The temperatures have dipped and the heating is on, it’s time to geek up on our winter skin tips and start investing in those little miracle workers that will keep your skin in tip-top condition from now until spring 2017.

We caught up with nutritionist, Diana Warrings of Irma Green Nutrition, to get her top tips for keeping skin fresh and glowing all winter long.

 

1. HYDRATE 

Water is one of the main components of the body and vital for skin health, so to stay hydrated seems quite obvious, unfortunately we do forget to drink when the weather is turning cold. The way to go is to keep up with our summer regime of drinking up to 1.5 litres of fresh water each day. 

If you’re bored with just drinking plain water, you can add some winter flavour with a few swirls of fresh organic orange or lemon peel and a couple slices of fresh ginger. Freshly made turmeric latte or teas with fresh ginger and cardamom are also a delicious and warming option. For variety and an extra nutrient boost include fresh cold pressed green juices, these may further help your skin to stay hydrated and protected from the winter cold. I love the combination carrot, ginger, orange and turmeric.

2. GET YOUR DAILY ANTIOXIDANT BOOST

The skin is our largest organ and has quite a few jobs to do, but first and foremost it is there to protect us and regulate our temperature. So, in order to give our skin the extra support it needs to deal with the cold we can stock up on antioxidant rich foods. There is a particular range of antioxidants our skin loves and needs, these include flavonoids, vitamin A, C, D and E as well as the minerals zinc, selenium and sulphur.

You can find these nutrients in colourful winter fruit and vegetables, especially in dark green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, collards, cabbages and brussels sprouts, and orange veggies, such as sweet potatoes, carrots, ginger, turmeric, squash, pumpkin and oranges. You can easily incorporate all the goodness from these foods in winter salads, soups, stews and your cold pressed juices and smoothies.

3. MOISTURE FROM WITHIN

We all know how amazingly powerful a high quality natural moisturising cream or oil can be and how a good daily routine can turn our skin into a smooth and even layer of silk . As you can imagine our skin not only loves to be moisturised from the outside, it also loves to be nourished with good oils from within. Good fats are important for proper cell function and protection, they’re also needed for the absorption of our skin loving vitamins A, E and D.

So remember to include omega oils, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated, found in nuts, seeds and cold pressed oils, such as olive, hemp and linseed oil. There’s not many vitamin D rich foods but some can be found in oily fish, such as mackerel, salmon and sardines as well as in egg yolks, these go rather well with your winter salads.