Fruits and Vegetables for Beautiful Skin

Skin makes up nearly one-seventh of your total body weight hence known as the largest body organ. Skin performs various functions for your body including protecting your body parts from hot or cold weather, toxic substances, germs, pathogens, and sun’s rays. It acts as a barrier to save the rest of your body from environmental hazards. So taking care of your skin must be your first priority and in this article we are going to explore the natural ways to protect our skin. You can naturally protect your skin by using natural ingredients. from ancient times, women use fruits and vegetables or beautiful skin. So are you ready to unveil the secrets of skin beauty with the use of fruits and vegetables?

Maintaining a youthful-looking and healthy skin is a hard task due to environmental pollution and allergens. Most people use skincare products like moisturizers or sunscreens to protect their skin from the outside but the most reliable way to protect your skin and make it smooth or shiny is by following a well-rounded, nutritious diet.

Dehydration, loss of elasticity, and oxidative or sun-induced damage are significant signs of unhealthy skin. Natural nutrients like water, vitamins, minerals, and omega-3 fats are the best sources to nourish your skin. Regular use of these nutrients performs a supportive role in protecting the skin. Their use helps in slowing aging, reducing the risk of skin-related conditions, and improving skin elasticity and moisture. 

Nutrients Essential for Beautiful Skin 

What comes to your mind by the term healthy food or balanced diet?  What do experts say about the secrets behind having glowing and gorgeous skin? What do your friends suggest for you to get youthful and beautiful skin? All the questions have the same answer. You need fresh fruits and vegetables for beautiful skin. Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables are beneficial for your health and skin. So in this post, we have listed the top fruits and vegetables you should consume to achieve glowing and beautiful skin. 

According to nutritionists and dermatologists, fruits and vegetables have vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that prevent oxidative damage and help in reducing acne. 

Why Are Fruits and Vegetables So Important For Beautiful Skin?

Skincare products do not affect you positively if you are not healthy from within. Maintaining a beautiful and healthy skin is not easy. That’s why consuming the right amount of essential nutrients through your food is an indispensable part of your skincare routine. Fresh fruits and vegetables are a great source of vitamins B, C, and E that help maintain the glow of your skin. Similarly, they are rich in antioxidants that help to clear your skin from spots or acne and slow the aging process.

Vitamins and Antioxidants: The skin has two layers and both need nourishment through vitamin A to prevent sun damage. This vitamin interrupts the process and breaks down the collagen. Being an antioxidant it protects your skin from sunburn. Glands near your hair follicles need this vitamin to heal cuts or scrapes of skin, especially if you are using steroids to reduce inflammation. Deficiency of vitamin A causes dry, itchy, or bumpy skin. 

Now turn towards vitamin C. Let’s assume C stands for collagen. It is a powerful oxidant that helps the twisted web of protein to hold its specific shape. It protects your skin from free radicals and lowers the chances of risk of skin cancer. A deficiency of vitamins causes a slower healing process for skin sores, bleeding gums, and bruises. 

Consider vitamin E as an essential part of your skincare product because it is antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory effects on your skin. It is a great hurdle for the ultraviolet rays from the sun, that can damage your skin and lead towards wrinkles. It strengthens the skin walls by a combined action with vitamin C.

Minerals: The uppermost layer of skin has a larger amount of minerals than the underneath layer. Various minerals are needed by your skin to maintain its elasticity and glow. For example, zinc is a most required mineral as it helps your skin to heal soon after an injury. It also controls the cell division and strengthens the skin cell walls. It protects the skin from hazardous sun rays. Deficiency of zinc results in eczema. Skin rashes need zinc to get better. Applying steroid creams or moisturizers will not work in the absence of zinc. 

Another mineral that works as an antioxidant and helps to protect your skin from UV, is Selenium. Its deficiency enhances the possibility of getting skin cancer. 

Top Fruits for Beautiful Skin

Red Grapes

The skin of red grapes contains a special compound, Resveratrol that is credited with a lot of health benefits, including reducing the aging effects on the skin. Experimental studies have shown that it supports the procedure of eliminating the harmful free radicals that cause signs of aging by damaging skin cells. 

This amazing compound is also found in red wine. Research is going on to evaluate the exact amount of resveratrol in the form of glasses of red wine that may be enough to affect your skin. But still, the evidence is not collected. Additionally, red wine is an alcoholic beverage so its side effects are also a hurdle to accept it as a beneficial beverage for skin or overall health. Therefore, experts do not suggest drinking red wine just because of its potential health benefits for the skin. Instead, they recommend increasing the intake of red grapes and berries. 

Watermelon

Watermelon keeps your skin hydrated from the inside out because it is more than 90% water. It is a delicious choice for you to have plenty of water for the skin’s hydration. 

It has a reservoir of skin-supporting antioxidants like beta-carotene and lycopene. It also contains amino acid L-citrulline which supports the skin’s nourishment by promoting healthy circulation in the skin cells.

Cherries

Cherries are good for your overall health including lowering markers of oxidative stress, supporting heart health, and decreasing blood pressure. Along with all these beneficial aspects of your health, it also has amazing effects on your skin. It contains Flavin-3-ols, hydroxycinnamates, and anthocyanins, which are strong antioxidants and give protection to your skin cells against ultraviolet rays. 

They are high in fiber and vitamin C, which support your gut environment by maintaining its balance. This helps to promote your skin’s glow.

