When it comes to the stuff that isn’t so good for us to eat, sodium can be one of the sneakiest buggers out there. It’s so easy to consume hundreds, even thousands of milligrams of sodium without even realizing it. And no, we don’t mean that in the had five drinks and woke up next to an empty Doritos bag kind of way. For the most part.

It probably isn’t news to you that consistently consuming an excess of sodium can lead to a variety of health issues. But did you know that it also takes a toll on your skin?

Sodium and your skin

The main reason sodium has such an impact on skin is because consuming too much sodium leads to dehydration. Dehydration leads to thin, dry and vulnerable skin that is more susceptible to developing the visible signs of aging, such as wrinkles, and also leads to dark circles around the eyes and puffiness in the eye and cheek area. Well, puffiness all over the body, really, because sodium causes crazy bloating.

What you can do

The most obvious step to helping your skin recover from excess sodium consumption is to consume less sodium. There are a few obvious culprits when it comes to sodium, such as salty snacks like chips and crackers, but you also need to be on the lookout for processed foods like canned soup, macaroni and cheese, and frozen pizza. A regular portion of one of these items can eat up almost your entire day’s allotment of sodium. Also try to limit the salt you add to your food from the salt shaker, either during cooking or while it’s on your plate. Experiment with other spices instead, or flavor with fresh lime juice.

The other two most important things you can do to help your skin deal with dehydration is drink lots of water, and moisturize. A premium moisturizer like Dead Sea Premier’s Refining Moisture Cream will restore your skin’s moisture content to leave it soft and smooth.