You can’t stop yourself from aging, but you can control the aging process for your skin. You may be wondering what foods are good for your skin to keep it firmer and younger-looking. The good news is that if you commit to eating healthier, you can help keep your skin looking young. Here are the 12 best foods for healthy, firm skin and nourishing your skin from the inside out.
Nutrition plays a very important role in health. An unhealthy diet can affect your metabolism, cause weight gain, and even damage organs in your body, such as your heart and liver. But what we eat also affects another organ – our skin. As scientists learn more about diet and the body, they’ve discovered that what we eat can dramatically affect the health and aging of our skin. Some foods have a positive effect on our skin. And here are 12 of them.
1. Fatty fish
Fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, and herring are great foods for healthy skin. They are a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are important for maintaining skin health. Omega-3 fatty acids are needed to help keep skin thick, soft, and moisturized. A deficiency in omega-3 fatty acids can cause dry skin.
The omega-3 fats in fish help reduce inflammation, which causes redness and acne. They can even make our skin less sensitive to the sun’s harmful UV rays. Some research shows that fish oil supplements can help fight inflammatory and autoimmune conditions that affect our skin, such as psoriasis and lupus erythematosus.
Fatty fish is also a good source of vitamin E, one of the most important antioxidants for one’s skin. Getting enough vitamin E is essential to help protect the skin against free radical damage and inflammation. In addition, fatty fish is also a good source of high-quality protein, which is needed to maintain the strength and integrity of the skin.
2. Avocado
Avocados are a vegetable high in healthy fats. These fats are beneficial for many functions in the body, including skin health. Sufficient intake of these fats is essential to help keep the skin supple while keeping it hydrated. A study involving more than 700 women found that a high intake of fats – especially the healthy fats found in avocados – was associated with skin suppleness and youthfulness.
Scientific evidence also shows that avocados contain compounds that may help protect skin from sun damage. The harmful effects of UV rays in the sun on the skin can cause wrinkles and other signs of aging.
Avocados are also a good source of vitamin E, an important antioxidant that helps protect the skin from oxidative damage. Most Americans do not get enough vitamin E through their diets. Interestingly, vitamin E works best when combined with vitamin C. Vitamin C is also essential for healthy skin. Your skin needs it to make collagen, which is the main structural protein that keeps skin firm and healthy.
Vitamin C is also an antioxidant that helps protect the skin from oxidative damage caused by the sun and the environment, which can lead to signs of aging.
3. Walnuts
Walnuts have many characteristics that make them a great food for healthy skin. They are a good source of essential fatty acids, which are fats that our bodies cannot synthesize on their own.
Walnuts are also richer than most other nuts in terms of both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that help reduce inflammation and slow skin aging. Furthermore, walnuts contain other nutrients that your skin needs to function properly and stay healthy.
According to statistics, every 28 grams of walnuts can contain 8% of the recommended daily requirement of zinc for an adult. Zinc is essential for our skin to function properly by creating a skin barrier. It is also needed for wound healing and fighting both bacteria and inflammation.
4. Sunflower seed
Overall, nuts are a great source of nutrients while promoting skin health. Sunflower seeds are a great example of this. About 28 grams of sunflower seeds contain 49% of the recommended daily requirement of vitamin E, 41% for selenium, 14% for zinc, and 5.5 grams of protein.
5. Sweet potato
Beta carotene is a nutrient found in plants. It functions like provitamin A, which means it can be converted to vitamin A in the body. Beta carotene is found in oranges and vegetables like carrots, spinach, and especially sweet potatoes. Carotenoids like beta carotene in sweet potatoes help keep your skin healthy by acting as a natural sunscreen.
When consumed, this type of antioxidant is delivered directly to the skin and helps protect skin cells from the sun. This can help prevent sunburn, tanning, and dryness. Interestingly, the amount of beta-carotene in the body can also contribute to a healthy skin tone.
6. Red or yellow bell pepper
Like sweet potatoes, bell peppers are an excellent source of beta-carotene, which the body can use to convert to vitamin A. On average, every 150 grams of chopped red bell peppers contains about 156% of the recommended amount. body’s daily recommendation for vitamin A.
