Can you eat your way to younger-looking skin? The answer is a bit yes and a bit no. No evidence shows that any one food can reverse the signs of aging, but because of the power of nutrients, certain foods can definitely help keep aging at bay, such as some fruits, vegetables, fish, and even beverages.
That said, two very important factors carry much more weight than your diet: sunscreen and smoking. So, you can change your diet and eat all the anti-skin-aging foods you want, but you can’t outrun bad habits that age your face much faster than you’d like.
The two things that beat every food
A study out of Australia looked at four groups of people, each assigned a sunscreen-use habit to follow over four years. The group that used broad-spectrum sunscreen daily saw about 24% less skin aging than the other groups. All that’s to say is that sunscreen is your number one savior when it comes to warding off early skin aging.
Smoking is another important skin-aging factor. Studies show smoking lowers skin elasticity, thickens the skin, and makes it tenser, especially in folds where lines develop. So, if you light up, expect to look a little older than your peers.
How diet shows up on the skin
Once you’ve added sunscreen and removed smoking, you can focus on diet. But how exactly does diet affect your skin? Nutrients in food aren’t just there for internal health. For example, vitamin C keeps the immune system strong, but it’s also vital for building and repairing collagen, the protein that acts as glue for skin, bones, tendons, ligaments, and connective tissues.
Dietary fats, which are healthy fats required for physiological function, have also been researched heavily for their skin health benefits, with one meta-analysis showing that lipids and fatty acids, like the ones found in fatty fish, are associated with fewer wrinkles, while polyphenols (antioxidants) support the skin barrier. Because food affects the skin so much, getting it right in the kitchen can support slower aging.
The List
Produce
The produce section is full of great options that help ward off fine lines and wrinkles. Tomatoes, for example, are full of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that wards off aging in a couple of ways. In one meta-analysis of intervention trials, it was found that lycopene protects against UV photodamage, and keeping sun damage to a minimum reduces the risk of early skin aging. As mentioned above, vitamin C is another great nutrient for skin health because it helps support collagen production. Citrus fruits and bell peppers are excellent sources of vitamin C. A population-based cross-sectional study examined its effects on over 10,000 participants and found that the more vitamin C a person consumes, the less skin aging they see.
Other research examined the skin-protecting effects of certain nutrients, such as vitamins A and E and carotenoids and flavonoids found in leafy greens, acai berries, cranberries, carrots, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, broccoli, avocados, pomegranates, and spirulina, and found that all of these fruits and vegetables play their own roles in reducing skin damage that shows up as signs of aging while improving skin elasticity, collagen production, and promoting a healthy skin barrier.
Fish counter
Data from the Rotterdam study, which included 2,753 participants (men and women), examined overall diet and its association with accelerated or decelerated skin aging. In the study, it was found that a healthy diet is associated with far less skin aging than an unhealthy diet in women. While the study examined several foods as part of a healthy diet, fatty fish was one food that positively affected skin aging in both men and women.
The data also showed similar results for lean fish; however, the anti-aging effects were more pronounced with fatty fish in women, with the opposite true for men. Good examples of fatty fish include salmon, herring, rainbow trout, and sardines, while good lean options include cod and haddock.
Pantry aisles
Cross-sectional data from the NHANES I study examined 4,025 women ages 40 to 74 to determine how certain nutrients affected skin aging. It found that linoleic acid, found in high amounts in seed oils, nuts, and seeds, was associated with better skin hydration and less skin thinning, both of which play vital roles in accelerated skin aging.
Beans, chickpeas, and lentils are other options studies have investigated for skin aging. In one study, researchers assessed skin in a small group of 453 participants based on their food intake and sun exposure. Those who consumed more legumes, such as the options mentioned above, saw reduced skin damage and wrinkling even after sun exposure.
Dairy or alternatives
Evidence supporting dairy as an anti-aging food is limited. That said, early data suggest that fermented dairy products, such as yogurt, may provide some indirect benefits. Fermented dairy products promote a balanced gut, with a good number of both good and bad bacteria for overall health.
Since the microbiome plays a role in how the body ages, it’s thought that balancing the gut may also support overall aging, which may include the skin. This evidence, however, is limited and should be taken with a grain of salt.
