibly proud of NAA members and the unique ways that they apply Nutritional Aesthetics® in their personal and professional lives. It’s our goal to support them and share their wisdom by highlighting their stories with you in a periodic ‘Member on a Mission’ feature. Our latest featured member, Jennifer Masson, is the owner of Nutritionista Wellness, a nutrition practice with a focus on healthy living inside and out. She is a licensed dietitian nutritionist and aesthetician, as well as a blogger, writer, coach, nutritionist and skin care expert. She says that her goal is to help women like herself, over the age of 40, navigate their changing skin and bodies and achieve wellness and hormonal balance naturally through diet, exercise and lifestyle. Meet Jennifer, and her professional view of skin health from the inside and outside:
NAA:
What excites you the most about the Nutritional Aesthetics Alliance?
Jennifer Masson:
I have always thought that how we look on the outside is directly related to how we take care of ourselves on the inside. I worked as a dietitian for a long time before I actually went to school to become a licensed aesthetician. I saw firsthand how my clients looked when they were suffering from nutritionally-related illnesses like diabetes or obesity. I like the expression “The skin is a mirror of your health,” and find myself saying it quite a lot these days!
I am so glad that there is an organization out there that actually recognizes and wants to make known the relationship between nutrition and aesthetics! There are really good resources on the [NAA] website to be able to give clients good and reliable information.
NAA:
How do you apply Nutritional Aesthetics® principles to your work?
Jennifer Masson:
I am in private practice and I get a lot of women asking me how they should eat to look good. I explain to them that it’s a ‘wholistic’ approach. Your whole body! What you put inside and feed yourself is literally what you are. The old saying you are what you eat is absolutely true. Feed yourself a rainbow of fruits and vegetables loaded with phytonutrients and polyphenols, lots of good fats and protein and you can’t go wrong. I also emphasize what a negative effect too much sugar and refined carbohydrates have on the skin and that there is a relationship between acne, accelerated aging, and a slew of other skin problems with a lousy diet!
As far as what I recommend for skin, I tell clients they can use things in their own kitchen and pantry for amazing effects. Avocado makes a great hydrating mask, and lemon and raspberries can be great ingredients for an anti-aging mask. Cool green tea bags can revive tired eyes and green tea polyphenols are so good for you. I want to get the message out to everyone that we are what we eat!
NAA:
Please complete this sentence: “For optimal skin health, I wish people would have a better understanding that …”
Jennifer Masson:
More and more information is coming out, and it really seems like common sense, that how we take care of ourselves as a whole is reflective in not only how we feel, but how we look, including our skin and hair too!
We want to hear from you!
Have you found the expression “The skin is a mirror of your health,” to be significant in your life, or the lives of your clients?