What to Eat for Healthy Summer Skin

The best foods for radiant skin.

• Strawberries
• Tomatoes
• Cucumbers
• Watermelon
• Iced tea
• Grilled salmon
• Iced coffee
• Confetti corn

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Photo: foodnetwork.com

Get these foods and drinks on your shopping list to have healthy skin all summer long.

Strawberries
Strawberries are an excellent source of vitamin C (one cup gives you over a day’s worth of this antioxidant). Vitamin C helps your body make collagen, which helps skin stay plump and wrinkle-free, and it can also help prevent and heal UV-related skin damage. Pile them on your breakfast cereal or yogurt, or enjoy them in this sweet-and-savory Fennel, Arugula and Strawberry Salad.

Tomatoes

Lycopene—the compound that gives tomatoes, pink grapefruit and watermelon their red hue—helps protect skin against sun exposure. According to a November 2012 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, eating lycopene-rich food consistently for several weeks may help to improve your skin appearance. Try Food Network Kitchen’s Tomato and Peach Salad with Ricotta for a multitasking skin helper.

Cucumbers

Cucumbers nourish skin by delivering a lot of water, as well as some vitamin C and caffeic acid—two compounds that may help protect against skin-damaging UV rays. Cucumber has also long been used in Ayurveda, an Indian system of medicine, to soothe sunburn and other skin irritations. Use cool cucumbers as a topping for grilled salmon.

Watermelon

Watermelon is super hydrating and also delivers lycopene, a compound that may help improve your skin’s appearance. Lycopene is best absorbed with fat, so try watermelon paired with olive oil, as in Tyler Florence’s Watermelon Gazpacho.

Iced Tea

Green tea is chockfull of polyphenols; compounds that, among other benefits, may help ward off skin damage from the sun’s powerful UV rays. Give it an even more refreshing twist by adding mint and lemon. Dave Lieberman’s recipe for Mint Iced Tea shows you how.

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