Think you can't grocery shop your way to clearer skin? Think again.

Next time you're at the farmer's market or supermarket, opt for these skin-loving foods and get your glow on, girlfriend!

P R E  +  P R O   B I O T  I C S

Synbiotic? More like skinbiotic! The combo of prebiotics and probiotics promote gut health + repair, and a happy, healthy microbiome.

Prebiotic foods provide the fuel to power the good bacteria in your gut, and include fibre-rich foods like onions, garlic, artichoke, and linseeds/flaxseeds. Fibre in itself improves bowel elimination, support healthy gut flora, and stabilise blood sugar levels - aiding in balancing skin.

Probiotic-rich foods, like kombucha, sauerkraut + tempeh, all help to boost good bacteria in the gut.

Happy gut = happy life (skin included).

A N T I O X I D A N T S   A P L E N T Y

Antioxidants work to prevent and reduce the impact of oxidative damage within the body. Antioxidant berries, green tea, and turmeric also work to promote tissue repair throughout the body - including in the skin.

Beta-carotene is one particularly useful antioxidant for boosting skin health. Found in orange foods, like sweet potato, carrots and butternut pumpkin (and actually responsible for their orange colour due to its strong red-orange pigment), beta-carotene converts to skin-loving vitamin A.

S K I N   B O O S T E R S

Vitamin C assists in collagen synthesis for healthy skin, as well as in reducing inflammation and preventing oxidative damage in the body and skin. Foods rich in vitamin C include rockmelon, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, citrus fruits, and strawberries.

Vitamin A plays a super important role in tissue repair, reducing sebum and keratin overproduction (two factors which can contribute to acne + other skin conditions), and minimising scarring.

Omega 3 is a type of fatty acid essential for reducing inflammation in the skin + body, but also works to decrease and normalise androgen activity (androgens are a type of hormone partially responsible for acne and its underlying causes, like PCOS). Oily fish, linseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts are all great sources of omega 3 fatty acids - especially the humble + very tiny chia seeds, which contain a massive 3g per tablespoon.

Selenium is an antioxidant and skin detoxifier, also playing a role in modulating immunity (hello, allergic skin conditions!). You'll find a heap of selenium in Brazil nuts.

Zinc is absolutely essential for healthy skin and immune systems. It also plays an important role in skin repair and the prevention of scarring, as well as in balancing hormones and sebum production. You'll find zinc in nuts, pumpkin + sunflower seeds, eggs and tahini.

Nut Mylk made from the above nuts + seeds provides a great, skin-loving alternative to cow's milk, which is usually laden with the antibiotics and hormones fed to the cows on non-organic and conventional dairy farms. And it's so easy to make your own!

A N T I - I N F L A M M A T I O N

Anti-inflammatory foods do exactly what they 'say on the tin' - work against inflammation to restore health to both body and skin. Turmeric, ginger, green tea, olive oil, berries, nuts + seeds, and cold-water oily fish all have anti-inflammatory benefits.

Pineapple is another anti-inflammatory food, but - thanks to its high bromelain content - also works as an anti-allergy food, helping to relieve skin conditions triggered by allergies.

G E T   L O W

Adopting a low GI (glycaemic index) diet helps to regulate insulin levels and prevent inflammation, helping to prevent and treat acne. In fact, acne lesions have been found to reduce within 7-14 days on a low GI diet!

What does a Low GI diet look like exactly? Think lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, legumes, whole grains, fish, chicken, eggs, yoghurt, nuts and seeds, and fermented foods. Cut down or avoid the refined sugars in your diet, limit your fruit to 2 serves a day (remembering that dried fruits are whole fruits!, and watching how much fruit you're adding into your morning smoothie, too), and keep your eyes peeled for sneaky hidden sugars on ingredients labels - anything ending in the word '-ose' is a type of sugar, remember.

B I T T E R ,   B A B Y

Bitter foods like rocket and radish - as well as cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower - support liver function. An important reminder: if your liver isn't functioning at its best, and unable to effectively break down toxins, in many cases those toxins will end up trying to escape through your skin instead.

Bitter foods also help to boost digestion, as well as absorption of nutrients important for healthy skin. Bitter apple cider vinegar or lemon in warm water before meals will help to ensure you're assimilating and absorbing those skin-loving nutrients as you should be.

H E A L T H - F I L L E D   C U P P A

We're sure you won't need a reminder about why drinking plenty of water (and boosting your waste clearance, lymph movement, etc.) is important for skin health, but if you struggle to get your 2L of pure, filtered water daily, why not opt for a skin-loving herbal tea?

Depurative, lymphatic and hepatic herbal teas can work wonders for skin (like our Skin Tea, which was crafted for this exact purpose).

You can also try a calming herbal tea blend to help relieve any stress (because increased stress = increased sebum production = skin mayhem!).

O P T   O R G A N I C 

When you opt for organic foods, you're avoiding added hormones and antibiotics, but also xeno-oestrogens, which can all play a role in wreaking skin havoc. If you're a little limited, try to at least opt for organic versions of the 'dirty dozen' - strawberries, capsicums, apples, spinach, tomatoes and others - which are the fruits + veggies most laden with pesticides.

Xeno-oestrogens mimic the body's natural oestrogen hormones, contributing to oestrogen excess (and, in turn, to skin hell). You'll find plenty of these baddies in not only conventional cosmetics, but in plastic bottles and food containers - so opt for a stainless steel or glass water bottle and lunchbox, instead. Simple.