Feed your skin.

Nutrients for radiant skin: on your plate and in your beauty cabinet

At the ripe age of 39, I am finally paying attention to my skin. For years I’ve made promises to myself to start getting regular facials and get into a good product routine, but it’s really only been in the past year that I’ve started taking this seriously. There are a lot of products and voices out there, but I’m realizing that, like nutrition, this takes a real individual approach: What are your goals? How does this align with your values? Where do you want to be in 10, 20 years?

Confidence and feeling good in your body is a really important part of our wellbeing. But caring for your skin goes deeper than aesthetics. Your skin is more than just a canvas for wrinkles and sunspots—it’s your largest organ and plays an absolutely vital role in your health. It’s also a window to the inside of your body. If your skin is red, puffy, inflamed, irritated, or dry, what do you think is going on inside of your body?

Back to my regular facials, I finally found two absolutely amazing women who are helping me maintain and improve the health of my skin. Jennifer of Beverly Hills Skin Muse is witchy in all the good ways—she always has a potion and a trick up her sleeve. Getting a facial from Jennifer is not the kind you fall asleep in. I am chatting with her the entire time because she is so knowledgable and interesting. Depending on the treatment you choose (I love microneedling), you may or may not leave with a red face, but she is as close to a magician as anyone I’ve ever met. Jennifer has really helped me improve the integrity of my skin and get on a thoughtful skincare regimen, which I think I’ll greatly benefit from in the years to come.

Julia Barna has a more East-meets-West approach but shares similar values of using techniques and products to get the most from your skin. As much as you’ll want to chat Julia’s ear off, you will 100% fall into a deep trance during her insane facial massage. On top of being incredibly relaxing, Julia gave me some great insights into the very real benefits of a good facial massage:

The vitality of the skin is dependent on healthy flow of lymph and blood. Gentle lymphatic drainage can mobilize stagnation that expresses itself as inflammation in the skin. The circulation of blood from massage hydrates and brightens the skin from within, and can stimulate the production of collagen and elastin. Massaging the muscles and connective tissue also helps break up the density and patterns that form fine lines and wrinkles.

Julia tops off her treatments with microcurrent, which tones, lifts and reeducates the muscles to shift back to their original position—and, she got me to commit to using my Ziip 3x a week. I’m doing my homework, Julia!!!

When talking to Jennifer and Julia about products and routines, I’m always inspired by the synergies between my work as a nutritionist and their skincare expertise. So, I thought it would be fun to highlight some nutrients that are extra beneficial to the skin and where to find them on your plate and in your beauty cabinet.

There are a lot of good skincare lines out there, but today I’m highlighting three brands I love and trust: LINNÉ Botanicals (discount code: MIAXLINNE), Sofie Pavitt Face (discount code: MIA10), and Marie Veronique. Some of these products do double duty, so you’ll see them listed more than once.

Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that can brighten the skin, stimulate collagen production, and protect against damage from free radicals and UV exposure. This helps firm the skin, fade dark spots, acne scars, and hyperpigmentation, reduce inflammation, and retain moisture in the skin to keep it plump and soft.

Studies show that taking vitamin C and collagen together may accelerate wound healing, improve skin elasticity, joint strength, and connective tissue. I take both Needed collagen (discount code MIA20) and LivOn Labs’ Vitamin C daily.

Food sources: Citrus fruits, berries, papayas, pineapple, kiwi, mango, bell peppers, tomatoes, leafy greens, parsley, cilantro, and other plants.

Products: LINNÉ Botanicals RENEW Face Serum, Marie Veronique C-Therapy Serum

I asked Jenna Levine of LINNÉ Botanicals about the vitamin C she sources for her RENEW Face Serum (one of my holy grail products) and here’s what she told me:

Choose Your C Wisely — L-ascorbic acid, while common, is unstable and prone to rapid oxidation, reducing its potency. In RENEW Face Serum, we use whole-plant Kakadu Plum extract, a superior source of vitamin C. Unlike synthetic isolates, it’s naturally stabilized by polyphenols like rutin and ellagic acid, enhancing antioxidant protection while preventing degradation and irritation.

Vitamin A
Vitamin A plays a key role in cell growth, repair and protection. It supports acceleration of skin cell renewal, stimulates collagen synthesis, reduces oil production helping to prevent acne, evens out skin tone, and offers antioxidant protection. Retinol is in fact a form of Vitamin A.

Food sources: egg yolks, liver, fatty fish, some dairy, sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, mangoes, spinach and kale.

Products: Marie Veronique Gentle Retinol Night Serum

Vitamin B3 (Niacinimide)
Niacinimide is just a fancy way of saying vitamin B3. B3 can support skin hydration through boosting ceramide production, regulates oil production, reduces dark spots, soothes redness and irritation and has antioxidant properties.

Food sources: chicken breast, liver, turkey, tuna, fatty fish, eggs, peanuts, mushrooms, whole grains, sunflower seeds, sweet potatoes, and avocados.

Products: LINNÉ Botanicals RENEW Serum

Copper Peptides
Copper peptides (GHK-Cu) are small proteins bound to copper ions — they promote healthier, firmer, and more vibrant skin by stimulating collagen production, reducing inflammation, and protecting against damage from pollution and UV rays. This is a really exciting (and emerging) ingredient for skincare products and can also be given as a shot (not like botox, but think other peptides like GLP-1 or BPC-157).

Products: Dr Pickhart’s GHK-Cu (you need to reach out to Jennifer at Beverly Hills Skin Muse to get this, I can’t find it online—this is what I meant when I said she has potions).

Probiotics
There’s your gut microbiome *and* your skin microbiome. Yes, we have an entire microbiome on our skin. In fact, there are an estimated 1 million bacteria per square centimeter of skin. How crazy is that? These microbiomes are in constant communication via the gut-skin-axis, and the health of one affects the other.

Food sources: fermented foods like kimchi, kefir, some hard cheeses, saurkraut, tempeh, cottage cheese, and unsweetened yogurt.

Products: Marie Veronique Probiotic + Exfoliation Mask

Omega 3 Fatty Acids
Omega 3 fatty acids are amazing for strengthening the skin barrier, increasing hydration, slowing signs of skin aging, soothing inflammation, and more. I take this Omega 3 daily, for this reason (and others).

Food sources: fatty fish, eggs, walnuts, flaxseed, chia seeds, hemp seeds, and more.

Products: Sofie Pavitt Omega Rich Moisturizer, LINNÉ Botanicals REPAIR Oil

Hyaluronic acid
Hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring molecule found in the skin, joints, and connective tissues—it’s a powerful humectant (i.e. it helps the skin hydrate and retain moisture).

Food sources: bone broth, organ meats, chicken skin and fish heads.

Products: LINNÉ Renew Serum

Alpha Lipoic Acid
Alpha Lipoic Acid (or ALA) is a mega antioxidant that can reduce inflammation, fight oxidative stress, stimulate collagen production, and improve overall skin texture and tone. It can penetrate deep into the layers of the skin because it is both water- and fat-soluble. ALA from animal based sources is more potent than from plants. You can also try a supplement, like this one from LivOn Labs.

Food sources: red meat, fatty fish, eggs, dairy, spinach, kale, broccoli, tomatoes, potatoes, garlic, and onion.

Products: Marie Veronique C-Therapy Serum