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Drinking Water and Eating Healthy for a Glowing Complexion

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Drinking Water and Eating Healthy for a Glowing Complexion

Your skin benefits from healthy nutrition just as much as the rest of your body. After all, your skin is your body’s largest organ, so it needs extra care!

What should you feed your skin? The right foods, supplements and hydration can give your skin an ultimate glow and keep it healthy throughout the years. Follow these tips to keep your skin happy and full!

Hydration
Other than plenty of water, drink fluids like green tea, coffee, pomegranate juice and red wine (in moderation). What’s so great about these drinks? Each contains polyphenols, powerful antioxidants which inhibit the growth of cancer cells and can even kill cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. 

Be sure to think before you drink. You should avoid too much caffeine and drink alcoholic beverages in moderation or practice complete abstinence as excessive alcohol intake is not good for the skin.

Food
The kinds of foods your skin loves include berries, nuts, fruits, vegetables and beans. Berries such as blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries and cranberries are all great to snack on for healthy skin. Blueberries in particular contain many potent antioxidants like anthocyanin (responsible for the blue skin in blueberries), vitamin C and vitamin E. They also contain essential B complex vitamins which help maintain normal healthy skin, hair and muscle tone and function, as well as enhance the immune system which fights infection and certain cancers.

Nuts are a good food source for the "good" fat, fiber and protein. They help keep the skin supple and smooth. In particular, almonds are great anti-inflammatories and can help alleviate common skin conditions such as acne, eczema and psoriasis. Additional nuts that are worthy of snacking on include walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds.

Avoid fatty foods, fried foods, those loaded with sugars and carbohydrates, as well as salty foods.

Supplements
Vitamin D and biotin supplements are great for your skin. To avoid sun damage to the skin, it’s preferred that you receive vitamin D from supplementation or foods. Vitamin D deficiency is a common problem, therefore individuals should have their vitamin D level checked through blood work every year. A physician can guide you on the appropriate amount of vitamin D supplementation. In general, dermatologists often advise patients to take 2,000 - 3,000 units of Vitamin D-3, cholecalciferol, which is more readily absorbed than vitamin D-2 every day. Vitamin D protects us against bone loss, infection and cancer. Biotin supplementation is good way to help repair brittle nails and thinning hair.

Overall, eating a good and balanced diet, exercising regularly, getting adequate sleep each night, reducing stress, reducing alcohol intake and omitting smoking are essential to being healthy inside and out.

For more information about Cooper Clinic Dermatology, click here or call 972.367.6000.