Can Eating Good Can Save Your Skin?

I recently saw the article "Can Good Eating Save Your Skin?", by KAREN COLLINS, M.S., R.D., C.D.N, AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR CANCER RESEARCH.

What I gleaned is that eating well does help but it does not replace the benefits of using sun screen and protective clothing during peak hours. I buy make up that has sun screen in it because this is just not somthing I could fit in my routine. I am always rushing and just did not like the extra step.

The article said that their Researchers found, "premature aging of skin and skin cancer seem to involve sun damage from ultraviolet light, which creates highly reactive substances, called "free radicals," that damage cell proteins and DNA..."

To counter act this we need to eat foods high in "antioxidants like beta-carotene and other carotenoids can stabilize free radicals and end the damaging chain reactions they start."

So to me this is yes, eating good foods rich in color can save your skin and benefit your health over all but you MUST protect the skin period. This means skin care lines with UV Protection or a specific sun block.

So my advice is foods rich in color: spinach, carrots, beets, and lots of fruit, grains and leafy veggies full of antioxidants. No one should forget the benefits of water, supplements and exercise to promote general good health of the skin.

I also wanted to point out a key point they made in the same article. They quoted a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition where carotenoid supplements were found to reduced the skins reddening in response to ultraviolet light (which means they suffered less reddening skin damage from ultraviolet light).

Please note that "these studies involved fair-skinned people with a tendency to develop sunburn. It is not clear if the results would be the same for people with darker skin". We do however know that darker skin offers the benefits of the pigments protection and ages much better than fair-skin.

To read the full article log on to: http://www.pioneerthinking.com/aicr_skincare.html

More Info: The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) offers a Nutrition Hotline (1-800-843-8114) 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Monday-Friday. This free service allows you to ask questions about diet, nutrition and cancer. A registered dietitian will return your call, usually within 48 hours