Feed Your Face – Foods For Healthy Skin
Eat Your Way To Beautiful Skin
A healthy diet is about so much more than your weight, choosing foods that are good for your skin will do a great deal to help improve your overall appearance.
Unlike your body you cannot hide your face and therefore it stands to reason that people want their face to look the best it possibly can. Eating the wrong kinds of foods can lead to an unhealthy looking complexion and at worse some foods may cause premature ageing and wrinkles.
Many dermatologists believe that sound nutrition is the key to beautiful, glowing skin. You can achieve noticeable changes to your skin by rethinking your diet and eating the foods good for skin.
The basic diet for healthy skin is as follows:
- Avoid processed foods, choose natural foods
- Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables
- Choose low fat sources of protein
- Eat complex carbohydrates
- Drink fresh, clean (bottled if necessary) water
- Avoid sugar and simple carbohydrates
Why Do Certain Foods Result In Clear Skin?
Eating the best foods for skin, a good skincare regime and facial exercises will help to repair cellular damage caused to skin by the environment, stress and the ageing process. Over time the millions of cells that make up our skin become damaged and this is what leads to wrinkles and a dull complexion.
If you choose to eat food for good skin you will be helping your skin to repair itself and this will result in a better appearance.
There are certain foods that are powerhouses when it comes to the skin so what are the best choices we can make?
1) Fruit And Vegetables
Fresh fruits and vegetables are key foods when it comes to creating a beautiful complexion. Many of nature’s super foods are found in the fruit and vegetable category. Excellent choices in this group include:
Berries – Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries are excellent foods for good skin because of the high levels of anti-oxidants they contain. Anti-oxidants may help to protect your cells against harmful free radicals that can be responsible for damaging cells and may cause certain illnesses and disease.
- Strawberry – Contains cancer fighting ellagic acid and high levels of the skin-friendly vitamin C.
- Raspberry – Contain 4 grams of fiber per cup and contain high levels of skin-friendly anti-oxidants.
- Blueberries – Packed with anti-oxidants and considered to be one of the fruit super foods.
Tomatoes and tomato pastes – These are high in lycopene, which is a pigment that helps in the fight against ageing. Tomatoes are also high in anti-oxidants and these help to protect against the damage caused by free radicals.
Bell Peppers/Capsicums – Red, green, yellow and orange peppers contain high levels of anti-oxidants and vitamin C and are also good sources of vitamins A, E, K and B1.
Leafy greens – Vegetables in this category include, salad greens, kale and spinach. High in vitamins A, C, E and K these foods are good for your skin because they contribute to maintenance of healthy skin tissue.
Carrots – Carrots are high in anti-oxidants, carotene and vitamin A. These help to protect the skin from free radicals, carotene can also help in minimizing skin damage caused by the sun.
2) Good Fats
Good fats are essential for glowing skin as these can help to moisturize the skin from the inside. A low fat diet may help you to lose weight but without good fats in your diet your skin, hair and nails can appear dry, dull and brittle.
Good fats help to restore moisture and can relieve dry skin and dry skin conditions such as eczema. Excellent sources of good fats include:
Avocado – Contains skin-friendly vitamins A, C, E and K that help to improve skin health and keep your skin glowing and supple looking.
Walnuts – Walnuts contain linoleic acid, vitamin E and zinc that help to maintain the skin’s structure and keep it well hydrated. Including walnuts in your diet may help to improve the softness and smoothness of your skin.
Seeds – Seeds such as sunflower, sesame and pumpkin contain good fats and essential nutrients. Scatter them over salads as an easy way to include them in your diet.
3) Essential Fatty Acids
Omega 3 and Omega 6 are essential fatty acids. Omega 3 is found in oily fish and plant sources such as flax oil and linseeds. Omega 6 is found in sunflower, safflower and corn oils.
Fatty acids improve the general health of your skin cells and keep your skin looking plump and hydrated.
Oily Fish – This is an essential ‘good skin’ food and includes fish such as salmon, mackerel and sardines.
4) Eggs
Eggs are a good source of biotin, which is a nutrient that forms the basis of our skin, hair and nails. They are also high in protein and packed with skin-friendly vitamins A and B.
5) Drinks
Pure water is good for the skin and making sure you drink enough water is one of the most well known pieces of advice when it comes to skin care.
Green tea is an excellent drink for the skin because of it has strong anti-oxidant properties.
Rooibos or Redbush tea is also naturally high in anti-oxidants and caffeine free.
A Multi-Targeted Approach To Better Skin
A good diet is just one step you can take towards improving your skin. Your best defense is a multi-targeted approach and facial exercises can help to speed up the results. A diet that includes skin super foods can do much to help the overall appearance of your skin but cannot help with sagging and problem areas like the jowls, under eye puffiness and double chins.
Combine facial exercises with a healthy diet and you will be on your way to achieving the glowing, rejuvenated skin you desire.