For Radiant Skin, Add To Your Vegetable Intake
Fresh Organic vegetables are essential for creating healthy, beautiful skin.
Vegetables are high in both water and nutrients including essential minerals, and promote optimal functioning of your natural detoxification systems.
For example, healthy liver function is supported by dark green leafy veggies such as kale, spinach, dandelion greens, and broccoli. So, aim for a wide variety of veggies in different colors for the widest variety of nutrients and antioxidants.
Orange-red vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin and red peppers are particularly rich in beta-carotene. Our body converts beta-carotene into Vitamin A, which prevents cell damage and premature aging. Spinach and other leafy greens provide lots of Vitamin A, too.
Leafy greens like spinach, kale, and Swiss chard also provide lutein and zeaxanthin. These anti-oxidants are perhaps most well-known for their eye benefits, but they also benefit our skin.
Similar to astaxanthin, research has shown lutein and zeaxanthin can provide a 4X increase in protection against skin damage caused by UV radiation.
Vitamin C aids in your body’s production of collagen, which is the protein that forms the basic scaffolding of your skin. Collagen breakdown can leave the skin saggy, and Vitamin C can help tighten it back up. It also helps with healing, if you are struggling with any kind of skin problems.
Evidence also suggests that, in addition to ‘mopping up’ free radicals, Vitamin C can help remove the DNA damage they form if they get past a cell’s defenses.
Foods high in Vitamin C include citrus fruits, papaya, kiwi, strawberries, red bell peppers, broccoli, and Brussel sprouts.
Citrus fruits also contain limonene which, according to the data, is associated with a 34% lower risk of skin cancer.
Besides Vitamin C, Vitamins D and B3 have also been shown to provide valuable protection against skin damage and skin cancer.
Vitamin D, which is metabolized when UV rays strike your skin, has actually been shown to reduce your risk of melanoma, the deadliest form or skin cancer.
Most dermatologists will tell you to stay out of the Sun to avoid skin damage. When we shun the Sun, you prevent the body from working as nature designed it, and sun exposure is actually part and parcel of what helps keep skin cancer at bay.
Vitamin D is formed in our skin, and once activated in the liver and kidneys it influences the genes in your skin and helps prevent the type of abnormalities that ultraviolet light causes. As a result, Sun avoidance becomes the factor that paradoxically can trigger skin cancer.
According to Australian researchers, Vitamin B3 (nicotinamide) may also offer protection for those who are prone to certain skin cancers.
As reported by NBC News: “The volunteers took either 2 500 mg Vitamin B3 pills a day for a year, or a placebo. After a year, those who took the B3 were 23% less likely to have another cancer diagnosed … The pills also reduced the numbers of pre-cancerous lesions called actinic keratosis. These thick, scaly patches of skin were reduced by 20% among the volunteers who took nicotinamide after nine months of treatment.”
Those who took Vitamin B3 started seeing results in about 3 months. However, the protection vaporized once they stopped taking the Vitamin. To reap the rewards, we have to continue taking it indefinitely. It is thought that B3 works by helping repair DNA damage caused by excessive UV exposure, and by bolstering your immune system.
Besides staying well-hydrated by drinking plenty of pure, filtered water, adding some Green Tea to our daily routine may give our skin a healthy boost.
An excellent source of antioxidants and alkaloids, Green Tea is packed with vitamins A, D, E, C, B, B5, H, and K, manganese and other beneficial minerals such as chromium, zinc, and selenium, the latter 2 of which are particularly important for healthy skin.
Green Tea also contains high amounts of the antioxidant epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which is anywhere from 25 to 100X more potent than Vitamins C and E. EGCG has, also been shown to prevent genetic damage in skin cells exposed to UV radiation.
To boost the benefits of Green Tea, add some lemon juice.
Research has demonstrated that Vitamin C significantly increases the amount of catechins available for that body to absorb. Citrus juice increased available catechin levels by more than 5X, causing 80% of Green Tea’s catechins to remain bioavailable.
Dark Chocolate is another source of valuable antioxidants.
Cocoa flavanols in particular have been shown to boost skin hydration and improve blood circulation. In one study, 22 women who drank a flavanol-rich cocoa powder drink daily for 12 weeks saw improvements in skin roughness and scaliness compared to the control group.
Also, traditional fermented foods and/or a high quality probiotic can also be very helpful for optimizing our skin health.
Eat healthy, Be healthy, Live lively.
HeffX-LTN
Paul Ebeling
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