Super foods and essentials for fabulous skin: Chapter Two

The adage of 'you are what you eat' applies here, especially if you want that healthy skin glow. Ms Tourles recommends that we eat a balanced diet with as few processed foods as possible.

She divides vitamin and mineral characteristics into three categories: Outstanding Sources, Skin Care Benefits, and Deficiency Symptoms. For the purpose of this study I selected what I considered the most critical item or a food that I would be willing to eat. For more detail, please get her book.

Essential Vitamins
Powerhouse vitamins provide the antioxidants and healing agents that gives our skin a healthy glow.

• Vitamin A is essential for skin cell growth and maintenance; it boosts immunity and helps prevent dry, rough skin; found in fish liver oil, squashes,  greens, or tomatoes;
• B-Complex vitamins are good for anti-stress as well as aiding in cell growth and development; found in lean beef, chicken, egg yolks, liver,milk whole grains, green leafy vegetables or beans;
• Vitamin C helps produce collagen in connective tissue; found in citrus fruits, tomatoes, apples, green leafy vegetables or papayas;
• Vitamin D when combined with vitamin A aids in healing skin impurities; found in herring, mackerel, salmon, milk, egg yolks, and sunshine; and
• Vitamin E oxygenates tissues and helps skin retain vitamin A; found in whole grains, eggs, nuts and green leafy vegetables.

Essentials Minerals

Building blocks of healthy skin, Four particular minerals are essential in building healthy skin:

• iodine increases oxygen consumption and metabolic rate; found in fish and salt;
• silicon aids in collagen formation; found in beets, onions, eggs, almonds, peanuts or grapes;
• sulfur helps keep skin clear and smooth; found in onions, cabbage, garlic and kale; and
• zinc boosts immunity; found in pumpkin/sunflower seeds, milk, eggs, green leafy vegetables, onions or nuts.

Essential Fats and Fatty Acids
Fat is critical to our skin's health, well-being, nourishment, and shape. It is composed of three fatty acids substances: saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, and polyunsaturated fatty acids, each offer its special value.

• Saturated fatty acids are solid at room temperature; manufactured by your body excess saturated fatty acids can lead to a risk of high cholesterol or heart disease; found in animal fats;
• Monounsaturated fatty acids are liquid at room temperature are beneficial to your heart because they do not elevate your cholesterol and may even reduce it; found in plant and fish fats;
• Polyunsaturated fatty acids are also liquid at room temperature but have a different molecular structure; and
• have been associated with increased risk of certain types of cancer; found in nuts and fish.

Mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids contain essential fatty acids (EFAs) because our body's cannot manufacture them; they must come from our food and are essential for our overall nuritional health. As little as 2 or 3 teaspoons of polyunsaturateed fal provides all the efa your body needs.

Two particular EFAs affect our skin:

• Omega-3 found in fish and seeds, aid in healing wounds and
• Omega-6 found in evening primrose, borage, black current oils and blue-green algae; promotes smooth, moisturized skin.

Whole food supplements will be discussed in my next message.