5 ways to eat your skincare
Most skincare advice begins in the bathroom, and it’s usually expensive. Creams, serums, routines that promise transformation, all while overlooking the most influential factor of all.
Your skin is fed before it is treated. Here are 5 foods it loves...
1. Bone broth
If we had to choose just one food for skin, it would be this one.
Skin is not just what you see on the surface. It is a connective tissue matrix built from collagen fibres, elastin, and the extracellular scaffolding that holds skin cells in place. The strength, elasticity, and thickness of the skin depend on the continuous repair and replacement of this framework.
To do this, the body requires specific amino acids, primarily glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline. These amino acids form the backbone of collagen fibres and determine how well those fibres are woven, stabilised, and maintained over time. Bone broth supplies these structural components in their native form. Unlike isolated proteins, these amino acids arrive in ratios that mirror human connective tissue. This matters, because collagen synthesis is not just about quantity, but about balance. When these building blocks are insufficient or imbalanced, collagen fibres become weaker, skin loses elasticity, and repair slows.
Glycine also plays a regulatory role. It reduces stress signalling and supports the hormonal environment required for tissue repair. Skin regeneration is highly sensitive to this internal environment, when stress chemistry dominates, breakdown outpaces rebuilding.
This is why consistent bone broth intake often changes the quality of the skin itself. Not just how it looks, but how it behaves. Skin becomes thicker, more resilient, less reactive, and better able to recover from stress or damage.
Building skin requires feeding its structure first. Bone broth does exactly that.
2. Liver
(This is how you eat your retinol)
If skin looks dull, congested, inflamed, or slow to heal, vitamin A is often the missing signal.
Vitamin A regulates skin cell turnover. It tells skin cells when to divide, when to mature, and when to shed. It influences sebum production, immune activity in the skin, and how efficiently damaged tissue is repaired. This is why retinoids sit at the centre of modern dermatology.
What’s rarely acknowledged is that retinol was never meant to be applied first. It was meant to be eaten. Liver is the richest natural source of preformed vitamin A (retinol). This is the exact form used by the skin. Unlike beta-carotene from plants, retinol does not require conversion, a process that depends heavily on thyroid function, adequate fat intake, and overall metabolic health. In women under stress, that conversion is often impaired.
Topical retinoids can feel harsh, destabilising, or inflammatory for many people. They force turnover at the surface without addressing the internal signals that regulate skin behaviour.
Eating liver works differently. Retinol arrives systemically, alongside the nutrients that help it function properly, copper, zinc, B12, folate, and cholesterol. The skin receives the message to normalise turnover rather than accelerate it aggressively. This is why regularly including liver often improves acne, keratosis pilaris, uneven texture, and sensitivity more reliably than expensive topical retinols. You can spend a small fortune trying to apply retinol correctly, or you can eat it, the way the body was designed to receive it.
3. Sardines
If bone broth builds the framework of the skin, sardines determine how well that structure is maintained.
Skin cells are wrapped in membranes made largely from fats. The flexibility, hydration, and resilience of those membranes depend on the types of fats available in the diet. Sardines provide a rare combination of nutrients that directly support this process.
They are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are incorporated into cell membranes and help regulate inflammation. When omega-3 status is low, skin tends to become reactive, red, dry, or slow to heal. When it is sufficient, skin is calmer, more supple, and better protected against environmental stress.
Sardines also provide zinc and selenium, two minerals essential for skin repair and antioxidant defence. Zinc supports wound healing and immune balance in the skin. Selenium protects skin cells from oxidative damage and supports thyroid function, which governs circulation, warmth, and the rate at which skin renews itself.
There’s also calcium and vitamin d in sardines, particularly when the bones are eaten. These nutrients support cellular communication and barrier function, contributing to skin that feels stronger rather than fragile.
4. Gelatine gummies
These are one of the most fun ones, and honestly, it’s fair to call them edible botox.
Gelatine gummies deliver concentrated collagen forming amino acids in a form that’s easy to eat, easy to digest, and easy to be consistent with. Gelatine is essentially cooked collagen. When consumed regularly, it supplies glycine and proline, the primary amino acids required for skin elasticity, firmness, and repair.
Glycine does something else that matters just as much: it calms the nervous system. Lower stress hormones mean less collagen breakdown and better overnight repair. Skin regeneration is highly sensitive to stress chemistry, which is why no amount of collagen helps if cortisol is running the show.
What makes gummies especially effective is how they’re paired. We make ours with fruit juices, which naturally provide vitamin c, a non-negotiable cofactor for collagen synthesis. Vitamin c is required to stabilise and cross-link collagen fibres. Without it, collagen remains weak, no matter how much you consume. So this isn’t just collagen intake. It’s collagen utilisation.
Taken regularly, gelatine gummies often show up as plumper skin, improved elasticity, and a softer look overall, not because anything is being frozen in place, but because the skin is better supported structurally.
Our simple gelatine gummy recipe
5. Drinking your skincare
Not all skincare is eaten. Some of it is sipped.
The skin is deeply influenced by hydration, circulation, mineral status, and how efficiently the body clears metabolic waste. Herbal infusions support these processes gently, without forcing detox pathways or stressing the system.
Here are some we love:
- Dandelion Dandelion supports liver function and bile flow, which directly affects skin clarity. The liver is responsible for processing hormones and metabolic byproducts. When this system is sluggish, congestion and inflammation often show up on the skin
- Nettle Nettle is one of the most mineral-rich herbs available. Silica supports connective tissue and collagen formation, while the mineral content of nettle helps maintain hydration and resilience at a cellular level. Regular nettle tea often shows up as clearer tone and stronger skin over time
- Rosehip Rosehip earns its place here again because of its exceptional vitamin c content. As mentioned earlier, vitamin c is required to stabilise collagen fibres and support capillary integrity. Taken as a tea, rosehip gently supports circulation and repair, contributing to brighter tone and improved healing without irritation.
- Hibiscus Hibiscus tea supports skin clarity through its effects on circulation, hydration, and oxidative stress. Rich in anthocyanins and natural acids, hibiscus helps improve blood flow to the skin while gently supporting lymphatic drainage
Many people are surprised by how little external skincare they reach for once the body is being fed properly. When structure is supported, turnover normalised, minerals restored, and stress chemistry lowered, the skin stops needing constant intervention. Try eating your skincare for a week, and see how many skin products you can throw out.
For a deeper skin health guide, complex issues, you can read here:
