Food has a great impact on skin. When it comes to skincare, proper nutrition plays a very vital role. One needs to be aware of what to eat and what not. Instead of changing their eating habits, people start getting skin treatments done to look younger. But the key of ageing gracefully is simple—eat healthy. Here are four diet changes that are any day better than botox or any other skin treatment.
Include foods rich in riboflavin, niacin, cyanocobalamin, ascorbic acid, Vitamins A, C, and E: Your food should include carrots as they help preventing wrinkles. Carotene present in them also protects skin from damage. One should eat nuts such as almonds and walnuts. They help fight skin problem. Green Tea is also a powerful antioxidant.
Yogurt is also good for skin. It contains bacteria called probioctics that nourish skin both from inside and outside. Hygroscopic in nature, honey moisturises skin.
A good source of antioxidants, berries fight damage caused by environmental pollutants and toxins to our body. While turmeric acts as an anti-inflammatory food, avocadoes help in skin toning.
Exclude foods that cause inflammation and affect skin: Foods such as coffee, alcohol, processed meat, spicy food, fast food and fatty dairy products should be avoided. Some of them are pro-inflammatory food, which can aggravate or worsen existing inflammatory skin conditions, such as acne, rashes, and eczema. Hence they need to be excluded.
Keep hydrating your skin: This removes toxins from your body. Watermelon juice is full of Vitamins A and C that work to nourish your skin, keeping it strong and ensuring that you do not lose excess water. If eight glasses of water seem like a tough task, you can actually eat your water by choosing on solid foods such as cucumber. It’s more than 90 percent water by weight making it hugely hydrating. Apart from this, spinach and radish are also good options.
Limiting the calorie intake: Skin collagen gets damaged when there is high consumption of sugar and processed carbohydrates. But fruits and vegetables are good for skin. While deep-fried foods can add to inflammation, vegetables, fruits, whole grains low fat dairy foods and lean protein can help fight inflammation.
Lettuce, broccoli, spinach, tomatoes, watermelon, grapefruit, guava, salmon, chickpeas, oatmeal, brown rice and quinoa should be included in your diet. These contain thiamine and riboflavin, which are important for skin. Variety in diet helps in meeting all nutritional requirements. Along with this, one should exercise regularly. It helps maintain muscular mass.
The writer is Head, Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics, Aakash Healthcare Super Speciality Hospital,
Dwarka, Delhi