They are also one of the best sources of vitamin C. This vitamin is needed to make collagen protein, which keeps the skin firm and healthy. A large-scale observational study showed that women who regularly ate bell peppers were able to slow down the skin aging process and reduce darkening, and dry skin more than women who did not regularly eat the fruit.
7. Broccoli
Broccoli contains many vitamins and minerals important for skin health, including zinc, vitamin A and vitamin C. Broccoli also contains lutein, a carotenoid that acts like beta carotene. Lutein helps protect the skin from oxidative damage, which can cause the skin to become dry and wrinkled.
In addition, broccoli also contains a special compound called sulforaphane, which may offer some impressive potential benefits. It may even have anti-cancer effects, including some types of skin cancer. Sulforaphane is also a powerful protector against sun damage. It works in two ways: Neutralizing harmful free radicals and activating other defense systems in our body.
In laboratory tests, sulforaphane was able to reduce the number of skin cells damaged by UV rays by 29%, with protection lasting up to 48 hours. More evidence also suggests that sulforaphane can also help maintain collagen levels in our skin.
8. Tomato
Tomatoes are also one of the great sources of vitamin C and contain all the major carotenoids, including lycopene. Beta carotene, lutein, and lycopene have been shown to protect against sun damage. They can also help prevent the appearance of wrinkles.
Since tomatoes are rich in carotenoids, they are a great food for maintaining healthy skin. Combining carotenoid-rich foods like tomatoes with a source of fat, such as cheese or olive oil, can be an ideal choice because fat can increase the body’s ability to absorb carotenoids. body.
9. Soybean
Soybeans contain isoflavones, a type of plant compound that can mimic the action of the hormone estrogen in the body. Isoflavones may benefit several parts of the body including the skin. One small study involving middle-aged women found that supplementing with soy isoflavones daily for 8-12 weeks reduced the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and improved skin elasticity.
In postmenopausal women, soy can also improve skin dryness and increase collagen production, which helps keep your skin smooth and strong.
Not only do these isoflavones help protect cells inside the body from damage, but they can also prevent UV exposure to the skin, which is one of the risk factors for skin cancer.
10. Black chocolate
The effect of dark chocolate on the skin is very impressive. In a recent study, after 6-12 weeks of consuming high-antioxidant dark chocolate powder daily, study participants had thicker and more hydrated skin. Their skin is also less rough, less sensitive to sunburn, and has better blood circulation – bringing more nutrients to the skin.
Another study found that eating 20 grams of high-antioxidant dark chocolate per day could allow the skin to withstand twice as much UV radiation before burning, compared to eating less chocolate. Antioxidants.
Several other studies have shown similar results, including improving the appearance of wrinkles.
11. Green tea
Green tea can help protect the skin from damage and aging. The powerful compounds found in green tea called catechins work to improve your skin health in several ways. Like some other antioxidant foods, green tea can help protect against sun damage.
A 12-week study of 60 women found that drinking green tea daily could reduce redness caused by sun exposure by up to 25%. Green tea also improves skin moisture, roughness, thickness, and elasticity.
Although green tea is a great choice for healthy skin, scientists recommend avoiding tea with milk because there is evidence that milk can reduce the effects of antioxidants on the body. green tea.
12. Red grapes
Red grapes are famous for containing resveratrol, a compound that is very rich in the skin of this fruit. Resveratrol is believed by many researchers to have many health benefits, among them being a reduction in the effects of the aging process. Test-tube studies show it can also help slow the production of harmful free radicals, which damage skin cells and cause signs of aging.
This beneficial compound is also found in red wine. Unfortunately, there’s not much evidence that the amount of resveratrol from one glass of red wine is enough to affect our skin health. And since red wine is an alcoholic beverage, drinking too much will have negative effects.
Perhaps we all know that what we eat can directly affect our general health in general and the health of our organs in particular, including our skin. To be able to optimally protect the skin against the attack of external factors such as radiation, sunlight, dirt… or internal factors such as free radicals, you need to Make sure you’re getting all the nutrients you need.
