Moisturizers, serums, and in-office skin tightening procedures are all wonderful if you are looking for ways to boost your skin’s radiance. But if you aren’t including a well-balanced diet with essential vitamins in your skincare plan, you aren’t seeing the forest through the trees.
Great skin starts with a healthy diet. This means getting enough protein, good fats, vitamins, and minerals. But knowing which vitamins to hone in on for better skin is a great way to maximize the potential of your diet for great skin outcomes.
Dr. Anil Rajani shares four top vitamins that he recommends for skin tightening. Here are the ones to incorporate into your daily diet through foods and supplementation.
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Vitamin D
If there’s one piece of solid skincare advice you’ve no doubt heard time and again it’s that you should limit your skin’s exposure to UV rays and wear sunscreen and hats when you are in the sun. But the sun isn’t all bad — it’s a source of vitamin D, which is an essential nutrient for healthy skin. In the skin, vitamin D plays an important role in skin tone and may even prevent disorders like psoriasis. The recommendation is 600 IU of vitamin D, but you may need more if you are over the age of 70. You can get all the D you need from 10 minutes of exposure to the sun daily (remember to still wear sunscreen), or by eating foods like breakfast cereals, fish, yogurt, and non-dairy yogurt alternatives.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is found in the upper and lower layers of the skin and is an important antioxidant that helps with cancer prevention and building more collagen, which helps with elasticity of the skin and gives your skin robustness and strength. This nutrient is one of the most common you’ll find in skincare products (along with hyaluronic acid), but taking it orally can enhance the effect of sunscreen that you apply to your skin. You can find this nutrient in citrus fruits, broccoli, red peppers, and kale. It is recommended that adults take 1000 mg of vitamin C daily.
Vitamin E
Like vitamin C, vitamin E’s job is to help protect against sun damage. This nutrient absorbs harmful UV light when it is applied to the skin and can help prevent photoaging, dark spots, and wrinkles. It’s also great if you have particularly dry skin because it helps balance the oils in your skin. Even if you aren’t a big fan of your pores and oilier skin, a balance of oils is needed to keep your skin looking healthy and supple. Vitamin E also helps treatment of skin inflammation.
Although vitamin E is present in many skincare products, getting enough vitamin E in your diet is preferable (most adults need 15 mg a day). You can get this by eating more nuts and seeds like sunflower seeds or taking a supplement.
Vitamin K
Vitamin K is said to help stretch marks, spider veins, scars, circles under the eyes, and dark spots on the skin. Doctors frequently use creams that contain vitamin K after surgery to help prevent bruising. Vitamin K deficiencies are rare in the U.S. now and between 90-120 mg is recommended daily for adults. Some of the foods that contain vitamin K are kale, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, green beans. If you suspect you aren’t getting enough of this nutrient, it’s important to talk to your doctor, especially if you are on blood thinners.
Before you start any new supplement routine, it’s a good idea to speak with your physician and undergo a thorough examination and possibly bloodwork. Supplementing is only beneficial if you are deficient in a nutrient, and most times you can get everything you need from a varied and balanced diet.
