Everyone dreams of flawless skin, but although there is no magic potion to give you perfect skin in an instant, making sure that you get the right vitamins will ensure that your skin stays youthful and radiant.
There are certain vitamins that skin loves, so feeding it all the right things will help your skin look its best.
Vitamin C
This vitamin is a powerful antioxidant for the skin. It is known to boost collagen production and prevent skin discolouration. Vitamin C is mainly found in the epidermis, which is the outer layer of skin, it is transported to the skin through your blood.
Consuming foods rich in vitamin C will help prevent photodamage caused by UV exposure and will also prevent premature ageing. Foods rich in Vitamin C include red peppers, strawberries, broccoli, peas, grapefruit, and kale.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is naturally produced by the oil glands in our skin, that when balanced right ensures that our skin isn’t too dry or too oily. This vitamin has many antioxidant properties, and if applied straight on to the skin, it will absorb UV light helping to stop dark spots and wrinkles from forming. Vitamin E is also good for repairing skin scarring, stretch marks and keep your skin looking smooth, hydrated, and healthy.
Vitamin E rich foods include sunflower seeds, avocado, olives, papaya, and leafy green vegetables.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is essential for overall health, and our body will naturally produce it when our skin gets exposed to the sun, we need about 15 minutes of sunlight per day to get the amount that our body requires.
This vitamin will protect and rejuvenate the skin, as well as smooth wrinkles and reduce the signs of ageing. Vitamin D is also great for fighting acne and other skin outbreaks.
Vitamin D can be found in salmon, egg yolks, mushrooms and cod liver oil.
Vitamin K
This vitamin is essential in helping our body’s process of blood clotting, this helps the body heal from bruising and wounds.
Healthline say, “Vitamin K can be found in many different topical creams for the skin, and it can help treat a variety of skin conditions. Doctors frequently use creams that contain vitamin K on patients who have just undergone surgery to help reduce swelling and bruising. This may help speed up skin healing.”
Your body requires between 90 and 20 ug per day, this can be increased by eating foods rich in vitamin K, such as green leafy vegetables.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
This is not a vitamin, but it is important to include it in your diet as is a great food for your skin. Omega-3 fatty acids are crucial to the growth of healthy cell membranes, if cell membranes are damaged, they lose their ability to hold fluids, so it leaks out causing sagging skin and wrinkles. Omega-3 helps reduce acne, reduce the signs of premature ageing and helps with oil production and hydration of your skin.
Foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids include walnuts, flaxseed oil, olive oil, soybeans, herring and mackerel.