Herbal Skin Care Secrets Hidden At The Greengrocer's

Interest in skin care supplements, or beauty foods, has been strong in Asia,
and that trend is growing fast in Europe as well. These nutrient rich beauty
foods make a good case for starting a beauty regime from within, one that is
designed to prevent or reduce the effects of aging, like sagging skin.

Some products on the market include a supplement containing lacto-lycopene,
vitamin C, and soy isoflavones. This is aimed at restoring firmness to the skin
for women over 40, and was developed by Nestle and L'Oreal. Others have been
developed using lycopene and grape seed extract, both antioxidants. Grape seed
extract also stops enzymatic reactions that lead to collagen in the skin being
broken down.

Antioxidants protect the capillaries in skin and thus ensure that enough
nutrients get to the living cells that eventually push their way to the surface
and become the skin you see in the mirror. They also protect from broken veins
and early wrinkling. Capillaries also deliver oxygen to the cells, and remove
the waste products of cellular metabolism. This prevents puffy, sagging, and
dull skin.

But you don't always need to reach for a bottle of supplements. Simply by
eating more antioxidant rich food on a daily basis should see some improvement
in skin tone. Fruits rich in antioxidants include blueberries, prunes,
blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, apples, cherries and plums. And of the
vegetables, eat more artichokes, broccoli, red cabbage, pontiac potatoes, brown
onions, asparagus, non-green capsisum, beetroot, spinach and sweet potatoes.

Women are more prone to the damage caused by antioxidants than men, according
to research from the University of Berkeley, and hence possibly their aging
effects (Angyal).

Another strong antioxidant is beta carotene. Beta carotene is found in green
leafy vegetables, fruit and carrots. This antioxidant has been found to
counteract the effects of a particular type of oxygen free radical, singlet
oxygen, which occurs after the skin is exposed to UV radiation in sunlight. UV
exposure can lead to premature aging by the effects of singlet oxygen. A study
found that whilst the provitamin A aspect of the carotenoid did not combat the
singlet oxygen, the beta carotene did. It prevented the action of two enzymes,
associated with UV light and the destruction of the skin cell's extracellular
matrix, which happens in premature aging of the skin. Sunlight also destroys
beta carotene in cells after sun exposure, so this beta carotene has to be
replaced.

Beta carotene has been reported as having a mild sunscreen effect too, though
it needs to be taken as a supplement to get this effect.

The skin care supplement beauty market is still not a strongly developed one
however, as these types of supplements tend to be more expensive than other
supplements. And there needs to be more research and clinical trials to prove
which products do what they are designed to.

References: 1.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?n=54477-beta-carotene-boosts
2. E
Angyal, Gorgeous Skin In 30 Days
3.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?id=57434

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>anti aging skin care treatment rich in antioxidants like alpha
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