Cherries contain a special pigmented substance called melatonin that helps in promoting your restful sleep by regulating your sleep-wake cycle. According to research, cherry-containing products boost your sleep quality. Therefore, people use tart cherry juices to have a sound sleep. Getting enough sleep is crucial for your skin’s health and freshness because skin cells tend to repair themselves during your sleep hours. 

Walnuts

Walnuts have fabulous characteristics as an excellent source of essential fatty acids that are good for your skin’s health. These fatty acids are the types of fats that your body cannot produce by itself. This dry fruit is rich in both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids but its specialty is more important than. 

Excess of omega-6- 6 fatty acids may be proved harmful if used in excess. They may cause inflammation that leads to a severe problem of skin known as psoriasis. On the other hand, omega-3 fatty acids reduce inflammatory conditions. But the problem is that omega-6 fatty acids are found in abundance in your routine diet. Therefore, most skin problems arise in the form of inflammation of the skin like psoriasis, due to higher concentration of omega-6 fatty acids in your body.  

So walnuts are considered a good source of natural or omega-3 fatty acids that are required by your skin to reduce inflammatory response to excessive omega-6. Studies reveal that besides omega-3 fatty acids, walnuts also have some essential nutrients that your skin needs to function properly and stay healthy. For example, walnuts contain zinc which is an effective barrier for your skin. It helps in wound healing and combat inflammation and bacteria. 30 grams of walnuts contain approximately 10% of DV of zinc. They also contain small amounts of vitamin E, Selenium, and antioxidants. 

Avocados         

Fats are beneficial for many functions performed in your body such as your skin’s health. Avocados are rich in healthy fats. These fats are responsible for keeping your skin healthy, moisturized, and flexible. According to research, an experiment was performed involving nearly 600 women, to discover the results of the use of healthy fats found in avocado. The researchers concluded that a high intake of healthy fats found in avocado is associated with springy skin and more suppleness. Evidence shows that avocados contain special compounds that protect your skin from sun rays damage. Thus, these specific compounds are a good remedy to remove wrinkles and signs of aging from your skin. 

Vitamin E is a major content of avocados, which acts as a super antioxidant that supports your skin’s health by protecting it from oxidative damage. And you know well that as an American your diet is deficient in Vitamin E. So don’t get hesitant. Start eating avocado to get healthy and flawless skin. You can get more benefits when you mix vitamin E with vitamin C. Try it. Vitamin C creates collagen which is a main structural protein and keeps your skin healthy and strong.

In case of lack of vitamin C in your diet, you may experience dry, rough, and scaly skin. It also bruises your skin. Vitamin C also works as an antioxidant that protects your skin from ultraviolet rays and stops the aging process. 

So it is suggested by nutritionists to add a minimum of one avocado per day into your diet. Beneficial fats are also found in avocados that enhance your skin’s glow.

Most Valuable Vegetables for Beautiful Skin

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are enriched in vitamin C with all major types of carotenoids, including lycopene. Damage due to sun rays causes wrinkles and carotenoids such as lycopene, lutein, and beta-carotene protect your skin from the hazardous effects of ultraviolet rays, preventing wrinkles as a result.

So add tomatoes to your daily diet as they are a rich source of carotenoids that provide excellent food to maintain your skin’s health. Combining fat sources like olive oil or cheese with the carotenoids of tomatoes helps to increase the absorption of carotenoids.

Broccoli

This nutritious vegetable is full of minerals and vitamins that are crucial for skin health. Major minerals found in broccoli are vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Zinc. Like tomatoes, broccoli also contains some special types of carotenoids such as beta carotene and lutein. These all work together to protect your skin from oxidative damage. This supports your skin’s moisture and saves it from wrinkles or dryness.

Broccoli has beneficial effects on overall health as it packs a special compound called Sulforaphane to boost some potential benefits. It also protects you from skin cancer as it has anti-cancer effects. Sulforaphane is a protective agent against sun damage. it switches on the other protective systems in your body and can neutralize harmful free radicals. Studies have revealed that sulforaphane also maintains collagen levels in your skin to make it glowing.

Red or Yellow Bell Peppers

Vitamin A is the most required vitamin for your skin’s health and bell peppers are an excellent source of beta-carotene which is converted into vitamin A by your body. Include these vegetables into your daily diet plans because just 130 grams of red or yellow bell peppers provide you with nearly 150% of DV for vitamin A production. They also contain vitamin C which is the major requirement for producing a special protein collagen for keeping your skin firm.

Sweet Potatoes

Beta carotene works as pro-vitamin A in your body. It means your body can convert carotene into vitamin A which is a great nutrient for skin health. Along with oranges, carrots, and spinach, sweet potatoes also contain a large amount of carotene. you can get more than five times the DV of vitamin A, by only eating 100 grams of baked sweet potatoes daily. The carotenoids found in this vegetable function as a natural sunblock to protect your skin from environmental hazards including sun damage and allergy-causing pollutants. This is also beneficial to prevent wrinkles, dryness, cell death, and sunburn. 

Conclusion

Your skin is the most delicate and exposed part of the body. It requires a continuous supply of nutrients to stay hydrated, glowing, flawless, youthful-looking, and healthy. 

Certain fruits and vegetables including berries, cherries, dry fruits, broccoli, tomatoes, bell peppers, and sweet potatoes provide essential minerals, vitamins, antioxidants, protein, and fats that are important for maintaining your skin health. 

Incorporating these fruits and vegetables into your diet will create an easy and tasty way to your skincare routine.