Can You Eat Your Skincare? : How to Help Your Skin From Inside-Out

Tiktok Is At It Again

There is always a new trend on social media about skincare or random diets that “always work” and promise people how to achieve healthy skin from within. However, the latest trend on Skincare TikTok is "TikTok your skincare”. This trend has caught my eye the most because, of course, you have to adopt a healthy and hydrated approach to eating and drinking, but it's more than just that. Consuming gummies or making snacks that include retinol or collagen are super popular. I have seen countless videos about consuming a lot of carrots, whether it be juice or carrot salads, because they are supposedly high in retinol. Additionally, the most popular options include Korean skincare gummies rich in collagen, as well as Kourtney Kardashian’s brand, “Lemme Glow,” which offers gummy vitamins and lollipops.

Myth Busting 

While everyone on TikTok swears by these gummies and new recipes, will they help your skin, or is it just another gimmick trend promising to help achieve glowy skin from within? While eating carrots benefits the body in many ways, they do help with increasing Skin carotenoid levels, but that doesn't necessarily mean you are eating retinol, as promised by many popular TikTok videos. This essentially means that the fat-soluble antioxidants found in carrots neutralize problems caused by UV rays while also making the skin appear more yellow or tan. While consuming plenty of carrots helps benefit skin concerns or boost radiance, eating the popularized collagen gummies or Korean collagen jellies doesn't contain enough collagen to show benefits. These collagen treats may not cause any harm, but they might not be the best option for healing the skin from within like many vitamins could help with. Differently, the Lemme Glow vitamin gummies say they help with nails, healthy hair, and radiant skin. The promises of these gummies aren't too far off from the reviews throughout social media and the website’s reviews. Some people in reviews mention increased volume in their hair and glower skin. These vitamins help more than the other jellies mentioned before, because of the promising ingredient profile and higher doses of biotin, which directly tackle problems with hair and nails. However, are they real? Yes, they are but with certain vitamins and supplements that complement dietary consumption like Vitamin C (soluble form), D, Magnesium etc. 

Diet, Multi-vitamin supplements & Skincare

The glow from within combo is  diet, multi-vitamin supplements & skincare. While these collagen gummies and jellies do not provide collagen as collagen is naturally produced by the body, some supplements contain protein found in fish, cattle and synthsize them into peptides to be absorbable. Based on this Harvard Health article, no medical evidence supports marketing claims that collagen supplements or drinks can improve hair growth, shine, volume. Furthermore, a medical trial that showed success used supplements that contained more than collagen including minerals, vitamins, hyaluronic acid, antioxidants, coenzyme Q10, hyaluronic acid etc. Only when combined with other supplements, broken into peptides and absorbed by the gut do collagen-inducing supplements work. 

There are other options to lean towards eating your skincare, and I don't just mean drinking more water. Consuming foods that are high in healthy fats, like avocados or fish like salmon, can help benefit your skin from within by helping with inflammation. Also, consuming vitamins like omega-3s has the same benefits. Other option to purchasing the Lemme Glow gummy vitamins or lollipops is consuming the specific vitamins listed like biotin (to help strengthen nails and hair), Vitamin C, as Ascorbic Acid (to help with increased collagen), and Vitamin A (to help with skin cell turnover, essentially increases the shedding of old skin and the increase of new skin). 

The Wrap Up

Do you also get sucked into the endless skincare trends and hacks throughout the media? Well, sometimes they are hard to understand or don't even work. Popular trends like “eating your skincare” have people think that spending large sums of money on specific gummies or jellies will help, but the most important part is sticking to healthy foods like carrots, foods that contain healthy fats, and vitamins that also help with skin concerns in an easier way. However, taking the fun gummies that have everything in one punch can be an easy way to improve your skin from the inside out. The glow from within power combo is diet, multi-vitamin supplements & skincare. And yes, you can eat your skincare through healthy protein rich food and multi-vitamins supplements. 

About Writer

Olivia Jones is a student at the American University of Paris who is passionate about research and storytelling. She enjoys exploring the science behind skincare and looking for new products. She looks forward to traveling the world and seeking new experiences and cultures. Olivia spends her free time walking around Paris, spending time with family and friends, and playing golf or tennis when she is back home in California. Through her writing, she aims to help others meet their skincare goals in an easy and immersive way.

Edited by the Editorial Team