Glowing skin – we all want it! But we too often look in the wrong places to get it. We spend our time looking for a ‘quick fix’ that comes in a bottle or a pill, when where we should really be looking is inside our fridge! We are what we eat, as they say, and our complexion is a reflection of the food choices we make. And starting the day with a nutrient dense breakfast is step number one.
If you want your skin to shine as brightly as possible, you need to give it the nutrients it needs to do so. And there isn’t a better time of day to start loading up on these skin loving nutrients than breakfast time.
Here are some yummy and nutritious breakfast ideas that will optimise skin health and start your day off right.
Avocado is a fantastic source of vitamin E. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that works by neutralising the free-radicals in our body. Free-radicals damage the collagen in our skin and cause dryness, fine-lines and wrinkles, so lets load up on the avo!
These zucchini fritters go beautifully with avocado and you get the added benefit from the fibre in the zucchini. Add an egg for extra protein to keep you feeling full until lunch.
This smoothie heroes the glorious kiwi fruit, and for good reason. Did you know that kiwi fruits are higher in vitamin C than oranges and lemons? Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that is needed to synthesise collagen and repair damaged tissue. Collagen gives the skin its elasticity, but as we age our collagen production begins to slow. Ensuring that we have enough vitamin C is important to regulate this process.
You can easily add kiwi fruit to your morning porridge or muesli as well.
Chia seeds are a great source of omega 3 fats. Omega 3s are important for maintaining the smooth, elastic structure of the skin, and a deficiency in these fatty acids contributes to conditions such as dandruff, eczema and psoriasis.
Chia are also an excellent source of dietary fibre and zinc. A diet high in fibre encourages daily bowel movements which move toxins through the body, preventing them from being excreted through the skin. Zinc is an important mineral for skin health, especially for those suffering from acne.
Sweet Potato and Spinach Breakfast Bowl
If you are looking for healthy skin, you can’t forget vitamin A. Vitamin A promotes healthy skin cell turnover. A deficiency in this vitamin is often associated with dry, rough flaky skin, and conditions such as acne, psoriasis and hyperkeratosis pillaris (chicken skin).
Sweet potato and spinach are both great sources of vitamin A, making this breakfast bowl the perfect addition to your morning routine.
This smoothie uses kefir as its hero ingredient. Kefir, whether its dairy milk or coconut kefir, is a fantastic source of probiotics. The state of our gut flora has a huge impact on our skin, with many studies showing a clear link between diminished good gut bacteria and skin problems, such as acne, rosacea, and eczema. Fermented foods, like kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and kombucha, are rich sources of probiotics that are great for your gut and your skin health.
