6 things to eat and drink to make your skin glow
There are common messages about looking after your skin - sleep well, avoid stress, use sunscreen.
However, there are also six things we can eat and drink to get that great skin glow. Here are some tips from MasterChef New Zealand winner, Nadia Lim, and health scientist, Sandra Clair.
Sandra Clair is completing a PhD in health science at the University of Canterbury. Dunedin-based, she is a highly qualified Swiss-trained medical herbalist and medical anthropologist. She's also behind the well-known traditional medicine company Artemis, which uses medicinal grade herbs for its therapeutic tea blends.
What to eat
1. Vitamin C-rich foods
Thinks citrus fruit, strawberries, kiwifruit etc. Vitamin C increases collagen production. Collagen helps keep skin supple and plumps it up, giving smoothness and support. As skin ages, it loses collagen.
2. Omega-3 fatty acids
Contained in the likes of oily fish such as salmon, flax seed and walnuts. Skin cells are surrounded by a layer of fat and it's important to get enough healthy fats to nourish your cells. Having a diet high in omega-3 fats helps your skin look radiant and adds softness to your complexion. As Lim says: "I know this from firsthand experience at university, when we were all part of an experiment and I had to take fish oil capsules every day for a few weeks."
3. Foods high in vitamin E
This includes foods such as avocado and almonds. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant and helps to protect against skin oxidative damage from pollutants and other free radicals.
What to drink
1. Nettle
Nettle strengthens the "elimination organs" like the kidneys which release toxins from the body. For example, if the kidneys are weak or are over-loaded then they cannot detoxify properly and this can put a burden on the skin to release toxins instead - such as in the form of acne.
2. Drink 2 litres of water daily
We are made up of 75 per cent water and need this hydration for the skin and body. Drinking medicinal teas counts towards this, according to Clair. But coffee, regular teas and soft drinks do not.
3. Drink herbs that are good for the liver
Examples include St Mary’s thistle, globe artichoke, dandelion root, peppermint, fennel and calendula. "Liver detox teas are one of the quickest ways of triggering the elimination processes of fat soluble toxins and improving digestion," Clair says.
What natural beauty solutions to you turn to? Let us know in the comments below.
Written by Rachel Grunwell. First appeared on Stuff.co.nz.
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