Aging may be inevitable, but there are ways to help your skin look young with proper nutrition. In fact, our skin is an organ and is constantly regenerating and growing new cells. With healthy nutrition choices, you can actually improve how healthy your skin looks over time!
Improving the quality of our skin starts with healthy lifestyle choices like getting enough sleep, moderating alcohol, eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, and exercising regularly.
However, nutrition alone plays a huge role in healthy skin. Some of the best nutrients to improve skin health and prevent aging are vitamin C, vitamin A, zinc, and antioxidants.
Let’s take a look at the vegetables highest in nutrients for skin health, and how to incorporate them regularly for ageless skin! Then for more healthy eating tips check out The 6 Best Teas to Slow Aging.
Bell peppers are rich in vitamins A and C. One of the richest sources of vitamin C, a red bell pepper contains nearly 170% of our daily recommended vitamin C intake!
Getting enough vitamin C assists in the production of collagen, a component of building a new, healthy layer of skin. Chop these up for a snack and dip them in hummus or tzatziki for a filling, high-volume snack!
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Oranges are notorious for their vitamin C content, but a half-cup of broccoli actually contains even more than most citrus fruits! Broccoli is also a source of zinc and lutein, which both contribute to healthier skin.
Zinc is an antioxidant that helps our skin heal from injury, including sun damage. Lutein is a type of carotenoid like Vitamin A that helps increase skin elasticity and protects against harmful sun exposure.
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To learn more about broccoli, check out the other secret side effects of this cruciferous vegetable.
Tomatoes are a gold mine of nutrients, with vitamin C and lycopene being the most dense nutrients in a tomato. Whether you buy them canned or fresh, tomatoes are a source of this skin-promoting vitamin.
Fresh tomatoes have more vitamin C than cooked ones, but cooked tomatoes actually release more lycopene, which offers a host of other skin health benefits! Lycopene is an antioxidant that helps undo skin damage and can smooth out changes to skin texture over time.
Serve them in a tomato salad with olive oil, salt, pepper, and vinegar for an age-fighting quick side salad.
This vibrant veggie is chock full of antioxidants and vitamins for skin health. Purple cabbage contains Vitamins A, C, and anthocyanins, which are antioxidants that may improve skin health after UV damage from the sun.
A cup of purple cabbage packs more than 50% of our recommended daily intake of vitamin C. Without enough vitamin C, collagen production will decrease in the body. Collagen is responsible for the elasticity factor of our skin which keeps our skin appearing plump and may contribute to a younger look.
Fun fact, cooking hearty vegetables like cabbage will make them shrink in size by nearly half. That one cup serving of cabbage quickly wilts into just a half-cup serving once it’s cooked!
Caroline Thomason, RDN
Caroline is a women’s health Registered Dietitian and diabetes educator based in Northern Virginia. Read more
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