Supplements for your skin: why I don't post tips, I give advice

Almost every week, someone sits in my treatment room and lists everything currently in their bathroom cabinet: magnesium, collagen, ashwagandha, plus some powder they ordered online. When I ask why exactly those, the answer is usually: I saw it somewhere. And that is exactly where the problem starts. Not because supplements are bad. But because your feed doesn't know what you are missing.

Your skin is a late indicator

Your body is quite pragmatic about this: heart, brain and organs get supplied first, your skin gets what is left. So by the time your skin shows that something is missing, it has usually been missing for a while. It just won't tell you what.

Same skin, different causes

Take dull, tired skin. We actually see this a lot in the studio, and there can be very different things behind it:

• Low iron: less oxygen reaches the tissue, the complexion turns pale.

• Blood sugar spikes: this is where glycation happens, meaning sugar sticks to your collagen fibres. The skin looks tired and loses a bit of its firmness.

• Too little omega-3: the skin barrier becomes more permeable, and a silent inflammation smoulders in the tissue.

Three times the same picture, three different causes. If you just start supplementing blindly, you might get lucky and hit the right one. Or you might hit nothing at all. The good news: you don't have to figure this out on your own.

Supplements aren't sweets

Here is what really matters to me: anything strong enough to change something can also change something you actually wanted to keep.

• Ashwagandha calms a lot of people down really well. But some tell me they feel like they are behind glass. That is called emotional blunting.

• Zinc sounds harmless, but it competes with copper for absorption. Too much of it over time shifts the balance.

• Vitamins A, D, E and K are fat-soluble. Too much isn't simply flushed out, it builds up in the body.

That is why dose, combination and timing should be talked through, ideally with someone who knows your full picture. And if you take medication, are pregnant or planning to be: please always check with your doctor as well. That is not a throwaway line, I mean it.

What you can already do today

Before you spend money on capsules, get the basics right. They are unspectacular, but they make a huge difference:

• Flip the order: vegetables and protein first, carbs after. Same meal, noticeably flatter blood sugar.

• Don't skip protein: your skin is built from it. Collagen, repair, all of it.

• Feed your omega-3: oily fish or algae oil, both strengthen the barrier.

• Sleep: your skin repairs itself at night. Without sleep, every supplement is rowing against the current.

And if you do supplement, do it based on need, not on trend. A blood test at your doctor's tells you more than any story.

How nutrition counselling works with us

That is exactly why we brought nutrition and supplement counselling into the studio. Jordaine looks at your real everyday life with you: what you eat, when you eat, what can realistically change. No dogma, no lists of forbidden foods. You leave with two or three concrete tasks, and at the next appointment we look together at what they changed.

Because skin health is connected inside and out, every session includes an Observ skin analysis, plus a short assessment from me. That way we can see in black and white what is shifting, instead of guessing.

What does it cost?

The first conversation takes 20 minutes and costs nothing. After that comes the evaluation, a good hour just for you. Both first sessions together: 75 €. Booking is online as always.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to change my whole diet?

No. It is about better patterns in your real life, not a whole new lifestyle. Usually two or three small adjustments change more than any radical plan.

Does the counselling replace a doctor's visit?

No. Blood values and symptoms belong in a doctor's hands. If we think something should be checked, we'll tell you openly. That is simply how we work.

How quickly do you see something on the skin?

Skin renews itself in cycles of about four weeks. So give it four to twelve weeks. The Observ analysis makes visible what the eye can't see yet.

I already take supplements. Is the counselling still worth it?

Especially then. We look at what actually suits you, what might be getting in each other's way, and where you can honestly save money.

What a lot of people don't know: with us, counselling doesn't mean walking out with a long shopping list. Usually it is the opposite. First understand, then treat. That goes for creams just as much as for capsules.