Taking care of your skin is no easy task. The healthier your skin is from the inside, the more radiant and beautiful it will appear on the outside. Nourishing your body is one of the best ways to keep your skin healthy. Apart from the daily cleansing and moisturizing routine that everyone follows, it is more important to remember that your skin needs nourishment from the inside in the form of the correct vitamins and nutrients. The fact is that the proper skincare routine beings with proper nutrition. Some of the best sources of getting nutrients that keep your skin glowing and radiant are through fruits and vegetables and the vitamins that they provide. We take a look at what are the best vitamins for your skin and how you can include them in your diet to get a glowing and healthy skin from within.

Why Your Skin Needs Vitamins?

Vitamin C, D, E, and K are some of the most important vitamins that your skin needs. To keep your skin looking radiant, healthy, and youthful, you need to ensure you are getting sufficient vitamins. When your body has the optimal level of all the vitamins, you will automatically notice a reduction in the following:

Wrinkles
Age spots
Dark spots
Redness
Rough patches
Dry skin

These essential vitamins for your skin are not only available in the form of supplements, but they are also typically found within many skin care products. Let’s take a look at each of these essential vitamins and find out how they benefit our skin.

Vitamin C

Perhaps no other vitamin is as important for maintaining the health of your skin as vitamin C. This vitamin is naturally found in the outer layer of your skin, known as the epidermis, as well as the inner layer of the skin, referred to as the dermis. Vitamin C is known for its antioxidant properties which helps fight against cancer. Vitamin C also has a crucial role to play in the production of collagen, which is necessary for keeping your skin healthy and youthful. This is one of the primary reasons why you will find vitamin C in many antiaging skin care products.

You should consider taking vitamin C orally in order to increase the effectiveness of any sunscreen that you apply to your skin for protection against UV rays. Vitamin C reduces the cell damage caused by UV radiation and otherwise as well. It also helps the body heal faster from any wounds.

Vitamin C, as mentioned before, has important antiaging functions. It helps you keep the signs of aging at bay since it plays a major role in the process of collagen synthesis in the body.

Apart from this, vitamin C also heals damaged skin and decreases the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. You should also boost your intake of vitamin C to help repair and also prevent dry skin, particularly in cold weather.

Which Vitamins Are Good For Skin?

Vitamin C is usually one of the key ingredients in many skin care products, dietary supplements, and even in the foods, we eat. This is why vitamin C deficiency is rarely observed.

The daily recommendation of vitamin C doses is around 1000 mg per day. If you find yourself lacking in the intake of vitamin C through your diet, then you can opt for the following:

Start eating more citrus foods, such as oranges and lemons
Drink orange juice
Consume plant-based vitamin C sources such as spinach, broccoli, and strawberries
Start taking vitamin C supplements, but only after consultation with your doctor
Search for antiaging skin treatments that include vitamin C to lower wrinkles, redness, dryness, and other spots on your face.

Vitamin D

This is one of the most easily available vitamins in nature as our body manufactures vitamin D whenever the skin is exposed to sunlight. The cholesterol present in the skin cells converts the vitamin D when sunlight is absorbed by the skin. Vitamin D is needed by your kidneys and liver for creating healthy cells throughout the body. This also includes the skin. Vitamin D plays a crucial role in maintaining your skin tone. Vitamin D is also used in the treatment of psoriasis.

There is a man-made version of this vitamin available as well, known as calcitriol. Calcitriol is available as a topical cream and has shown promise in the treatment of psoriasis and other skin conditions.

According to data from the Linus Pauling Institute at the Oregon State University, an individual requires a daily intake of vitamin D between 500 to 600 IU per day. If you are pregnant or over the age of 65 years, then this requirement goes up further.

It is important for your body to get plenty of vitamin D. You can increase your take of this vitamin in the following ways:

Every day get at least 10 minutes of exposure to sunlight, however, first check with your doctor about this if you are suffering from any skin condition or if you have a family history of skin cancer
Increase your intake of foods such as orange juice, yogurt, and fortified breakfast cereals
Consume foods that contain vitamin D such as salmon, herring, tuna, and cod
Start taking cod liver oil (either in oil form or even in supplement form)

Vitamin E

Similar to vitamin C, vitamin E is also very important for the skin as it is an antioxidant. One of the main roles of vitamin E is to provide protection against the sun, preventing skin damage. When applied to your skin, vitamin E is powerful in absorbing the damaging UV rays from the sun. This prevention ability of vitamin E further helps reduce or prevent the appearance of wrinkles, fine lines, and dark spots on the skin.

While the body naturally manufactures sufficient vitamin E through sebum, which is an oily material that is released through the pores of your skin, the vitamin is also found in abundance in most skin care products. Sebum, when released by the skin’s pores, helps condition the skin and also prevents dryness. This is why vitamin E is particularly helpful if you have dry skin. This vitamin can also help treat any form of skin inflammation.

While vitamin E is present across many skincare and cosmetic products, the challenge is that many of its effects get minimized when these products get exposed to the sun. This is why it is still recommended that you consume more vitamin E through your diet.

The daily recommended dose of vitamin E is around 15 mg of vitamin E. If you want to increase your intake of vitamin E, you can try the following:

Take a separate supplement of vitamin E or a multivitamin that includes vitamin E
Increase your consumption of nuts and seeds, such as sunflower seeds, almonds, cashew nuts, and hazelnuts
Opt for using topical products which contain both vitamin C and E as these products are more effective in protecting the sun against sun damage

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is needed by the body for the proper functioning of blood clotting. The process of blood clotting helps the body to heal bruises and wounds, and even areas that are affected by any type of surgery. Apart from blood clotting, vitamin K is also responsible for helping prevent spider veins, dark spots, stretch marks, scars, and dark circles under the eyes.

Many topical skin creams usually contain vitamin K as it helps in the treatment of many skin conditions. In fact, even doctors often use creams containing vitamin K for patients who have undergone a surgery since the vitamin aids in lowering bruising and swelling in that area. It also speeds up the healing process.

Individuals generally require around 90 to 120 ug of vitamin K daily and deficiency of this vitamin is quite rarely found. If you want to increase your intake of vitamin K, you can include the following in your diet:

Green beans
Spinach
Kale
Cabbage
Lettuce
Vitamin K supplements are also available.

Conclusion

Vitamins are not only necessary for your skin health, but also for your overall health. Vitamin deficiencies can lead to many harmful effects on your body. Vitamin supplements are easily available these days and will help you maintain an optimal level of these vitamins. However, it is recommended that you consult your doctor or dermatologist first before taking any supplements. If you have a doubt on whether or not you are deficient in any of these essential vitamins, a simple blood test is all that needs to be done to determine the same.

Also Read:

Why Your Skin Needs Vitamins & Which Vitamins Are Good For Skin?