Supple, smooth, clear, and glowing – these are but a few words to describe healthy-looking skin. Beauty products and cosmetic technology may help improve skin appearance, but they’re mostly skin-deep. Taking the right skin supplements is a far better option to help make your skin glow from the inside out!
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But first, why is skin health so important?
Well, firstly, the skin reflects what’s happening inside your body. If you’re truly healthy, it will show in your skin. Likewise, unsightly skin issues will soon appear if you’re fighting an infection. Examples include acne, rashes, swelling, dryness, cracking, open sores, and more.
As the body’s largest organ, the skin’s three layers are home to keratinocytes, melanocytes, hair follicles, nerves, oil glands, blood vessels, fat, and sweat glands. These different skin layers and components protect us from external threats like germs, pollutants, toxins, and even the sun’s harmful rays.
In addition to shielding us from external threats, our skin also holds our internal organs and entire body in place. In short, it keeps the outside world out and our innards within.
But that’s not all. The skin is also a massive sensory receptor, letting us feel touch, pressure, pain, heat, and cold. It also helps regulate our body’s temperature so we’re neither hot nor too cold, allowing us to adapt and survive even in harsh weather conditions!
So, what are the best supplements for better skin?
Before diving into our recommended skin care supplements, it’s important to note that none of them will instantly clear up your skin and restore its youthful glow and appearance quickly. If that’s what you’re looking for, then dermatologic surgery is your best bet.
That said, for natural and long-term solutions for optimal skin health, these science-backed skin supplements may help you out!
Skin supplement #1 – Collagen
As the most abundant protein in the body, collagen is responsible for creating skin, muscles, hair, nails, tendons, cartilage, and bones. But we produce less collagen as soon as we hit our 20s, leading to the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. As the years go by, skin elasticity and firmness are also affected.
Fortunately, collagen supplementation can help increase the body’s stores, giving rise to its skin and beauty benefits. In fact, a recent systematic review confirmed that collagen does indeed help improve skin elasticity and hydration. It also promotes collagen density in the skin, supporting its use for wound healing and skin aging (1).
For best results, choose a product that uses hydrolyzed collagen, aka collagen peptides. At Intelligent Labs, each scoop of our Collagen Peptides supplement contains 11g of bioavailable collagen sourced from grass-fed and non-GMO cows in New Zealand.
Skincare supplement #2 – Vitamin C
While collagen supports optimal skin health, its effects are limited if you skip out on vitamin C. This vitamin is water soluble and not stored in the body, so we need to take it regularly from either food or supplements.
But why exactly do we need to ensure we get enough vitamin C when supplementing with collagen?
Well, that’s because vitamin C is a co-factor in collagen formation. Without vitamin C, there would be no collagen!
Unfortunately, regular vitamin C supplements, aka ascorbic acid, have a big problem. It’s only bioavailable in small doses. Absorption rates decrease significantly when you take more than 200mg daily (2).
To improve vitamin C’s poor absorption rates, we came up with a clever formulation for our Liposomal Vitamin C supplement. We insert vitamin C molecules inside liposomes that are made from sunflower lecithin and coconut oil powder. This formula transforms water-soluble vitamin C into a fat-soluble version, thus significantly improving its absorption!
A more bioavailable vitamin C will help boost collagen production, which is great for your skin. Plus, it will help with immunity, increase energy levels, reduce fatigue, protect against oxidative damage, improve mood, and so much more!
Skin supplement #3 – Probiotics
You might be surprised to see this supplement on our list of the best skin supplements, but probiotics do contribute to better skin health! These live bacteria form part of our gut microbiome and help with digestion and immune health.
Since a majority of our immune cells reside in the gut, by keeping our gut healthy, our immune system can function at optimal levels. This means the body is better positioned to fight off skin infections.
In addition to enhancing our immunity, probiotics may also help slow down the skin’s aging process by improving skin hydration and elasticity. Moreover, these helpful microbes may also minimize wrinkle depth, balance skin pH, and reduce damage from the sun’s harmful rays (3, 4).
We offer two different probiotics supplements for adults:
- Adult Probiotics & Prebiotics – contains at least 50 Billion CFU of ten patented probiotic strains sourced from DuPont Danisco. Also includes two types of prebiotics (to feed the probiotics if they wake while in the capsule).
- Women’s Probiotics & Prebiotics – contains at least 6 Billion CFU of four patented probiotic strains. To support women’s health, we also include Crantiva™ cranberry juice extract, D-mannose, and prebiotics.
Skin health supplement #4 – Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acids have a long list of health benefits. They fight inflammation, support brain health, improve mood, support pregnancy, manage various autoimmune conditions, and more.
Thomsen and colleagues reviewed 38 studies on omega-3’s uses in dermatology. They reported that this nutrient helped improve dryness and severity in patients with atopic dermatitis. It also helped reduce damage from sun exposure and increased the threshold for sunburn, which may explain why omega-3 intake is associated with a lower risk of skin cancer! Additionally, patients with acne, psoriasis, and skin ulcers also showed improvements (5).
Fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, anchovies, sardines, and halibut are rich sources of omega-3. But if you’re not a fan of eating fish regularly, you should definitely consider taking our Ultra Pure Omega-3 Fish Oil. We use superior triglyceride fish oil (not the refined ethyl ester fish oil used by other brands), so you can experience all the health benefits of these essential fatty acids.
Related article: 24 Ways Omega-3 Can Help Improve Your Life
Skin supplement #5 – Berberine
Berberine’s main claim to fame is probably as a Metformin alternative. Diabetics, prediabetics, women with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome), and those who want to improve their insulin sensitivity may benefit from taking Berberine.
Symptoms of the conditions mentioned above typically manifest on the skin. Examples include severe acne, skin tags, and acanthosis nigricans (velvety skin pigmentation found in body folds) (6).
Just like Metformin, Berberine also lowers blood glucose levels. Consistent intake helps improve insulin sensitivity and reduces inflammation, too. This may then help clear up the skin manifestations of insulin resistance.
Check out our Max Strength Berberine supplement. Each capsule contains the clinically approved dosage of 500mg, with each bottle containing 120 capsules.
Related article: 14 Amazing Research-Backed Berberine Benefits!
Skin supplement #6 – Vitamin D
Ah, the sunshine vitamin! If you live in an area that receives plenty of sunshine, you may not need to grab a bottle of vitamin D. You can simply go out and soak up the sun’s warm rays (in moderation though as skin cancer is a very real threat).
So, how exactly does vitamin D help with skin care?
Well, vitamin D has anti-inflammatory properties, which can be very helpful for sunburnt skin (7). It may also help fight premature skin aging by repairing the epidermal barrier and maintaining a healthy balance in the skin (8).
Interestingly, however, people with melanoma (the most dangerous type of skin cancer) have been found to be deficient in vitamin D. But a study showed that patients who can raise their vitamin D levels during treatment have a much better prognosis than those who are unable to (9).
Related article: What Causes Low Vitamin D Levels (Even When You’re Taking Vitamin D Supplements)?
Conclusion
Makeup and clothing can only do so much to hide tired-looking, unhealthy skin. Fortunately, taking the right skin supplements for your needs can improve your skin’s appearance from the inside out!
