Improve Skin Health Naturally By Eating These Foods

Written By Finnegan Pierson / Reviewed By Ray Spotts

In the past, it was believed that eating lots of chocolate and other sweet foods caused your face to break out in blemishes. Science has yet to definitively prove the link between junk food and acne. Nevertheless, what you eat can affect skin health.

Skin is the largest organ of your body, and like other organs, it requires nutrients to grow. The nutrients needed to keep your skin healthy and youthful looking come from the foods you eat. Here is a closer look at foods that help improve your skin.

Fatty Fish

Foods that are high in fats are considered unhealthy. However, there are good fats and bad fats. Omega-3 fatty acids are the good kind. They benefit your overall health in many different ways. Some of the ways they benefit your skin are by making you less sensitive to ultraviolet radiation, reducing inflammation, and keeping your skin moisturized.

Herring, mackerel, and salmon are fatty fish that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids. You can eat out where they are prepared perfectly with the proper restaurant equipment, or you can learn to prepare them at home.

Red Grapes

Resveratrol is a compound that helps to slow the production of free radicals, which cause signs of skin aging by damaging the cells of the skin. Better skin health is just one of the many health benefits that resveratrol may have to offer, as demonstrated through test-tube studies.

Resveratrol is found in the peels of red grapes, which means that eating them may help to improve the health of your skin. To be sure that you are getting adequate amounts of resveratrol, it is best to eat fresh red grapes.

Raisins come in both light-colored and dark-colored varieties, but they are all made from green grapes. Sun-dried raisins turn brown with exposure to UV rays much the same way that human skin does. As for red wine, it may contain resveratrol, but not in sufficient quantities to benefit your skin, according to research.

Green Tea

Green tea contains antioxidant compounds called catechins that improve skin elasticity and moisture while also protecting against sun damage. Green tea is also high in caffeine, meaning that you can do your body some good while you are getting your daily fix.

Soy

As women get older, a decrease in estrogen can cause the collagen in the skin to break down, making it less strong and supple. Isoflavones in soy can mimic the effects of estrogen on the body, potentially increasing the production of collagen. This helps prevent wrinkling and skin dryness, even potentially reversing it.

Tomatoes

Vitamin C is necessary to help your body produce collagen. Tomatoes are an excellent source of vitamin C as well as other nutrients that help support skin health, including lycopene and lutein.

Eating fat along with tomatoes helps your body to absorb these other nutrients, which means eating tomatoes in a dish that includes a fat source, such as olive oil or cheese, is encouraged.

Sweet Potatoes

Vitamin A acts as a natural sunblock, protecting your skin from damaging UV radiation. Beta carotene is a nutrient found in plants that the body converts into vitamin A. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of beta carotene, and the vitamin A they produce helps to prevent wrinkling, skin dryness, and sunburn.

If you eat enough beta carotene, it may alter the color of your skin, giving it a warm glow like a natural sunless tanner. Other foods that are high in beta carotene include tomatoes and bell peppers, especially the yellow and red varieties.

Broccoli

Broccoli contains vitamin A, vitamin C, and other important skin health minerals, such as zinc. It also contains sulforaphane, a compound that helps to maintain collagen levels and prevent skin damage. You may not be able to eat all these foods. For example, some people are allergic to soy.

You should also not eat any one of these foods daily in the interest of skin health. Rather, you should integrate them all into your overall food plan as part of a diet that is healthy and balanced.

Looking for 100% chemical-free, all-natural nourishing face and body oils? Check out Earth & Elm Nourishing Face Oil and Earth & Elm Nourishing Body Oil. Subscribe to our Trusted Health Club newsletter for more information about natural living tips, natural health, oral care, skincare, body care and foot care. If you are looking for more health resources check out the Trusted Health Resources list. 

Written By:

Finnegan Pierson loves business and has a passion for health and technology. Even more interesting is the combination of the two. As a freelance writer, Finn hopes to influence others so they can have positive life experiences.

Reviewed By:

Founder Ray Spotts has a passion for all things natural and has made a life study of nature as it relates to health and well-being. Ray became a forerunner bringing products to market that are extraordinarily effective and free from potentially harmful chemicals and additives. For this reason Ray formed Trusted Health Products, a company you can trust for clean, effective, and healthy products. Ray is an organic gardener, likes fishing, hiking, and teaching and mentoring people to start new businesses. You can get his book for free, “How To Succeed In Business Based On God’s Word,” at www.rayspotts.com.

Photo by Jason Briscoe on Unsplash