Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Linked to “Glowing” Skin

In addition to lowering the risk of excess weight gain, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hip fracture, and certain types of cancer, eating five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables has now been proven to increase the chances for healthier, more attractive-looking skin. Researchers from a total of five universities in the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Australia found that higher consumption of fruit and vegetables, which contain carotenoid pigments, increases skin yellowness in Caucasian and Asian women, after approximately 12 weeks (the results likely apply to men as well, though only one study included them in their sample and recorded the same results as women). Stronger hints of yellowish skin hues have been reported as a healthier, more attractive glow than the color provided by tanning. In past campaigns to decrease cigarette smoking and sun exposure, appearance-based interventions have successfully increased healthy behavior, so researchers hope the results will help increase fruit and vegetable consumption. More than 90 percent of US women ages 19 to 30 and 96.3 percent of Australian women within that age bracket do not eat the daily recommended servings.