EMPOWERED BEAUTY: 5-DAY CHALLENGE www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. EMPOWERED BEAUTY: YOUR GUIDE TO NATURAL SKIN AND SELF CARE Hello Beautiful and thank you for downloading your Empowered Beauty 5 Day Challenge! I know a few things about skin care. These are my before and after photos of what my skin used to look like. My acne started when I was 14 and only went away a few years ago after I completely cleaned up my diet and switched to natural skin care products even though I had tried EVERY SINGLE PRODUCT you can imagine before that. The photo on the left is from 2001. I was 28, had 2 kids, was doing my MA in English and Comparative Literature and this was the face I had to walk out with everyday. You can see my acne on my forehead, chin, cheeks--all over really. Except no-one really saw it like that because I had it covered up with about 6 inches of heavy foundation and concealer every day. But if it was a hot day, as that day was, the makeup would slide right off because my complexion was just SO oily. Yup. www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. And my face looked like that since I was about 14 when my acne first started and it's the face I had up until about 4 years ago. The second photo is me last year. I still have my freckles but my acne is completely gone. I don't need to use heavy foundation any more--just a little bit of tinted moisturiser, eyeliner, mascara and lipgloss. And not every day. Most days I don’t put anything on my face at all. My name is Dana Dinnawi and I am a holistic health and wellness lifestyle coach. I want to empower you to balance your hormones naturally and get out of the cycle of yo-yo dieting. I want you to understand--and not just follow blindly---why and how food works for or against your body. I want you to take back control of your body and health because when you do that, you take back control of your life and when THAT happens, you can create a guilt-free lifestyle that fills you up every. single. day. And the most important pieces for you are weight loss; energy; focus and CONFIDENCE in your clothes and how you look. Yes, you want to LOOK AND feel good. And while my nutrition programs get results for weight loss, losing inches, and regaining energy and focus, it was a natural transition for me to create a guide that focuses on creating beauty from the inside out—through your skin. I have personally experienced the trauma, (yes trauma), of bad skin and how that can shake your confidence. My acne just wouldn’t budge no matter what I tried, or what new medication my new dermatologist gave me or what new cream or procedure (and there were some very severe procedures) to get rid of the acne and to reduce the scarring. It all worked but with very short-term results. Nothing was sustainable and nothing gave me back my confidence. I could NEVER leave the house without a heavy layer of foundation to cover my insecurity. Right now I have a very different complexion—no more acne, no more trauma, no more daily foundation to go out and much more confidence. And I want to show you how to do that too. www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. I created this challenge to show you how to restore and rebalance your skin from within—because, as I’ve personally experienced, that’s where skin is REALLY restored, not by using topical chemical toxins that only add to your skin’s burden. My skin improved dramatically after I changed what I ate, but the real transformation happened when I also changed my commercial products and prioritized self care. And restoring your skin’s balance isn’t just for acne. It’s for any skin issue you may be experiencing—wrinkles, sagging skin, dark spots, or a basic lack of “life”. We only get one shot at life—where we feel energetic, and confident in our body and skin. Which means . we have to make the most of the time we have. You feel you're ready for change. You’re ready to feel better in yourself. And you’re ready to try something new. That’s what this Empowered Beauty challenge is all about. Let’s get started! Dana www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Skin Deep Did you know that the average woman uses up to 12 products per day containing anywhere up to 168 toxic ingredients, making one of our most coveted routines – our morning and evening facial washing rituals – one of the most dangerous if we don’t use the right products? That's because your skin is a “breathable” organ. Up to 60% of what you apply topically on your skin will be absorbed into your bloodstream within 26 seconds. 26 seconds. That's faster than absorption through digestion. Most cosmetic companies do NOT list their ingredients, aka toxic chemicals, because they are not required to do so. And several of these toxic chemicals are linked to a host of problems including: allergies, skin rashes, cancer, headaches, fertility and reproductive issues, birth defects, hormone inhibitors, and more. Fortunately, heightened awareness and potential dangers have caused consumers to take a closer look at what they put on their skin and demand safer alternatives. Take a look at your favorite products and see if you find some of these toxic chemicals listed: • Parabens – often found in deodorants and moisturizers, parabens are hormone inhibitors and believed to accelerate tumor growth • Artificial fragrance and color – may trigger allergies, asthma, and some colors contain lead and harmful dyes • Toulene – found in nail polish, hair color products, and some fragrances, this chemical is linked to kidney and liver damage, which may affect fetal growth • Sodium Lauryl Sulfate/Sodium Laureth Sulfate – a foaming agent found in shampoos and body/facial washes, it dries out the skin and is linked to eczema, hair loss, rashes, and dry and scaly skin. • Formaldehyde – used as a preservative, formaldehyde is known by several different names and should be avoided at all costs, as the side effects are numerous • PEG’s – found in numerous skin and personal care products, this is anti-freeze and should be used in for your car, not your skin! • Paraffin/Mineral Oil/Petrolatum – clogs pores, causing toxic build-up • Phthalates – found in plastics, it is a known hormone disruptor www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. • Triclosan – used in anti-bacterial products, it is a pesticide, harmful to the environment, and a suspected carcinogenic Of course, there are more, but you get the point. You can look up what’s in your skin care products by visiting one of my favorite sites: http://www.ewg.org If you wouldn’t EAT it, it doesn’t belong on your SKIN. But WHAT you DO eat is equally as important if not more more so when it comes to the quality of your skin. Your Gut and Your Skin Skin issues are definitely not skin-deep. Skin is the largest organ in our body, and it reflects the condition inside our body. The best way to relieve skin problems is to fix the root cause so that they can be taken care of once and for all. And the root cause (as with all chronic conditions) lies in your gut. Your skin is also the largest detoxifying organ in your body. It is your first line of defense! The minute you ingest something of a chemical nature or an allergen or experience a stressful situation, your skin reacts by breaking out by trying to expel the toxins, whether those we consider real poisons or the ones emitted by our stress hormones. This is when your skin is telling you that you are out of balance, that you are doing things that are not serving you, that it is not the time to cover it all up with the fanciest concealers, but instead it is time to undergo a major clean-up. These are some possible causes of skin conditions: • Poor digestion and absorption • Not enough "good" bacteria (gut flora) in the digestive tract • Overgrowth of candida yeast • Leaky gut • Cold sores -immune system is trying to fight off internal infection • Rash or hives = allergic reaction to food or medications • Yellowish skin tone = problem with liver www.danadinnawi.com These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. • Vitamin A deficiency produces skin congestion through over-keratinization of skin cells • Vitamin A and zinc deficiencies lead to lowered ability to fight infection • Lack of friendly bacteria in the digestive tract leads to lowered ability to fight infection If you who want that youthful, glowing skin that’s a reflection of the healthy you, of healthy intestines, of healthy and unclogged lymphatic system (your body’s garbage disposal system), you need to start with a cleanse and apply the following: Remove or limit all sources of wheat, dairy, sugar, processed oils, processed foods, caffeine, alcohol and soy.