Eat Right To Keep Healthy Skin

Learn Which Foods Can Help You Keep Your Skin Young

(CBS)  Vitamin C, Heller points out, is another antioxidant that helps in the production and protection of collagen. And collagen is important to skin health because it provides structural support to skin, maintains resiliency and shape and assists with wound healing. Some great sources of vitamin C, besides orange juice, are broccoli, Brussels sprouts, green peppers, strawberries and kiwi.

Vitamin B is also essential. If you're not getting enough of it, you're susceptible to skin disorders such as dermatitis, cracked lips, dry, flaky skin and skin lesions. There are several vitamins that make up the vitamin B complex, and they all work together to help keep skin healthy. You can find vitamin B in several food sources, including fat free milk, cheese, yogurt, ready to eat cereals made from whole grain, bananas, chick peas, oats, peanuts, chicken breast, mushrooms, sunflower seeds, black beans, lentils, and asparagus.

Something else to get a lot of: omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s help with the passage of nutrients into cells, and act as a systemic anti-inflammatory. Inflammation triggers cells to clog pores, and that can cause acne. Omega-3s also offer protection against ultraviolet ray-induced skin lesions, and decrease ultraviolet-induced inflammatory responses. Omega-3s can be found in foods such as salmon, walnuts, tofu, flax seed oil, ground flax seeds, canola and olive oil.

And, advises Heller, don't forget to keep drinking plenty of water. Aside from being essential for all the compounds already mentioned to do their jobs, water keeps skin looking healthy and even young. In addition to keeping cells hydrated, water helps cells move nutrients in and toxins out. And when we're properly hydrated, we also sweat more efficiently, which also helps keep skin clean and clear.

Some things that have a negative effect on the health of skin include smoking, alcohol, air pollution and, most importantly, sunlight. That can damage skin and cause the destruction of collagen fibers and increase the risk of skin cancers.

Exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun is the biggest cause of skin aging and pre-cancerous and cancerous skin lesions. Ultraviolet light dramatically increases oxidative damage to the skin. Micronutrients in foods can act as sponges to soak up destructive ultraviolet, help protect skin from harmful oxidants, repair skin damage, and modify biochemical skin responses to ultraviolet rays.