Drinks
Certain beverages may affect how fast you age, and some might surprise you. For example, a randomized analysis of observational studies looked at the effects of various beverages to see what, if any, connection they had to skin aging. It found that out of the four beverages it examined, coffee, tea, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened drinks, coffee was the most associated with reduced facial skin aging in participants.
It’s thought that the polyphenols, which act as antioxidants, play a role. The study couldn’t determine how much coffee people drank or how they brewed it, and the data was self-reported, so further research on coffee alone may be warranted before calling it a holy grail for skin aging.
Another randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study looked at cranberry beverage and its effects on skin over 6 weeks in a very small sample of 22 women. While the study was small, it found that drinking one cranberry beverage a day can reduce sun-damage-driven redness while improving skin elasticity and smoothness. Polyphenols are again the primary suspect in why this drink may help skin aging.
Green tea is another polyphenol-rich option that may support skin health. One review that pulled data from studies published between 2013 and 2023 found that it may help inhibit wrinkles, increase protection against inflammation, and improve skin elasticity. That said, more research is needed because it was primarily focused on green tea extract rather than drinking the tea itself.
Skip or limit
If skin aging is a primary concern, you can cut some foods from your diet while adding the foods above. For example, the Rotterdam study that looked at which foods to incorporate also examined which foods can accelerate aging and found several that are negatively associated with unhealthy skin aging. The study linked heavily processed foods, added sugars, and refined carbohydrates to unhealthy skin aging.
With added sugars and refined carbs, eating too much can trigger glycation, when sugar molecules bond to proteins, fats, or acids in the body, creating harmful products called glycation end products (AGEs). These AGEs accelerate aging by harming collagen and elastin, leading to more wrinkles and the loss of skin elasticity.
The collagen question
Many people hail collagen for its skin-aging properties, but when it comes to supplements, are they worth it? Not exactly. One systematic review and meta-analysis of 23 randomized controlled trials examined several studies, with some trials finding a positive association with improved hydration, elasticity, and wrinkles.
However, the positive associations came only from studies funded by pharmaceutical companies, whereas studies without that funding found no correlation between the supplement and positive changes in the skin. Because of that, the meta-analysis concluded that there was no real evidence to support their use for anti-aging.
The skincare aisle
When it comes to a skincare routine to complement a skin-friendly diet, you’ll want to keep to the basics: sunscreen, a retinoid, vitamin C serum, and a moisturizer.
As mentioned above, daily sunscreen use reduces skin aging by 24%. Topical retinoids, chemical compounds derived from vitamin A or made to have a similar structure, are clinically proven to reduce fine lines and wrinkles while improving skin texture. They work through several processes, mainly improving cell turnover and keratin, collagen and elastin production in all three essential types of skin cells.
While vitamin C helps from within, it can also work topically because of its powerful antioxidant properties and ability to protect the skin against UV damage, and moisturizer keeps the skin hydrated and healthy. While research doesn’t support moisturizers’ ability to reduce skin aging, it can help protect the skin barrier and reduce moisture loss; over time, those two factors can be helpful in reducing accelerated skin aging.
A sample week
So, how do you add these foods to your plate to reap the benefits? Start by slowly introducing one new food alongside what you already eat. For example, if you have eggs and toast in the morning, adding a cup of berries and some cut-up tomatoes is a low-lift way to incorporate them into your daily life.
For lunch, toss leafy greens with chickpeas or your favorite legume, some nuts or seeds, and a cut-up bell pepper for a small side salad that adds the skin-healthy foods you want without overturning your favorite mid-day meal.
Dinner is a time to be more adventurous; start by adding one fish day per week and build the rest of the meal around it, leaning toward broccoli, sweet potatoes, carrots, or other vegetables. It’s not about overhauling your diet, but adding and subtracting where you can to make it easier.
Eating these foods won’t magically erase your laugh lines or crow’s feet, but it will give your body what it needs to keep your skin as healthy and youthful as possible.
Angelica Bottaro is a medical writer and researcher with a background in psychology and journalism. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Trent University and an Advanced Diploma in Journalism from Centennial College. Angelica has been a freelance writer since 2014, with bylines in Healthing.ca, CTV Shopping Trends, and Verywell Health, among others.
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