Ultraviolet rays emitted by the sun are largely responsible for skin aging. Sun creams and covering clothes can counter their harmful effects but they also slow down the synthesis of vitamin D in the upper layers of the epidermis, which is not desirable all year round. To protect your skin from spring onwards, food can be a valuable aid, as explained by Dr. Massimiliano Mayrhofer, director of Health care at the Palace Merano (Italian Tyrol), one of the most eminent specialists in aging well.
What foods should be favored to protect once morest sun aging?
MASSIMILIANO MAYRHOFER. All colorful fruits and vegetables provide protective nutrients capable of neutralizing free radicals released in the skin during sun exposure. However, these free radicals are responsible for sagging skin, the deepening of wrinkles and the appearance of spots. Red and orange vegetables, such as carrots, squash, peppers, apricots, mangos or papayas, are very rich in beta-carotene, a precursor pigment of vitamin A which reduces UV damage and improves the skin’s tolerance to the sun. Green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, also contain significant amounts. I therefore recommend putting them on the menu as often as possible as soon as the fine weather arrives, always accompanying them with a drizzle of olive, walnut or flax oil to increase the intestinal absorption of beta-carotene and make full of antioxidant vitamin E. Otherwise, it is not absorbed and settles in the tissues as an orange stain.
Are tomatoes also good allies?
Indeed because they contain a lot of lycopene, another very effective pigment to counter the damage of free radicals. But to fully benefit from it, it is better to eat tomatoes cooked rather than raw, in the form of coulis, juice or puree. You can also steam them, garnished with a little olive oil, then spread them on bread to prepare delicious Italian bruschettas. Pink grapefruit and watermelon also provide a lot of lycopene, but they are rarely eaten cooked.
What other tips to increase your defenses?
Spirulina algae is very interesting in that it is not only full of beta-carotene but also of phycocyanin, a specific pigment that helps to even out the skin and reduce the risk of dark spots. I advise to sprinkle it regularly on salads or to integrate it into soups for example. The ideal anti-aging skin recipe: a pokebowl made with salmon, mango, avocado and spirulina cut into thin strips. A few almonds or hazelnuts are also welcome to increase the intake of omega-3, good fatty acids essential to fight once morest inflammation and skin dryness.
