10 Foods to Make Your Skin Glow

Did you know there are plenty of foods in your local grocery store that can give make your skin glow? Now, I am as big a fan of a skin supplement as the next beauty obsessive, but not everyone can afford to bolster their skin care regimen with supplements. Luckily, there are plenty of foods that you can factor into your diet that will work to boost that all-important luminous complexion from the inside out!

Easy to Digest

In fact, most extracts or isolated minerals/compounds found in ingestible pills can be easier found in food, making their intake more enjoyable, safer, economic and a more realistic approach to a sustainable lifestyle targeting healthy skin.

Several studies have shown improved skin health following a whole plant food-based diet. A combination of a low glycemic diet (food that keeps our blood sugars under control), fortified with the necessary vitamins and minerals will lead to a healthier skin from the inside and outside.

That Gut Feeling

Recent research has suggested a strong link between a healthy gut and healthy skin. Whole foods, soluble and insoluble fiber, omega-3 fats, leafy vegetables can have a beneficial influence on gut health, in part by improving gut motility. Fiber can also bind to and excrete excess hormones that contribute to poor skin health.

We’re all human, but if you can aim to eat a healthy, low-GI diet as often as possible (we like to aim for 80:20, 80 percent of the time being healthy and 20 percent of the time treating ourselves), then your complexion will thank you.

To help you supercharge your healthy eating regimen, we reveal the foods that can help your skin look its glowing best!

1. Nuts

Almonds are rich in selenium and zinc, walnuts are rich in omega-3 and 6 fatty acids, they help purify their blood as well as nourishing the skin. Both help keep the skin and glowing. Try to soak nuts before eating them for as long as possible to make digestion super easy.

2. Avocado

Avocado is rich in vitamin E, which is related to skin health, working as an antioxidant, therefore, protecting skin cells from damage from free radicals. 

3. Berries

Anthocyanidins are a good nutrient to look out for. Anthocyanidins are what give berries their dark purple color. Anthocyanidins belong to a group of plant compounds known as flavonoids. It is an antioxidant which is very important for supporting collagen structures in the skin.

4. Dark Chocolate

Rich in flavonoids, dark chocolate provides antioxidants that help prevent skin damage. Aim to eat dark chocolate with 80% cacao. Chocolate for making your skin glow? Yes, pleas!

5. Dragon Fruit

A good source of vitamins A, C, and E, dragon fruit also provides magnesium which is required for some 300 enzymes in the body. Enzymes speed things up, including cell regeneration! Good magnesium levels improve all cellular processes, including hormone balancing. Cortisol is involved in the stress response and contributes to the aging process.

6. Flax Seeds

Studies have shown consuming flax seeds reduces skin sensitivity and improves skin barrier function. By consuming flaxseeds, you also benefit from the whole food and its other nutritional properties (it’s high in fiber, protein, minerals), you can bake it and even grind it up to maximize absorption and store it for up to a month without any spoilage.

7. Papaya Fruit

This fruit assists digestion, hydrates and is a good source of vitamins A and C. The skin is a reflection of digestive health, and vitamin A helps to maintain the integrity of both the dermis and epidermis (both layers of skin). Vitamins A and C also play a protective role in the skin, helping with sun damage.

8. Oily Fish

Think sardines, salmon, trout, and herring. These are rich in omega 3 fatty acids that provide anti-inflammatory compounds called prostaglandins to reduce and control inflammation (most skin conditions are some form of inflammation from acne to psoriasis and between). Oily fish also supply vitamin E and zinc, which are essential for skin health and certainly can’t hurt to help make your skin glow.

9. Oysters

Oysters are one of the highest sources of zinc. This important mineral helps to maintain the structural integrity of the skin and is six times more concentrated in the upper layer as compared with the lower layer of skin. Zinc lessens free radical damage and protects lipids in the skin (think collagen, plumpness. They are also a good source of vitamins A, C and E and the mineral selenium ,which are all skin nutrients.

10. Lemon Water

Fluid intake is the most essential element for healthy hydrated skin. Every cell requires water to function, and dehydration is one of the most common causes of a dull-looking complexion. Sip quality water, flavored with freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice (to add vitamin C) throughout the day. Herbal teas also contribute to fluid intake.

Just check how you consume your water. Drinking fluid quickly acts to flush the digestive system, but fails to hydrate adequately. The reward is in the sipping!

With all of these tips, they’re easy to implement while we stay at home right now. Just think of the way you’ll make your skin glow and the reaction when you get to join all your friends again once the stay at home order lifts (and you can get a professional facial to exfoliate and unwind)!

Love,

Gen