Healthy Snacks to Keep at Work for Better Skin From Within

It’s no secret that nutrition plays a major role in our overall well-being, and what you eat can be just as important as serums and exfoliators for keeping your skin healthy and glowing. “While balanced nutrition isn’t a magic bullet to combat aging,” says Kathleen Meehan MS, RD, LDN, “staying hydrated and having a diet full of healthful foods can help to keep your skin youthful.”

She recommends eating a mix of plant-based foods that contain vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients to encourage glowing skin. As a simple rule of thumb, eat every color of the rainbow each day. Each color of fruits and vegetables contains a different set of phytonutrients, providing you with a different benefit.

Just as certain foods can improve the look of our skin, others might contribute to its aging. One of the major skin-damaging culprits is sugar. When our bodies digest sugar, it initiates a process known as glycation, which happens when sugar attaches to collagen in the skin. This causes your cells to stop working properly and to create free radicals causing even more damage to your skin. The collagen and elastin that were once working to keep your skin looking youthful aren’t able to do their jobs, over time causing skin issues like wrinkles, brown spots and sagging.

While you don’t always have to avoid a slice of cake at your friend’s birthday party or a scoop of ice cream on a hot day, Meehan does recommend adding better choices to your daily diet. “Think about the foods you might be able to add in to enhance your nutrition and add balance,” she says.

Finding simple and easy ways to incorporate more nutrient dense foods into your diet can contribute to long-term skin health. These healthy snacks to keep at work are not only simple, but are also packed with key nutrients and minerals that will work with your skin regimen to keep your skin healthy from the inside out.

3 Easy, Tasty & Healthy Snacks to Keep at Work