Revitalize skin with vitamins

JLo Beauty launched in 2020, joining a long line of high-end, celebrity-led skincare lines. But it doesn’t take a major investment to access skin-protecting, skin-loving “products.” They’re found in everyday foods that are good for you inside and out.

Vitamin A in your epidermis absorbs skin-damaging ultraviolet radiation! It also protects epidermal tissue lining your respiratory, digestive and genitourinary tracts. Food sources include broccoli, kale, carrots, sweet potatoes, mangos, pink or red grapefruit, and salmon and trout. Men need 900 micrograms daily; women 700 micrograms. One baked sweet potato has 1,403 micrograms. Half a cup of boiled spinach has 573 micrograms.

Vitamin C helps produce collagen, which protects joints and promotes skin hydration and elasticity. Aim for at least 95 milligrams a day; the upper limit is 2,000 milligrams. Sources include citrus fruits, berries, tomatoes and bell peppers. A small orange has around 50 milligrams and 1 cup of blueberries has 14 milligrams.

Vitamin E helps protect skin from the sun’s damaging UVB rays and is especially sun-protective when combined with vitamin C. In food (but not many supplements), you get a variety of E’s components — mixed tocopherols. It’s mixed tocopherols that prevent skin damage from inflammatory biochemicals that break down collagen, increasing wrinkling and loose skin. Sources are wheat germ oil, hazelnuts and almonds, and green leafy vegetables like spinach. One ounce of almonds delivers 2.27 milligrams. You need 15 milligrams a day.

If you eat these vitamin-rich foods and use a micronized zinc SPF 35 sunscreen daily, your skin can stay youthful and healthy throughout your life.

Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit www.sharecare. com.