Emily Griffin

A healthy lifestyle involves more than the occasional bowl of kale, as industry leaders gathering for the inaugural W.E.L.L. Summit will tell you. Here, some participating experts share little changes for more wholesome living before making their way to the Wyndham Boston on Nov. 6-8.

When Gianne Doherty’s go-to products started making her break out in hives, her boyfriend offered to whip up organic body butter. That led her to research the mainstream beauty industry (“I found much more than I bargained for”), launch skin care line Organic Bath Co. and, now, spearhead the conference.

Her tip: Oil up. “Don’t be afraid of organic oils! You can do so much with them: Clean your face, moisturize your skin, tame hair flyaways. So many people shy away from oils because they’re afraid of breakouts. But the truth is, high-quality oils attract other oils—lifting excess oil, dirt
and makeup away for soft, clean skin.”

As a beauty editor, Jolene Hart had access to products and treatments that promised to clear acne and eczema, but it wasn’t until she changed her diet that she uncovered the real culprit. “I wanted to bring nutrition to the conversation about beauty,” says the health coach and author of Eat Pretty, “because it was totally absent.”

Her tip: Take a coffee break. “Coffee does pack a lot of antioxidants, but its caffeine is often a Band-Aid for other energy and blood sugar issues. Caffeine interferes with the absorption of important beauty minerals like zinc, iron and calcium, and suppresses the production of the happiness-boosting neurotransmitter serotonin.”

Emily Griffin once struggled with digestive and energy issues, but notes, “I felt such a positive shift in my body and mindset after I started to practice yoga.” The Prana Power Yoga instructor and Down Under Yoga faculty member is also a practitioner of Ayurveda, which she credits with helping her regain a healthy balance.

Her tip: Pencil yourself in. “Take 10 minutes to do one of two things: During a lunch break, take a brisk walk around the block, or choose your favorite relaxing yoga pose before bed to be still, close your eyes and let your body calm down. Either way, shut off your phone and focus on even breaths. You can even use counts… inhale 1-2-3, exhale 3-2-1.”

At the start of her makeup career, Rebecca Casciano grew irritated when topical treatments were exacerbating her chronic cystic acne. To find the root of the problem, the beauty and wellness coach says, “I transitioned to a mostly vegan diet and began exploring my spirituality and yoga, as well as ancient healing modalities such as acupuncture.”

Her tip: Toss the toxins. “Commercial makeup brands are full of ingredients that can be harmful to both our skin and body. The next time you run out of your favorite foundation or lipstick, try out a new, non-toxic one instead. The top two makeup items I advise my clients to swap out for healthier versions are foundation—because it covers the largest area of our face—and lipstick—because we unconsciously ingest it. Look for products that are plant-based and contain ingredients you can (mostly) pronounce.”