9 Nutrients to Boost Your Beauty
Want to know what nutrients to include in your diet for beauty? When I grocery shop, I buy foods packed with these nine nutrients. I want to share my golden list with you.
Protein is essential for the body, especially for hair, skin, and nails. And not eating enough of it may mean depriving your skin of the amino acids that help produce collagen and skin elasticity. So, if sagging, aging skin is something you're not particularly fond of, including good protein sources in your daily diet can be the most natural part of your anti-aging routine.
Zinc is a mineral that works around the clock to help speed up wound healing and repair damage to the skin as well as regulate the sebaceous gland, which helps to even out oily, acne-prone skin. Furthermore, zinc can lower the production of free radicals, speeding up skin aging.
Selenium helps fight free radicals, which prevents aging, reduces inflammation and acne, and promotes skin healing. Organ meats like liver, kidneys, tongue, and heart contain selenium, but no worries if this doesn't sound appetizing. Grass-fed beef, lamb, spinach, brazil nuts, salmon, and sardines also contain selenium.
Copper is involved in forming pigmentation, which dyes our hair, eyes, and skin. It also plays a role in maintaining elastin and collagen. Premature graying, wrinkled skin, and brittle nails may be due to a deficiency of copper. Lucky for those of us who love chocolate as one of the main ingredients, cacao is high in copper. Other high copper-containing foods include seaweed, red wine, legumes, organ meats, and nuts.
Omega 3 fatty acids are a superfood for the brain, and these fats are also superb for the skin. Omega-3 fatty acids help protect the skin from UV damage, can help calm inflammation, and can be beneficial for severe acne-prone. You can find these fats in fatty fish, flaxseeds, and walnuts.
Vitamin A is essential for the health of our skin. It plays a role in new skin cell production, keeping your skin looking its best. Most everyone has heard about retinol, a derivative of vitamin A that, when applied directly to the skin, can help fight signs of aging and address acne by exfoliating dead skin cells and dirt from the surface of the skin to prevent acne in the first place. Nutritionally, retinoids can be in foods like salmon, eggs, shrimp, cod liver oil, dairy products, and beef liver.
Vitamin C is known well in the beauty industry as a super ingredient for the skin due to its antioxidant property and ability to brighten the skin, fade pigmentation and neutralize free radicals when applied directly. But it's not all about lotions and serums because they only touch the skin's surface. Vitamin C is an essential nutrient that's integral to health and beauty. A vitamin C-rich diet is beneficial since our bodies cannot produce it. Vitamin C- rich foods include leafy green, citrus fruits, and papaya.
Vitamin E is fat-soluble and an antioxidant that protects the body against free radicals and sun damage. Free radicals damage cells in the body which can impact the skin's condition and are associated with chronic diseases. Avocados, wild-caught oily fish, nuts, seeds, and olive oil are good sources.
Vitamin D is essential for our health, helping to reduce inflammation, glucose metabolization, and cell growth. Studies show vitamin D receptors are present in nearly every cell and tissue in the body. So, sunlight exposure, supplements, and a diet rich in vitamin D can help with disease prevention, promotes longevity, and optimize your health.
