Foods to Help Prevent Dry Skin

Green Tea

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We need a steady supply of collagen and elastin in our skin if we’re serious about keeping wrinkles at bay. Think of collagen as natural botox, and elastin as the elastic that keeps our underpants from falling down around our ankles. Drinking about two cups of Green Tea daily could simultaneously keep our collagen and elastin supplies well topped up, and help fight antioxidants in our bodies. Just don’t overdo it, because as you know, too much of theanine can have negative effects on your overall health.

Red meat, oysters and white kidney beans are also great for collagen formation because they are high in zinc, which is necessary for boosting our “natural botox” supply.

Avocados

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Free radicals, which are present in our own bodies and in the environment can wreck havoc on our skin. However, with a steady supply of Vitamin E, our bodies can easily neutralise them. These particles are the stuff of horror movies where injury to our skin’s complexion is concerned. Avocados pack more Vitamin E than any other fruit, and also come with its own punch of glutathione (an antioxidant which is involved in barring cancer cells and keeping premature aging at bay). Vitamin E-rich foods help prevent our skin from drying out and becoming itchy, especially in cold or dry weather. Vitamin E is known for protecting our skin’s moisture from the inside out, and a good supply keeps it looking fresh and young. Remember that dryness can lead to premature wrinkling, so it’s vital that our skin is kept fully hydrated.

Orange Foods

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Orange foods like pumpkin, carrots, mangoes, apricots and sweet potatoes are saturated with Beta carotene. This is important for the growth and repair of healthy skin tissue. It’s not a good idea to take high doses of beta carotene as a supplement. Nevertheless, introducing foods rich in this vitamin into your diet, will do wonders for your skin’s requirements when it needs to tap into its supply to battle against cold sores, drying-out and itchiness.

Blueberries

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The USDA Human Nutrition Research Centre conducted a study on forty fruits and vegetables, to analyse their antioxidant activity. Blueberries categorically won the race because they’re loaded with vitamin C and E, and are great for the prevention of free-radical activity. We will look at why Vitamin C is so important when we get to the tomatoes below.

Tomatoes

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Tinned or cooked tomatoes are extremely rich in Vitamin C. As we know, our bodies cannot create this vitamin naturally. Therefore, it is crucial, more so in the cold months, that we strive to eat as much Vitamin C-rich foods as we possibly can. Why is vitamin C important as a winter skin-care food? It helps in the production of collagen, which is the substance (natural botox) that keeps our skin elastic and wrinkle-free. Oranges and red peppers also provide a high source of this central skin-care vitamin.

Tomatoes are also rich in lycopene, which is the substance responsible for fighting off free radicals in the body, and protecting us against harmful UV rays.

Fish and Nuts

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Omega-3 fatty acids are essential if we aim to hydrate our skin thoroughly. They also help in keeping it plumped – delaying deep wrinkles. In the colder months, no amount of rehydrating or wrinkle-free cream can accomplish this feat better than omega-3 working from the inside out. This is because it enhances a glowing complexion by smoothening out the faults from within. For this to work properly, eating about 10 – 15 ounces of fish per week, or an ounce of walnuts per day is highly recommended.

Think of omega-3 fatty acids as the oil in the car that keeps it street-worthy. Therefore, completely cutting out good fats from your diet is bad for your body. A lack of fats in your diet manifests itself in the form of flaky, itchy skin, especially in the winter months. (If you don’t eat fish, you can get some plant Omega-3 from Flaxseed).

Walnuts are also a fabulous source of fatty acids, referred to as linolenic acid, and is the type of fat – that even though vital to us – we cannot make naturally. Walnuts also supply us with zinc, an essential tool for skin repair and youth preservation.

Olive Oil

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Australian researchers conducted a study of the correlation between diet and skin aging, and found that people who continuously maintained a high intake of Olive oil, kept their youthful-looking skin for longer. This is not surprising because Olive oil is high in monounsaturated fats which work full-time at protecting the skin cell membrane.

When the weather and life in general, strips our outer skin of the little protection it manages to hold onto, monounsaturated fats battle to repair and maintain the skin’s elasticity and appearance from the inside where it counts. Considering this advantage, plus the fact that Olive oil is very high vitamin E and beta-carotene, it should be very high on our list of skin-preservation foods. Swapping cooking oil and salad dressing for Olive oil in the winter months may be a splendid idea to introduce to your household.

Let us keep in mind that a number of these above foods work alongside each other to give our skin the boost and protection it needs. They’re all easy to source, and you can grow a few of them in your own gardens. Establish them one by one into your family’s diet, and within weeks, you will begin to see the difference they make. Keep up your usual moisturising routine, and always drink an adequate amount of water. Before the summer months come along when we’ll again be showing a bit more skin, we will see the difference that these foods make to our overall health and our wonderfully hydrated, youthful-looking skin – and all from the inside out.