AUTUMN BEAUTY

Autumn Beauty Out with the old, in with the new

By Mpho Masenya

Autumn has finally graced us with its presence, and the signs are all around us. The days are cosy, tree leaves are gold, red and yellow, and mornings have that crisp, bright feeling.

Just as the trees shed their leaves, our bodies, too, shed both skin and hair. The sudden drop in temperature and humidity can cause flaky, thirsty skin and brittle hair.

It’s time for an autumn self-care plan! Here are some of our top natural beauty tips for this time of year…

Nutrition Beauty starts from within. What we eat matters even more than what we put on our skin and hair. Topical products may temporarily enhance our outer features, but they don’t make up for underlying nutrient deficiencies. Nutrients are key components in our body’s renewal processes. Here are some simple adjustments you can make to enhance your daily routine:

Eat a balanced diet Ensure that your diet contains everything in the food pyramid - from protein, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats to seasonal fruit and vegetables. Once you have the basics sorted, you can then also add in some quality supplements for that extra boost. Care for your gut health Optimal gut health is key to the wellbeing of your skin and hair. Poor digestion is evidenced in skin and hair due to low levels of the fat-soluble vitamins: A, D, E and K. Eat plenty of probiotics and fermented foods, as they improve digestion and the absorption of nutrients. Choose foods and supplements with strains of lactobacillus & bifido bacterium to boost gut flora and aid in repairing dry skin and hair loss. Increase your intake of these beautifying vitamins for glowing skin and hair:

Vitamin D Known as the sunshine vitamin, vitamin D3 is made by our bodies in collaboration with the sun - like solar panels creating electricity from the sun. With Covid-19 and the mass migration indoors, now is the time to take more vitamin D – not just for skin moisture, hair restoration and overall renewal, but also for mood enhancement and immune support. A few foods that are rich in vitamin D are cod liver oil, oily fish (such as sardines and salmon), beef liver and eggs. The plant-based vitamin D2 is found in mushrooms, fortified drinks, and cereals.

Vitamin A Known as a natural exfoliant, this one’s found in foods such as the pumpkin family, carrots, and mangoes.

Enjoy the autumn harvest Avocados are currently in season, are rich in vitamins E, K, C and B, and can aid in balancing skin tone.

Lifestyle A few simple lifestyle enhancements can make all the difference – both in how you look, and how you feel!

Beauty sleep Give yourself plenty of good-quality sleep to improve collagen production, and to increase blood flow - to the skin for radiance, and to the scalp for better hair product absorption.

Exfoliate your skin It’s best to exfoliate about once or twice a week to remove dead skin cells and allow the newer skin to surface. Be careful not to over-exfoliate, and try using natural, in-season fruit enzymes such as: - Papain in papaya to break down proteins for soft, smooth and even-toned skin - Bromelain in pineapple - an antiinflammatory with vitamin C

Moisturise Ideally, you should be moisturising about once or twice a day. For extra dry skin, choose skin and hair products that have a naturally-derived emollient, such as shea or cocoa butte, jojoba or castor oil, to name a few.

Let your hair down Hair shedding is worsened by traction hair styles, so it’s best to wear your hair loose during this time of renewal.

Stay hydrated If it’s too cold to drink an ice-cold glass of water, try to sustain hydration with warmer drinks, such as hot water with lemon, honey, ginger, turmeric, apple cider and cinnamon, or herbal teas. Alternatively, you can indulge in a mug of warm, decant and utterly delicious dark cacoa (70% or more cacao), which is rich in antioxidants and flavanols for smooth and hydrated skin.

Last but certainly not least, spend a leisurely autumn evening enjoying a slow stroll and breathing in the fresh air as you embrace the changes in both yourself and your environment.

Getting Personal with

Celluvac first appeared on the scene 10 years ago, with a mission to create a lifestyle wellness brand for women to upgrade their overall wellbeing. Drawing from ancient Chinese medicine principles and modern biohacking techniques, Celluvac focuses on the enhancement of self-care and self-love practices.

Chinese medicine covers a broad range of practices over 2000 years old. Celluvac offers products incorporating some of these principles to help restore overall balance, working with the lymphatic system (lymph), circulatory system (blood) and chi (energy flow).

Biohacking is a do-it-yourself biology aimed at improving performance, health and wellbeing through strategic interventions. Celluvac comprises a small team of four women based in Cape Town. Authenticity and efficacy are incredibly important to the foundation of the brand, and immense passion is put into ensuring that quality and love make their way into each customer’s experience. It is a lifestyle business and forms an integral part of the co-founders’ lives, so much so that they have named their two pets after their top-sellers and company ethos - Crystal and Karma.

What sets the Celluvac crystal range apart: • Externally authenticated by GEMLAB SA (100% genuine crystals) • Ethically mined • Biodegradable packaging where possible • Not artificially dyed or treated • Authentic and natural • Direct after-sales support About the Co-founders: Defying regular education, Melanie formed a strong foundation in e-commerce at a young age. After taking a year off to delve deep into selfdiscovery, her entrepreneurial path took a major shift and Celluvac re-emerged with a new focus on health and wellness. Carol is a certified reflexologist, shiatsu practitioner, aromatherapist and reiki master who brings a lifetime of passion and experience in the alternative health industry. “By incorporating the use of crystals in my therapies, there is a profound enhancement in all the treatments,” she shares.