A detitian’s top six skinfood secrets

Instead of eating your way to a carrot-tan this Spring/Summer, we’re sharing a dietitian’s top six skinfood secrets to help you with a different kind of glow from the inside out.

1. First up, variety.
   1. The key to nourishing your body from the inside out and to kick off a dietitian’s top six skinfood secrets, is to ensure you are meeting your nutritional needs through enjoying a highly varied diet. Considering how we can be including all the different food groups (fruits, veggies, wholegrains, dairy/dairy alternatives & proteins) plus increasing the diversity from within each food group!
   2. At mealtimes, we will often think about how we can up the variety within our dish. Some quick and easy go-to’s for us are adding fruit, nuts and seeds to morning porridge; adding grated veggies or lentils to pasta dishes; or adding chickpeas, fruits or cooked grains to salads.
   3. Try our high variety Loaded Sweet Potato Fries recipe here.
2. The brighter the better in the veggie department. 
   1. Some bright and colourful vegetables get their colours from something called carotenoids eg: carrots (beta-carotene), tomatoes (lycopene) leafy greens (beta-carotene). Carotenoids are a groups of phyto-nutrients (positive nutrients) which act as an antioxidant in the body and can neutralise free radicals which damage the skin.
   2. Fun fact: It’s been shown that when you combine fats such as avocados or olive oils with your carotenoid containing vegetables it can enhance the absorption of these phyto-nutrients!
3. Say yes to the lemonade stand kids, citrus to the rescue!
   1. Citrus fruits (oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes) are high in Vitamin C. Vitamin C has antioxidant properties that helps neutralise free radicals that can cause damage to the skin and plays a role in creating collagen (protein found in skin that helps maintain the structural integrity)
   2. Not a citrus fan? Other foods you could dose up on that are packed with Vitamin C are kiwi fruits, berries or broccoli!
4. Go nuts for your seeds.
   1. Our body is not able to make Omega 3 fatty acids, so we need to source it from the foods we eat. Introducing salmon, flaxseeds, chia seeds and walnuts! These are packed with excellent sources of Omega 3 fatty acids which reduce inflammation and enrich the skin.
   2. Note: the sources of Omega 3 fatty acids found in plant foods are not quite the same as in fish, so for our vego friends, we also recommend including other marine algae sources of Omega 3’s where possible eg: seaweed, nori or spirulina.
   3. Seeds like pumpkin, sunflower and sesame are all good sources of zinc, a key nutrient that helps heal damaged skin. So next time you’re making literally any meal, we suggest you top it with seeds!
   4. Last but not least, the most talked about nut in the whole damn business are almonds. Almonds contain Vitamin E, another antioxidant that helps neutralise free radicals that can damage the skin.
5. Looking out for low GI grains for your skin gains.
   1. Low GI wholegrains such as oats, barely or quinoa (a non-exhaustive list) can help reduce the symptoms of acne. It also helps to stabilise your blood sugar levels (prevent the highs and lows) that can contribute to acne and cause skin redness.
   2. Other low GI plant foods include the humble kidney bean, chickpeas and lentils (another non-exhaustive list) plus they’re packed with plant-based fibre which is our absolute fave nutrient of all time.
6. Not food but real important…
   1. Drinking enough water (~2L per day) is integral for most bodily functions including keeping the skin moisturised.
   2. One last thing, the appearance of our skin changes day-to-day and also as we age- this is completely normal. We don’t always have to strive for the clearest skin of all time in order to meet a beauty standard set by someone else. You are beautiful just the way you are!

We hope this has helped shed some light on the ways to glow from the inside out! I guess these six skinfood secrets aren’t so secret anymore!