Including supplements in your daily diet is often touted as a winning strategy to help keep your skin looking youthful and radiant and maintain a healthy body. But, with so many supplements on the market, where do you even begin picking choosing the ones that will work well for you?
The best supplements for anti-aging address root causes of skin, hair, another issues that we associate with aging. While a multivitamin is often a good idea to cover most of your nutritional needs, a targeted approach that includes supplements such as the following five can help you meet your goals. If you are taking other medicines it’s important to check in with your doctor before beginning a supplement regimen to make sure it’s safe with your other medications. Here are four supplements to consider for anti-aging and two supplements to avoid or take with caution.
Take: Ashwaghanda
Ashwaghanda is a plant that is considered an adaptogen, which means it can have a positive effect on how it helps your body manage stress. As we age and our hormones shift around and act a bit less predictable, stress and anxiety can become more of a constant. Unfortunately, stress isn’t just an uncomfortable feeling; it produces a hormone called cortisol that increases blood sugar, heart rate, and blood pressure. It can also lead to skin conditions like acne and hair issues like more breakage and shedding.
Taking ashwaghanda as a daily supplement can help control cortisol levels. You can take it as a pill, powder, tincture, or tea.
Take: Fish Oil Supplements
Fish oil supplements are rich in omega-3 fatty acids that can reduce inflammation in the body, support calcium absorption and bone health (which becomes even more important as we age and lose estrogen), and can provide relief from joint pain and arthritis. These supplements are also excellent for your heart, eyes, and for helping to hydrate your skin and minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Take: Collagen
Several studies show that taking a collagen supplement can help your body create more healthy collagen, and since collagen is responsible for keeping skin supple, smooth, and healthy looking, you can see where this is going. Find a powder or supplement that contains Type I or Types I and III collagen that is sustainably sourced and contains minimum fillers.
Take: Vitamin C
More often than not, you can get your daily dosage of vitamin C from foods like spinach, strawberries, and citrus. If you suspect you aren’t getting enough, a supplement may help bridge that gap. Not only is vitamin C crucial for a healthy immune system, but it’s an important nutrient that synthesizes new and healthy collagen.
Exercise Caution: Iron
Only take iron supplements if you’ve been told by a doctor that you need them. Too much iron can result in joint pain and stiffness, hormone imbalance, skin discoloration, an increased risk of infection, and even organ damage (the heart, liver, and pancreases are vulnerable). This isn’t a supplement you want to play with or not take with extreme caution.
Exercise Caution: Vitamin D
Similar to iron, taking too much vitamin D can cause health issues like hypercalcemia, kidney damage, and cardiovascular problems. If you take high doses of vitamin D, you can even suffer from excessively itchy skin, rashes, and dry, flaky skin. This is another supplement that is fairly easy to obtain from food sources such as dairy, fatty fish, egg yolks, and mushrooms. Start by trying to Incorporate enough vitamin D in your diet do that you don’t have to turn to a supplement.
