Consuming a well-balanced, nutrient-rich diet is important for a healthy body, including your skin. Certain infections and conditions can affect the health of your skin, including rashes, acne, eczema, cracking, dryness, and cancers. In order to build and maintain healthy, strong skin, you should include specific vitamins, such as the B vitamins, vitamin C and vitamin A, in your daily diet.
Niacin
Niacin, also known as vitamin B3, acts to help your body convert food into fuel. Along with other B vitamins, niacin plays a role in building and maintaining healthy eyes, hair, skin and liver. Symptoms of a niacin deficiency include fatigue, canker sores, indigestion and pellagra. Pellagra is a condition that can lead to diarrhea, dementia and cracked, scaly skin. In addition to a supplement, you can find this vitamin in many foods including beef liver, beef kidney, salmon, sunflower seeds and peanuts. Some foods, such as breads and cereals, have niacin added to them. Consuming foods rich in the amino acid tryptophan can also help boost your intake of niacin because tryptophan is converted into niacin by your body. Good tryptophan sources include dairy, eggs, red meat and chicken. The recommended daily intake for this vitamin is 16 mg for adult males and 14 mg for adult females.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is essential for your body to produce collagen. Collagen is a protein that your body uses to form tendons, ligaments, blood vessels, scar tissue and skin. In addition, vitamin C is important for wound healing and repairing your cartilage, teeth and bones. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, a deficiency in this vitamin can lead to rough, dry and scaly skin. Adult males require 90 mg of vitamin C per day and adult females require 75 mg per day, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. To boost your intake, include vitamin C-rich foods in your daily diet. These include strawberries, melons, oranges, kiwis, lemons, bell peppers and broccoli.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is often used to help treat skin conditions, according to MedlinePlus. These conditions include eczema, acne, psoriasis, wounds, sunburn and skin scaling. To benefit from these functions, you can eat vitamin A-rich foods. These include liver, eggs, whole milk, sweet potatoes, carrots and squash. The recommended daily intake of vitamin A in adult males is 900 mcg per day and 700 mcg per day in adult females, according to MedlinePlus.
Vitamin B6
A deficiency in vitamin B6, also known as pyriodoxine, can contribute to a variety of negative conditions. These include dermatitis (a type of skin inflammation), a sore tongue, (also called glossitis), confusion and depression. The recommended intake for this vitamin is 1.3 mg in both adult males and females, according to the National Institutes of Health. You can meet your needs with a supplement of foods including whole grains, legumes, beans, meat, poultry, fish and dairy.
