Eat for better skin: your questions answered

Can you tell me if it's worth taking supplements for skin ageing? Will anything make a difference or should I just spend more on an anti-ageing cream?

The short answer is most definitely yes. As a nutritionist I cannot underestimate the importance of an approach to skin health that nourishes ‘from within’. Also by feeding from the skin down you are supporting the top layer of the skin - the epidermis - and protecting it from environmental damage. The answer is to feed both inside and out.

First things first; no one thing can prevent ageing per se, however there are many things that you can do through your diet and beauty regime to reduce the impact of natural ageing. Collagen, which forms the structural network of the skin, is what gives your skin its strength and elastin, also a protein, is what gives our skin its suppleness. As we age, collagen and elastin become damaged (for example from sun damage, environmental factors, a nutrient-poor diet) which means that the collagen protein becomes ‘cross-linked’ and the skin fibres lose their flexibility. This results in wrinkles and a dull, ‘sagging’ (for want of a better word!) appearance.

However there is plenty of evidence to show that a group of nutrients called antioxidants work hard to reduce this damage to collagen and elastin, thereby slowing down the appearance of ageing skin. The antioxidants shown to be particularly effective are Vitamin C, Vitamin A (and the caronetoid family such as beta carotene) and Alpha Lipoic Acid.

Recent research has shown that applying vitamin C to the skin can reduce inflammation, wrinkle formation and unwanted pigmentation such as liver spots. It can also help to protect elastin and collagen from damage. Vitamin A and the carotenoid family have demonstrated they repair signs of ageing that result from sun exposure as well as promote the production of, and defend against, the breakdown of collagen. Alpha Lipoic Acid protects the water based and fat based portion of the skin and when applied topically acts as a collagen booster to reinstate firmness to the skin. It also boosts the power of Vitamin A and E.

They key is to boost your daily diet with foods rich in these nutrients (especially carrots, squashes, green leafy vegetables and avocadoes) in juices or soups or taking a quality antioxidant supplement containing these nutrients to feed the basal layer of the skin, while also using a nourishing moisturiser or serum to feed the upper layers of the skin.