Supplements for Healthy Skin

Healthy skin starts with healthy digestion!

Growing up, in my teenage years, I went through what most girls do…a phase with hormonal acne breakouts. As a teenager I was mortified by these breakouts so I was constantly on the lookout for the latest skincare products to help clear up my skin. I remember my dermatologist at the time told me it wasn’t about my diet, but more about how I took care of my skin on the outside (I now know this to be be quite the opposite).

I remember using all different types of products that essentially dried out my skin until I finally went on the pill. It wasn’t until I went to nutrition school when I really learned about the impact of diet on your digestion, hormones and ultimately your skin.

Here are some of my favourite supplements to support healthy skin:

1) Omega 3 fatty acids

Essential Fatty Acids or EFAs, meaning the body cannot produce so it must be obtained from the diet can come in the form of fish oil, flax or hemp oil, help to keep the skin moisturized and protect cell membranes. EFAs are also anti inflammatory. If you suffer from psoriasis or eczema this is a particularly important supplement for you.1

2) Probiotics

You may have noticed a bit of a trend here if you’ve been reading my other blogs and posts…Probiotics are a key part of a healthy digestive system. As mentioned above a healthy digestive system leads to happy hormones and healthy skin. The digestive system plays a foundational role in your overall health. Probiotics helps to balance out your gut bacteria adding in beneficial bacteria to prevent the “bad bacteria” from taking over.

3) Vitamin A

This is a great supplement for acne prone skin. Vitamin A helps to decrease sebum production and keratin build up which essentially means it helps to manage the skin’s oil production and get rid of dead skin cells. Studies have shown participants with acne were deficient in Vit. A.2 Vitamin A is also a powerful antioxidant and anti inflammatory for your skin. 3

(Just to note Vitamin A in high doses is contraindicated for women pregnant and breastfeeding and Vitamin can also increase your sensitivity to sunlight).

4) Collagen

You may have already heard about the benefits of collagen for your skin as there are an increasing number of collagen supplements on the market today. But in case you missed it, collagen production decreases as we age so it’s important to add this one into your daily diet. Studies have shown supplementing with collagen can help increase skin elasticity, resulting in anti-aging effects.4

In addition to the above mentioned supplements some dietary recommendations to consider to support healthy skin include:

Drinking tons of water- aiming for 2-3L of water per day to hydrate your skin and flush out toxins.

Getting a sufficient amount of fibre into your daily diet is key. Fibre sources can include, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, ground flax seeds and ground chia seeds. This helps to promote healthy bowel movements as constipation can lead to toxins being reabsorbed by the body.

Up your intake of leafy greens to help detoxify the liver (the liver regulates the balances of hormones) and provide your body with beneficial antioxidants.