Food for Healthy Skin

Are you really what you eat? When it comes to the health of your skin, you certainly are.

Just as food affects your heart, your cholesterol level and your blood pressure, food affects the health of your skin as well. Potions and lotions can do their best to help you look better on the outside, but eating right can truly nourish the skin from the inside out.

For a head to toe beauty boost, be sure to eat a wide variety of foods from all the food groups.

Seafood
You probably know that omega-3 fatty acids are good for your heart — but did you know they’re good for your skin too? Omega-3s are actually a group of several nutrients, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), none of which the body can produce on its own. They’re found mainly in coldwater fish and help keep the cell membrane strong (the skin is made up of cells, and the cell membrane is the outside layer of the cell), preventing harm from the outside from getting in.

Fish is also a great source of protein, an essential building block for healthy skin.
Fish high in omega-3s include salmon, mackerel, cod and tuna (particularly the albacore and bluefin varieties). If fish isn’t your thing, look for eggs high in omega-3s or go for flaxseed, almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts.

Berries
Berries, especially blueberries and strawberries, are high in antioxidants, chemicals that protect the cells by combating the free radicals that damage skin at a cellular level. Free radicals are by-products that form when oxygen is used by the body, almost like how an apple gets brown when you cut it open and expose it to the air. Antioxidants interrupt that damaging process.

Want healthy, youthful skin? Try these skin-nourishing foods.

Green tea
Green tea is a chock full of phytochemicals, chemical compounds that occur naturally in plants. It’s particularly high in one called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) which is protective against UV-induced skin damage.

Kiwis
Higher in vitamin C than oranges, this tangy treat can help maintain the skin’s collagen. Collagen is the most plentiful protein in the skin, providing its scaffolding. Collagen is what gives the skin its strength, to help it repair damage and keep it strong and elastic. A recent study found that women with higher C intake from foods had significantly fewer wrinkles.

Olive oil
While too much saturated fat in the diet can be unhealthy, cutting fat out altogether can leave you with dry, flaky skin that’s unable to lubricate itself properly. Olive oil, a good monounsaturated fat, contains linoleic acid, a compound that does not allow water to evaporate from the skin. Consumption of linoleic acid in their diet allows you to get less age-related dryness and skin thinning.

Source: youbeauty.com