Depending on what corners of the Internet you visit you may find "experts" who claim that eating the right, healthy, balanced diet is the only thing you need to do for your skin to be glowing and youthful. The truth is that food can be a nice compliment to your skincare routine, but it cannot be the only thing you do to keep you skin healthy because it is not a cure-all for skin ailments or imperfections.
The right diet can set your skin up for success when it is complimenting the right skincare routine that you are implementing as well.
Think of it this way, a foundation of good, healthy food can provide the building blocks for your body to be able to absorb and be nourished by a good quality skincare routine. The nutrients that you can get by eating the right foods will make your skin more receptive to the nutrients and supplemental qualities of your skincare routine that you are performing on a regular basis.
The question then becomes, if I am using food as the foundation for healthy skin, what foods should I be eating? The short answer is you should be looking for fresh, non-processed foods that are loaded with vitamins A, C and E for antioxidants, foods that have high volumes of minerals like Zinc to reduce inflammation and those that are have healthy levels of "good" fats like Omega-3 fatty acids which can help keep your skin moisturized and supple.
So you're not guessing when you go to the grocery store, here is a list of food categories that you should be thinking about adding to your diet to develop that foundation of good, quality nutrients, that will help set your skincare routine up for success over time.
1.) Fruits and vegetables. Here there's very little you can do to go wrong. While leafy green vegetables are always beneficial to your overall nutrition, fruits and vegetables like carrots and blueberries are great for your skin health.
2.) Fatty fish. While you don't want to overdue it with fatty fish, a nice piece of salmon every once in a while will be just thing your skin needs to stay moisturized and supple.
3.) Whole grains. A simple way to get some whole grains into your diet is to switch out white rice with brown rice. This is a minor change to your food consumption, but it can go a long way in providing your body with sustained energy and fiber.
4.) Lean protein. The easy go to here is chicken, but it is not the only option. You can get lean protein in the form of fish or Greek yogurt as well.
As you start to think about ways you can supplement your skincare routine, keeping the food you are eating at the forefront of your mind is one thing you can do that can very easily compliment your skincare routine. If you make small adjustments to your daily eating habits and combine those with the perfect skincare routine you have already developed for yourself you will be on your way to youthful and glowing skin in no time.
