​We are in the last mini-vacation of this summer, and many choose the sea for recreation. At the same time, we are in the midst of the holiday season and more and more people are looking to postpone their holidays to September also because of the heat, crowds or high prices of the summer months. Since the sea and the beach are a favorite place for a mini-vacation or rest in the warm season, we wondered how to properly prepare for the beach and tan to avoid surprises and burns on the skin. Surprise: preparing for the beach should not only consist of applying protective creams, lotions or oils, but ideally should start at home, 8-10 weeks before the vacation, right from the plate of food that we put on the table.

“Tanning is a burning process, burning at the dermatological level”

When it comes to the beach, we think about how the skin looks, how the hair looks, how the nails look, how we stay in the sun in such a way as to have the most beautiful and long-lasting tan, Ligia Alexandrescu explains to HotNews.ro , sports nutrition consultant, food nutrition education and communication.

“We like our tan, we want it to last as long as possible, but tanning is a burning process. This means the burning process at the dermatological level, it means premature aging and the appearance of wrinkles. And then, using only creams and external means, the result is short-lived and we are not talking about deep preparation,” says Ligia Alexandrescu.

Lihiia Alexandrescu, nutritionist / Photo: Agerpres

Carrots, red peppers and lots of hydration

What else to do besides lotions and protective creams? Few of us think about it, but according to a nutritionist, preparation should begin at least 10 weeks before we constantly expose our bodies to the sun: “Of course, we walk under the sun every day, we are exposed to the sun, but the entire surface of the skin exposed only on vacation. And then, 8-10 weeks before a trip to the sea, the beach, on vacation, it is necessary to take care of the skin not only externally, with creams, lotions and everything that means care products, but also from the inside: it is necessary, first of all, it is time to increase amount of beta-carotene, which means eating at least one carrot, orange or red bell pepper every day, or any food – fruit or vegetable – with a dark pigment that prepares the skin for exposure to the sun.”

Another important step is good hydration, practiced before vacation: “just as plants need sun and water, we also need good hydration. We also need to keep our skin softened, lubricated and cared for, but the biggest need is hydration. And hydration takes place at the cellular level with the help of high-quality water and constant water consumption – we are talking about the 40 milliliters of water per kilogram of the body per day that must be provided.”

Carrot / Oleg Doroshenko | Dreamstime.com

Quality meat should also not be missing from our menu: “Here I mean turkey meat and everything that means fatty fish, for example, salmon. At least 3 times a week, 150 grams of these protein products should be consumed so that amino acids are the basis for the recovery and loading of the dermis. This is due to the fact that the action of ultraviolet rays causes, as I said, burning, it causes burning, and we need a good intake of vitamins to be able to heal this burning at that time,” says Ligia Alexandrescu.

Salads and dark fruits should not be missing on the table during holidays

There are also natural and synthetic creams that we use on the beach. Do not forget that these creams are applied not only in the morning, but also every 2-3 hours of being in the sun. So are beta-carotene oils, says the nutritionist.

Fruit salad / Teodororoianu | Dreamstime.com

As for the holiday diet, “it’s ideal to try to eat fruit salads and desserts at every main meal – dark fruits are most recommended to protect the skin from the inside,” he explains. Lihiia Alexandrescu.

And last but not least, moisturizing is good both internally and externally: “After the beach, wash your face with natural Romanian mineral water in such a way that we can rehydrate the skin. The French, for example, have had this culture of using thermal waters for hundreds of years. We have our own mineral water and can safely rinse our face with it after being in the sun to restore the salts in the skin at the level of the face,” the nutritionist advised.

Photo: Dreamstime.com.