What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when we say healthy food? Or, what’s the answer you get when you ask that friend/celebrity about the secret behind her glowing and gorgeous skin? Lots of fresh fruits? Fruits and vegetables are more than just delicious foods that give your body the vitamins, minerals, and healthy energy it needs. They also make excellent and powerful ingredients in skin care and hair care and are another way you can enjoy their benefits without having to eat them (though you should still eat them). Here is what we think skin care routine for girls should look like.
The use of nature’s crops to treat our bodies goes back to the days of our ancestors, and while we may have more advanced skin-care techniques now, the basics of natural skin-care and beauty aren’t any less effective. Well, since time is immemorial, we have been hearing enough about the benefits of fruits for our health and skin. Hence, in this post, we have decided to list the top 7 fruits you should consume to achieve the best version of your skin.
Banana
Banana for instance is a great ingredient for skin tightening. It hydrates your skin and improves its elasticity. It also tightens pores. All you need is half a banana, 1 teaspoon almond oil and 1 teaspoon honey. Mix well to form a paste and apply evenly on the face. Finally, rinse it off with cold water. It is the number one fruit to be added in skin care routine for girls.
Papaya
The enzymes in Papaya can literally bring back life to a dull face. Packed with moisture and antioxidants, they help nourish the skin and make it look fresh and plump. Mash a small piece of papaya and apply to the face. Rinse off after 10 minutes. You can even add a few drops of lemon and 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder for an added boost.
Avocado
Creamy and rich in monounsaturated fats and a source of vitamins E and C, avocado is a satisfying, heart-healthy treat. Fatty acids such as oleic acid help your body absorb fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin E. Forming the skin’s protective lipid barrier, fatty acids help seal in moisture by regulating water content within the cells. Antioxidant vitamins E and C also help heal and protect your skin from damaging ultraviolet rays. You can use avocado as a creamy skin mask that softens and refreshes.
Tomato
Tomatoes contain collagen-stimulating vitamin C, which helps with skin healing and structural integrity. They also contain lycopene, a carotenoid compound responsible for their deep red color. Lycopene in tomatoes may help prevent sunburn. Healthy female subjects who consumed 16 milligrams of lycopene daily for 12 weeks showed resistance to sunburn after ultraviolet exposure, according to researchers of a study published in the “British Journal of Dermatology.” The researchers noted that the lycopene supplementation also reduced premature aging caused by ultraviolet rays.
Pomegranate Juice
Pomegranate juice benefits your skin because of its vitamin E content. Vitamin E provides natural sun protection — it neutralizes harmful free radicals generated as a result of sun exposure, so that they cannot damage your skin. Pomegranate juice’s vitamin C content also offers cosmetic benefits and nourishes your skin. Like vitamin E, it protects your skin against sun damage, and a diet rich in vitamin C reduces skin wrinkling. Drink pomegranate juice as a source of zinc, an essential mineral important for healthy skin. Zinc regulates the growth of basal cells — the precursor cells that develop into mature skin tissue, and also plays a key role in wound healing. So this should definitely be a part of skin care routine for girls.
Apple
Apples benefit your health by boosting your intake of vitamin C, or ascorbic acid. Vitamin C helps you make collagen, a protein found abundantly in your skin. Apples also serve as a source of copper, an essential mineral that contributes to healthy skin. Copper helps you make melanin, the brown-black pigment that colors your skin. Melanin in your skin protects you from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, so being able to produce melanin provides natural sun protection. Apples provide a small amount of skin-friendly vitamin A, a family of chemicals called retinoids. Vitamin A plays an important role in skin development — it helps immature skin develop into mature and functional skin tissue.
Citrus Fruits
Oranges and lemons offer protection from sun-induced free radical damage through the power of vitamin C, an antioxidant and immune booster. Vitamin C aids in healing dry, chapped and sun-damaged skin. It also boosts the production of collagen, a protein in the skin that helps maintain elasticity and tone. Lemon juice applied topically may help reduce brown spots for a more even skin tone.
It is important to remember that a number of factors contribute to glowing skin. Consuming and applying the above-mentioned fruits is good for a healthy digestive system and to treat a number of skin issues. However, healthy skin in the long run is usually the result of a collective effort.