Are there anti-aging foods?

Who doesn’t want to slow down the aging process? Are there foods you can eat to slow down Father Time?  WebMD has an article called, 7 anti-Aging Foods for Your Skin.  In this article, dietitian Kerri-Ann Jennings is quoted, “Everyone wants smooth, radiant skin.  What you eat can bring you closer to that goal.”  

The Dietary Basics for Slowing the Aging Process:

1.      Eat foods full of nutrients, called nutrient dense foods, which pack in the vitamins and minerals your skin needs.  These include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fish.

2.      Change it up.  Go for variety – lots of color, lots of different fruits and vegetables.  Each color delivers different antioxidants so mixing up colors means you are getting a lot of antioxidants which means a healthier you.

Mix colors and eat a variety of fruit

3.      Go beyond food – get enough sleep and exercise and don’t forget the sunscreen.  (I use sunscreen on my face 365 days a year.)

The author of Younger Next Week  says all of these basics will help you look younger.

What are some foods you should put on your grocery list for a younger looking you?

1.   Oats – choose that oatmeal or Cheerios for breakfast.  Whole grain oats are a complex carb so slow to digest without spiking your blood glucose.  Dr. Debra Jaliman, a New York dermatologist, recommends “complex carbohydrates like oats because they are low-glycemic”  She notes that high-glycemic foods  (white bread, white rice, white pasta) are known to cause wrinkles.  Also, oats “have a natural plant chemical that helps prevent damage to skin cells and smoothes skin irritation”.

2.    Oranges – loaded with vitamin C which helps promote collagen production.  Vitamin C can be termed the anti-wrinkle vitamin as it helps keep your skin younger longer.  Other vitamin C foods would include any citrus foods and tomatoes.  Tomatoes offer vitamin C and lycopene which protects your skin from sun damage. And cooked tomatoes are great.  Enjoy that salsa or spaghetti sauce. 

Make or buy some salsa

3.   Avocados – enjoy that guacamole.  Avocados have fat, but a healthy monounsaturated fat that help keep your skin hydrated.  The fat in avocados also helps you absorb vitamin A and carotene that your skin needs to be healthy.

4.    Lean protein – protein helps build collagen.  Low fat milk, low fat yogurt, low-fat cheese like 2% mozzarella,  lean beef, chicken, fish all provide high quality protein. 

5.    Salmon –healthy omega 3 fats are good for your skin. Serve it with quinoa or brown rice and you add some healthy complex carbs to the meal.

6.   Grapes – has the unique anti-aging resveratrol which is in the skin of the grapes.  It may slow the aging process but also helps our skin fight off the bad effects of UV light and sun damage.

7.    Berries – add some blueberries, raspberries, strawberries to your day. Berries add many different antioxidants to your body. They help protect your skin from pollutants in the environment and promote cell regeneration. 

WebMD also notes eating lots of yellow and green vegetables can lead to fewer wrinkles.  Additionally, focusing on antioxidants and foods rich in antioxidants is also a good strategy for healthier, younger looking skin. 

    What are some common foods with the most antioxidants?  WebMD provides a list of the 20 Common Foods with the Most Antioxidants

1.      Fruits – cranberries, blueberries and blackberries rank the highest

2.      Vegetables – beans, artichokes and russet potatoes

3.      Nuts – pecans, walnuts and hazelnuts rank high in the nut category

4.      Other foods with good antioxidant capacity include:  prunes, kidney beans, raspberries, strawberries, red delicious apples, Granny Smith apples, sweet cherries, plums, black beans and Gala apples.  

Enjoy some Granny Smith apples

 5.      Green tea – this tea is rich in antioxidants and may improve skin.  

6.      Chocolate – WebMD notes a study found that women who drank hot chocolate had softer, smoother skin in 3 months.  But they drank a special hot chocolate with higher cocoa content.  I add some cocoa to the low calorie hot chocolate mix I buy.  Just a teaspoon or so to enhance the flavor but also to get more nutritional benefit.

     Among all of these foods there should be some you can add to your diet.  Farmer’s markets are getting in fresh crops of fruits and vegetables.  We just bought locally grown blueberries last weekend.  And since Granny Smith and Gala apples are rich in antioxidants, maybe an apple a day isn’t such bad advice after all. 

     Sources:  7 anti-Aging Foods for Your Skin, Younger Next Week, tomatoes, 20 Common Foods with the Most Antioxidants , study Image sources:  fruit, salsa, apples