Dermatologists, nutritionists, and other health professionals have been saying it all along: fruits and vegetables are some of the most important foods for healthy skin. It seems they are right; I know a handful of people who rarely eat fruits and/or veggies, and one of the things they have in common is dry, spotty skin that looks and feels rough.
Fruits and vegetables improve not only the health of your skin, but your other organs as well. They help flush out toxins and improve your immune system’s efficiency.
They also help you look and feel better, by enhancing your skin’s appearance and health. This is because many fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants, which combat the effects of free radicals. Free radicals are those minuscule harmful substances that we are subjected to every day, which degrade our skin’s health and make us look older than we really are.
Antioxidants in fruits, veggies, and other food sources thus play a vital role in stopping your skin from aging prematurely. Just what kinds of anti-aging nutrients are in common fruits and vegetables? Here are some of them.
Beta carotene is one of the most powerful nutrients against free radicals. You can find it in orange and yellow fruits and vegetables, such as oranges, squash, carrots, mangoes, and tangerines.
Lycopene is another potent antioxidant. Look for fruits and vegetables with a reddish tint to them, like tomatoes, strawberries, cranberries, watermelons, and red onions, for your dose of this free radical fighter.
Vitamin C or ascorbic acid is another nutrient that is essential for healthy skin. It encourages the production of collagen, a protein your skin needs to keep it smooth and wrinkle-free. You can get it from a variety of citrus fruits.
Leafy green vegetables are chock-full of antioxidants that help prevent a host of health problems, including skin disorders. Examples of greens are cabbage, spinach, bok choi, and broccoli.
Eating healthy with a wide variety of fruits and vegetables of various colors is a win-win situation for your taste buds and for your well-being. These foods for healthy skin will not only help you feel better, they will make you look younger and more attractive too.
Tags: foods for healthy skin, fruits, vegetables