Eat Fruit and Veggies For Best Skin Color and Skip the Suntan!
Eat fruit and veggies for a golden glow. Yep, you get the best skin color because the warm beta-carotene tone is now proven to be more attractive than a suntan. As a dermatologist and nutrition advocate, I'm thrilled with this latest research!
Now it's undeniable, you definitely look more beautiful to other people when your skin has the golden glow that comes from eating fruits and veggies.
People find the golden glow of beta-carotene in your skin more more appealing than the ashy-brown color that comes from a sun tan.
I've thought this for years and now it's fact; in a scientific study, volunteers rated the golden skin of veggie eaters as more beautiful than the brown skin of sun tanners -- and you can get your own beta carotene 'golden glow' in as little as a month.
The take home message is that if you want really attractive skin tone.....skip the suntan and eat fruits and veggies for the most attractive warm skin tone! Dermatologist Dr. Cynthia Bailey
Here are the details of the study:
Dr. Ian Stephen, an experimental psychologist at the University of Bristol in England, did a study where he showed volunteers a series of photographs of both men and women. Some were sun-tanned and others were on a prescribed fruit and veggie diet that was high in beta carotene. He asked the volunteers to rate the attractiveness of the people's skin tone. The volunteers consistently preferred the skin tone of those people who were eating the fruit and veggie diet over the tone from people who were sun tanned.
You need to know that skin color is produced by one of two skin pigments: melanin or beta carotene.
- Your skin's melanin content is partly determined by your genes, but it also increases with sun exposure.
- Beta carotene is a yellow/orange pigment that you only get if you eat it. Foods with lots of beta carotene include certain fruits and veggies like carrots, winter squash, cantaloupe, and some green leafy veggies.
Beta carotene imparts a golden warmth to skin color.
Of course this shows up more in really fair-skinned people (Fitzpatrick skin types 1 to 3), but in my experience, even people with darker skin (Fitzpatrick 4 to 6) can warm up their skin color with a healthy diet. I'm a fair Fitz type 2 and I've always preferred my skin with the warmth of beta carotene instead of my natural color (a pasty and transparent blueish white). I eat a ton of veggies, which I've talked about in past blog posts. Now I'm going to make sure to always include the fruits and veggies with lots of beta carotene; heart attack, stroke, cancer, arthritis and weight control were motivating, but skin tone and beauty are real kickers!
It's undeniable, we are what we eat and everybody can see it in our skin. Cynthia Bailey, MD
Eat these fruit and veggie foods high in beta-carotene to create a golden attractive skin tone:
- Yellow/orange vegetables: carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, winter squash
- Dark green and/or leafy vegetables: kale, broccoli, spinach, collard greens, turnips and their green leaves, beet leaves, mustard and dandelion greens, watercress, cilantro, chicory, endive, escarole
- Yellow/orange fruits: apricots, cantaloupes, papayas, mangoes, nectarines, peaches
- Other good vegetable and fruit sources – summer squash, asparagus, peas, sour cherries, prune plums.
My doctor's advice to help you get get the most beta carotene out of the fruit and veggie foods you eat to get the best skin color:
- Eat them with a little fat or oil because you'll absorb beta carotene better with a little fat in your digestive tract.
- Chopped or juiced foods release more beta carotene than large chunks of food (carrot juice is a great source of beta carotene)
- Eating your fruits and veggies really fresh is key, because beta carotene is fragile and gets lost when the fruits or veggies are processed or stored
The bottom line:
Your skin will have a beautiful warm glow without without the wrinkles, liver spots and premature skin aging that comes from sun tanning, when you eat fruits and veggies for best skin color - the most attractive, warm and appealing color! Instead of tanning, eat fruits and veggies that are high in beta carotene. It's been proven!
Skip the sun, have a salad, and look fabulous forever!
TO SEE THE PRODUCTS I USE AND RECOMMEND FOR SUN PROTECTION OF MY BETA-CAROTENE INFUSED GOLDEN SKIN CLICK HERE!
Author: Dr. Cynthia Bailey M.D. is a Board Certified dermatologist practicing dermatology since 1987. She has done well over 200,000 skin exams during her career and authors the longest running physician written skin health blog in the world.
References:
Facial Skin Coloration Affects Perceived Health of Human Faces, Stephen ID, et. al., Fitzpatrick skin types