What you eat can have a profound impact on how your skin handles sun exposure.

That’s because certain foods create the perfect environment for oxidative stress and inflammation—conditions that make your skin more vulnerable to UV damage. 

Others, meanwhile, offer powerful protection and repair from the inside out.

Here’s how to stack the odds in your skin’s favor:

1. Cut Sugar + Refined Carbs

Foods like bread, pasta, soda, and sweetened snacks rapidly raise blood sugar—and that spike sets off a cascade of inflammation and free radical damage.

Over time, this can weaken your skin’s barrier, impair collagen production, and increase your risk of UV-induced DNA damage.

Instead, choose low-glycemic whole foods that nourish your skin and stabilize insulin:

✓ Non-starchy vegetables (like cauliflower, zucchini, and leafy greens)
✓ Healthy fats from avocado, olives, and coconut
✓ Protein from wild fish, pastured poultry, and eggs

Did you know one tiny protein inside your cells activates your skin’s collagen, elastin, and antioxidant production? 

Discover the cellular protein that supports skin renewal from within »

2. Swap Seed Oils for Omega-3s

Most processed foods today are cooked in oils like soybean, corn, or sunflower—rich in unstable omega-6 fats. When exposed to heat, light, or oxygen, these fats oxidize easily and trigger inflammation that can age and damage the skin.

To support resilience and repair, replace seed oils with more stable fats and omega-3-rich choices:

✓ Cook with ghee, tallow, or coconut oil
✓ Enjoy wild-caught salmon, sardines, or mackerel
✓ Add flax, chia, or walnuts to your diet

3. Boost Your Antioxidants

Antioxidants are your skin’s front line of defense against free radicals generated by UV exposure. 

They not only prevent damage—they help repair it, too.

Make these nutrient-dense foods part of your summer routine:

🍅 Tomatoes (rich in lycopene to reduce sunburn risk)
🍫 Cocoa (flavonoids that defend skin from photodamage)
🥬 Leafy greens (lutein + zeaxanthin to protect skin cells)
🍵 Green tea (EGCG to reduce inflammation and support elasticity)
🍊 Citrus fruits (limonene to protect DNA)
🍒 Pomegranates, berries, and cherries (ellagic acid to fight aging and UV stress)

🍓 Berries—especially Amla berries (a powerhouse of vitamin C that supports collagen and helps defend against photoaging)

Not easy to find fresh? Here’s a simple way to add it to your routine » 

These shifts do more than reduce sunburn & cancer risk. 

They also help preserve your skin’s structure, protect against cellular aging, and support a natural, healthy glow.

To Your Health,
Healing Gourmet

P.S. One more compound worth knowing about—especially when it comes to protecting your skin and preserving collagen—is NAD+. 

It’s a molecule your body makes naturally, but levels decline with age, stress, and sun exposure. NAD+ plays a central role in DNA repair and cellular renewal, making it an important part of your skin’s deeper defense system.

Supporting your body’s ability to maintain NAD+ may be one more way to keep your skin strong, resilient, and youthful—especially during the summer months.

Explore a nutrient-rich way to support your NAD+ levels »