,type=downsize)
Do you ever watch the red carpet and wonder how starslike Jennifer Lopez and Blake Lively get their glow? Well, now you can get it for yourself thanks to celebritynutritionist Peggy Kotsopoulos! Ahead of the Oscars, the health guru revealed to HELLO! the secret to achieving celebrity-grade red carpet radiance and told us the best foods to ensure your skin is always camera ready.
To prepare for your close-up, Peggy recommends eating olives and olive oil, as well as sweetpotatoes, watermelon and cucumber. “A natural alternative to expensivemoisturizer, olive oil provides hydration and inside-out moisture,” she explained. Meanwhile, sweetpotatoes, she revealed, are a must because they're rich in Beta Carotene, which the body convertsto Vitamin A – "a powerful anti-oxidant which has strong anti-aging benefits andprotects against oxidative stress and UV damage.”
A juiced cucumber can be used as a facial toner, Peggy tells HELLO! Photo: Katherine O’Sullivan
Eating watermelon, which is next on her list, can sometimes be messy it but isessential for having healthy-looking hair and skin, which is why Peggy suggests WTRMLN WTR. “It’smy absolute favorite source of these nutrients and celebs like Sofia Vergara, Taylor Swift and Madonna love it, too,” she admitted. “I drink [it] asa beauty tonic because it is rich in antioxidants vitamin C and vitamin A [and it is] loaded with Lycopene.”
Madonna and Taylor Swift are fans of the beautifying powers of watermelon Photo: Getty Images
The final menu item that is key for the celebrity nutritionistis cucumber – important to eat because of its skin, which contains collagen-strengtheningsilica that strengthens connective tissues, muscles, hair and nails. Peggy said, “Cucumber’s rich watercontent helps to hydrate skin from the inside out, giving off that youthful glow."
Another helpful tip, she said, is to “juice the entire cucumber, dab with a cottonpad and smooth over face as a skin-rejuvenating a toner.”
Those looking to achieve the celebrity red carpet glow should bid adieu to alcohol and reduce their sodium intake, the health expert instructed. Removing those from your diet will help reduce puffiness and water retention.
Now that you know what you should and shouldn’t eat, here is Peggy's 3-step guide to achieving the glow of the stars:
Blake Lively and Michelle Williams are fans of juice cleanses Photos: FilmMagic/Getty Images
1. Clear out the toxins."Juicecleansing is all the rage when it comes to anyone's pre-red carpet regime. Celebritieslike Blake Lively and Michelle Williams claim this secret weapon helps themfeel energized, makes their skin glow, and peels off pounds effortlessly. Green Juicingprovides an instant surge of nutrients to the blood stream helping to cleartoxins from the body, which results in increased energy, clearer skin andbrighter eyes. A cucumber base increases the beauty effect."
2. Exfoliate."Countlesscelebrities, such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Victoria Beckham make their own exfoliating scrubs. Start aweek before your event with ground coffee. Caffeine is anatural anti-inflammatory that temporarily reduces the appearance of dimples bysmoothing out the area. It also helps tighten skin and blood vessels, breaksdown fatty deposits and reduces water retention by sucking excess fluid out ofcells — making you appear thinner and more toned. Mixing it with a carrier oilsuch as extra virgin olive oil helps to hydrate and smooth skin at the sametime."
Gwyneth Paltrow makes her own natural exfoliants Photo: Getty Images
3. Stay hydrated!"If you want a flawless, youthful and glowy complexion, hydrationis key. Proper hydration reduces the appearance of wrinkles, eliminates drynessand helps with elasticity. Drinkhalf your body weight in ounces of water to clear your complexion and boostenergy. One of the number one causes of fatigue is dehydration. And the samegoes for aged skin. Nothing will give you more of a youthful glow thanhydrating your skin from the inside out with water. It helps to flush toxinsfrom the body and keeps skin supple.
Watermelon, whether eaten or juiced, is rich in potassium Photo: Getty Images
"Watermelonis one of the best ways to stay hydrated. Made up of mostly water, and rich inelectrolytes, particularly potassium, which is essential for hydration on thecellular level. It keeps your skin flawless and fresh looking from the insideout. WTRMLN WTR [cold-pressed juiced watermelon], contains the rind, which is rich invitamin C, a powerful antioxidant that firms up skin and helps to slow theaging process. And it also contains L-Citrulline, which acts as a vasodilatorhelping to deliver oxygen to all the cells in your body, and is also great forglowing skin. Plus, it’s rich in antioxidant Lycopene (way more than tomatoes),which helps build our skin-firming collagen and prevents against UV damage."