Eat your way to a beautiful and glowing skin

Not everybody is lucky enough to be born with a radiant and glowing skin, but with little investment of time and effort and a change to your diet on a daily basis, it will be possible for your skin to look better than how it looks now. Eating right will help you get that radiant and glowing skin you have always dreamt of. A healthy diet helps your skin withstand wrinkles, age spots, acne and dead cells. Just as eating well keeps you healthy; you can also shave years off your looks if you eat the right food. Just like adequate sleep, there is no substitute for eating healthy if you want to look your best in the long run. More and more nutritionists these days emphasize the importance of including fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains in your normal diet with a little as possible of refined, processed and artificial sugars and foods. This does not mean that you have to be on a strict diet all the time and completely let go of your favourite snacks or desserts. Eating healthy most of the time and occasional indulgences can help your skin glow without spending much on cosmetics and facial treatments.

Below are foods you can eat to improve your skin.

Avocados: Avocados are great for the skin as they are omega rich and known to be a strong source of vitamin E, which works to boosts the skin’s vitality and luminosity. “Feeding your skin from the inside out with vital nutrients helps it stay soft, supple and blemish-free,” says Jenny. “Not to mention vitamin E is also a potent sun blocker, helping to protect the skin against the sun's damaging UV (Ultraviolet) rays.” Studies also suggest that eating a regular portion of avocado can improve the skin’s ability to keep itself moisturized.

Walnuts: Walnuts are a great source of omega-3, which have been shown to improve skin elasticity and reduce inflammation associated with redness and skin irritation. What's more, walnuts are packed with copper, which helps to keep natural skin colour rich if you take ¼ cup daily.


Pumpkin: Pumpkins are one of the most potent natural sources of beta-carotene, which is transformed into vitamin A by the body. This vitamin is key to stimulating specialized cells called fibroblasts to synthesize and grow new skin cells, which can keep the skin looking smooth and youthful.


Tomatoes: Tomatoes are known for containing high amounts of the antioxidant lycopene, which has been scientifically shown to help reduce skin damage caused by radiation and may even increase your body’s natural SPF ( Sun Protection Factor). Your skin will also love the vitamins and minerals present in this versatile food, including vitamins A, E, C, and B6. For an extra dose of skin-healing benefits, try some tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and rosemary.

Get Enough Sleep: Lack of adequate sleep is one of the foremost reasons why people begin to reveal signs of aging much before they are expected to. The body does most of its regenerative work when the person is asleep and hence the less sleep you get, the lesser time your skin tissues have of restoring themselves. Even though the exact amount of sleep a person needs may vary according to age and lifestyle, usually seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep at night are recommended to look and feel good the next day.


Water: Even though water is not technically food, but it is the oldest trick and the cheapest, easiest way to keep your skin gorgeously glowing. Water ensures a healthy metabolism, which in turn keep skin healthy and glowing. “Try swapping your usual cup of caffeine for a herbal brew.” In addition, upping your fluid levels will also help to keep your brain functional, allowing you to cope with stress better as well as replenishing the water levels in your skin.


Spinach: Spinach is not only crammed with skin clearing antioxidants, but it's also filled with fibre too, which is great for staving off hunger pangs and regulating insulin production. Spinach is also believed to be useful for staving off cancerous cells. In a study published in the International Journal of Cancer, people who ate the most leafy greens had half as many skin tumours over 11 years as those who ate the least. It is thought that the folate in these veggies may help repair and maintain DNA, basically boosting cells' ability to renew themselves. What’s more the water in these greens effectively penetrates cell membranes, making the skin plumier and less wrinkled.

Eggs: Eggs are a good source of biotin, a B complex vitamin that metabolizes amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein," says Frank Lipman, MD, director of Eleven-Eleven Wellness Center in New York City.

Exercise: The benefits of regular exercise once again go far beyond good health and a strong immune system. A vigorous work out in fact immediately revs up the circulatory system of the body, lending a glowing and youthful appearance to your skin and hair. The necessity of a physical exercise in order to stay in shape cannot be over emphasized. So if you want to shed those few extra pounds and attain a svelte figure, there is no substitute for exercise. However to go about this, you need out purchase expensive equipment or even shell out huge gym membership fees. Simple jogging, running or brisk-walking every day for ten minutes or more is usually enough to obtain most of the health benefits of exercise but you could also include sit-ups, crunches, side-crunches and push-ups to work on specific areas of your body.
The more support you give your skin in terms of the diet you eat, the more support it will give you in terms of glow, beauty and radiance.

By Mercy Kukah