Embrace nose-to-tail eating

Maybe you’ve heard of the benefits of bone broth and the collagen found in it. This is nose-to-tail eating! It’s simply a way of cooking/eating that uses parts of an animal that are often discarded, like bones, skin, cartilage, and organs. If you’re a meat-eater, don’t skip these nutrient-dense bits and bobs—they are some of the best food sources of collagen and glycine, an essential amino acid that our bodies use as the building blocks to make collagen and elastin (glycine is the most abundant protein in collagen). Collagen is necessary for healthy skin structure, smoothness, hydration, and reducing fine lines and wrinkles and a loss of collagen is directly related to skin aging; elastin gives our skin elasticity and firmness.² Both of these proteins work together to build healthy skin.

Eating nose-to-tail is really not as intimidating as you might think. Next time you cook a whole chicken, save the bones to make a simple bone broth and enjoy a cup daily. If you’re short on time, or don’t want to go through the trouble, keep pre-made bone broth on hand—there are many delicious varieties available these days. Make baked pork rinds a go-to snack and eat that deliciously crisp skin from roasted chicken—both are great sources of collagen.^{3 4} Just make sure you choose products from animals that have been organically and/or regeneratively raised—animals are only as healthy as the way they are raised. And finally, to get an extra boost of collagen every day, consider adding a collagen supplement to your skincare routine.

Like mom always said: Eat your (organic) veggies!

Fresh vegetables are loaded with an array of skin-enhancing nutrients like lutein, and vitamins and minerals like vitamin C and copper, both of which the body requires for collagen production. The antioxidants that are abundant in colorful fresh produce, like sulforaphane, lutein, and lycopene, can also protect skin from UV damage, which can lead to premature skin aging, and even worse, skin cancer. Regular consumption of vegetables like broccoli, cucumbers, carrots, kale, and tomatoes have all been shown to protect the skin from UV damage, preventing dehydration, skin thinning, collagen degradation, photoaging (dark spots), and fine lines.⁵ And speaking of antioxidants, studies have found that eating more vegetables and fruit can lead to noticeable changes in the tone of your skin, lending it a healthy glow. Researchers chalk it up to the carotenoids, antioxidants that give certain vegetables and fruit their orange and red colors, that are deposited in the skin when we consume them.⁶ Research has also shown that the healthy glow that results from regular vegetable consumption stands true across different ethnicities.⁷ When you load up on produce, make sure it’s organic. Organically grown vegetables and fruit have higher levels of nutrients, including antioxidants, and are grown without the use of toxic chemical pesticides.⁸

Ultra processed foods are no friend of the skin

While a myriad of foods are processed to a certain extent (think wheat ground into flour to make bread), ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are those that you couldn’t make in your own kitchen and are processed to the point where they are more a conglomeration of processed ingredients (e.g., high-fructose corn syrup, seed oils like corn and soy oils, artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives) than actual food. And they are terrible for skin health. UPFs increase inflammation in the body, which can impair normal collagen production and degrade existing collagen.⁹ Chronic inflammation resulting from a diet heavy in UPFs can also exacerbate inflammatory conditions like eczema, acne, and dermatitis.¹⁰ One study investigating the effects of diet on patients with dermatitis found the best improvement in the skin of those people who eliminated white flour products and other “junk foods” and added vegetables, organic foods, and fish oil (a source of healthy omega-3 fats) to their diets.¹¹ UPFs high in sugar are especially bad for the skin because excess sugar in the body leads to the formation of advanced glycation end products, or AGEs, in which sugars bind to proteins (like collagen and elastin), significantly damaging them.¹² AGEs accelerate skin aging and can lead to wrinkles, decreased elasticity, and general poor skin health.¹³

Optimize your omega-6 to omega-3 ratio

We’ve covered ultra-processed foods and inflammation, and balancing your omega-6 intake with anti-inflammatory omega-3 intake falls in line with that. Omega-6 fats are not all bad, but in our modern diets, these fats dominate, especially in UPFs. Highly processed omega-6 seed oils like corn, soy, canola, safflower, and cottonseed oils are ubiquitous in UPFs, and in excess, they drive inflammation, whereas the omega-3 fats, found in foods like cold-water fish and walnuts, quench inflammation. The problem is that we eat way more omega-6s compared to omega-3s, shifting our bodies into a more inflammatory state.¹⁴ The easiest way to avoid omega-6 oils is to cook at home more—restaurants, fast food or not, typically use seed oils for cooking. When you make your meals at home, you control not only what you’re eating, but how it’s made. Stock your pantry with extra-virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and animal fats like lard and tallow (nose-to-tail!). Additionally, make eating more omega-3 fats a priority. Fatty, cold-water fish, like sardines and salmon are excellent sources, and to really optimize your omega-3 intake, consider a fish oil or krill oil supplement. The omega-3 fats have been shown to promote hydration, protect skin from UV damage (including preventing hyperpigmentation), improve dermatitis, and strengthen the skin barrier.^{15 16}

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