top of page
Search

Nutrition & Inflammatory Skin Diseases

  • Writer: digitalflynn
    digitalflynn
  • Jun 30, 2021
  • 7 min read

Updated: Jul 5, 2021

"Skin diseases are complex and multifactorial"


Back in May (2021) The Nutrition Society held a lunchtime webinar with Dr Thivi Maruthappu (Queen Mary, London) on Nutrition & Inflammatory Skin Diseases. I was personally really looking forward to this talk. My teenage skin issues (which turned into adult skin issues) have contributed to various dietary choices/changes (cutting out gluten, dairy, sugar, etc) and to this day I don't know how necessary or beneficial they were/are to the calming of my skin. Anecdotally, I have heard more comments from people eating something that has "triggered" an outbreak than any other *specific food intake* equating to *insert symptom here*. So of course I was hoping for some clarity.


In true science form, there are no straight answers, but one thing that was made clear (and something which every (good) academic student has concluded every assessment with): "More research is needed." And in this case, more good quality research is needed.


Before being the bringer of vague and ambiguous news, nutrition does undisputedly play a role in your skin health in general, and below is a summary of what specific nutrients do for your skin.





Vitamins


A

Antioxidant, needed for cell turnover & growth.

Get it in the form of beta-carotene from orange fruit and veg e.g peppers, carrots, mangoes, apricots and also green leafy veg, or in the form of retinol from liver.


B1 (Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin), B3 (Niacin), B6 (Pyroxidine), B7 (Biotin), B12 (Cobalamin)

B deficiencies can cause skin rashes and inflammation, lesions, dermatitis and angular cheilitis (those annoying cracks at the sides of your mouth)

Get them from seafood, eggs, dairy, meat & poultry, as well as whole grains, nuts and seeds, legumes, dark leafy greens and fortified plant milks. B12 MUST be supplemented in a vegan diet.*


C

Another antioxidant which helps prevent cell damage. It stimulates the biosynthesis of collagen - a protein that helps with skin (and bone, hair, muscle, ligament and tendon) structure.

Get it from bell peppers, strawberries, kiwis, tomatoes, oranges, potato, spinach, squash, broccoli.


D

Required for barrier maintenance and immune functions as well as skin cell growth and repair.

Get D2 form plants such as fortified mushrooms, fortified foods and supplements and D3 from oily fish, egg yolk, liver (and sunshine if you're lucky to have that kind of rare exposure). Deficiencies are common, particularly in the UK so supplementation would be advisable.


E

This final antioxidant also helps with wound healing.

Get it from nuts and seeds (e.g almonds, peanuts), rapeseed oil, leafy greens, avocados, trout.


Minerals


Selenium

Helps prevent free-radical damage (helps stop wrinkles appearing) and also helps protect cell membranes from UV damage and inflammation.

Get it from whole grains, seeds, brazil nuts, eggs, meat, poultry, dairy products.


Zinc

Anti-inflammatory, helps with wound healing and may protect skin from UV damage


Iron

A deficiency may cause itchy skin (prutitus)

Get it from red meat, organ meats, seafood such as shellfish, turkey, spinach, dried fruit (apricots, raisins), legumes, quinoa.


Other


Protein

Dietary protein contains amino acids - these are the building blocks of elastin, keratin, collagen and therefore plays an important role in hair, skin and nail structure.

Get it from meat, seafood, dairy, eggs, legumes, tofu, nuts and seeds and supplements such as shakes or bars.


Omega-3

It has anti-inflammatory properties as well as being involved in building the outer layer of skin, helping to form the skin's barrier maintaining moisture in the skin.

Get it from oily fish such as mackerel, salmon, sardines, trout, herring, pilchards as well as flaxseeds and walnuts.


Polyphenols

These micronutrients occur naturally in plants. There are over 8,000 of them and their main function are as antioxidants. They help protect against UV radiation and free radical damage. There are four different categories: Flavanoids - found in red wine, green tea, fruit, veg and legumes; Stillbenes - found in red wine and peanuts. Lignans - found in flaxseed, linseed, legumes, cereals, grains, fruits, algae and some veg; and Phenolic acid: found in tea, coffee, blueberries, kiwis, cinnamon, cherries, plumbs, apples.


Hydration

Essential for skin elasticity, hydrating your body also hydrates your skin though more research is needed on whether increased fluid intake can decrease signs of dry skin and ageing.

Your main source should be water, but you can also get it from tea, juices, fruit and veg.


Are there any foods that are bad for our skin?

Unless you have certain allergies or intolerances, the general rule for skin health applies to your overall health in general. Limit ultra-processed foods, free sugars, alcohol, fried foods, smoking.


Inflammatory Skin Diseases


So without the inclusion of the above, this blog post would have been a lot shorter and a lot more disheartening to read... but lets go through the 3 inflammatory skin diseases discussed in the talk:





Acne

Diet has been discussed in relationship with acne for decades, Studies on the link between acne and nutrition have mainly been observational and in future RCTs should be considered. Observations have included an association between acne and low fat dairy milk, and high glycaemic index carbohydrates, though this may only be applicable to a subset of patients (Aghasi et al, 2019; Kwon et al, 2012). Topical and oral prescription medications (benzoyl peroxide, oxytetracycline, accutane), should still be a consideration for patients with moderate to severe acne. There are strong links with acne and genetics therefore dietary interventions may not be so effective.


Atopic Eczema

A particularly disappointing outcome for this topic. Food allergies and intolerances that can occur in adulthood may be a trigger, but these are difficult to identify due to the delay in time of food consumption and subsequently noticing the occurrence of an eczema flair (from 1-6 days). Antibody/immune response testing should be avoided due to lack of validation. Careful consideration should be given if a restricted diet is advised due to potential deficiencies incurred. Studies looking at improvement of eczema with vitamin D supplementation have not been large scale, though supplementation of vitamin D is recommended for immune health regardless, particularly for UK residents (Huang et al, 2018).


Psoriasis

There is shown to be a link between psoriasis and cardiovascular disease, therefore lifestyle changes - diet, exercise and stopping smoking and drinking, should always be considered in treatment. Observational studies show an association with obesity and psoriasis and in a subset of these patients, weight loss helped improve some symptoms though again, further studies are needed. (Gelfand et al, 2007; Martinez-Gonzalez et al, 2012).


So overall, when it comes to inflammatory skin diseases there's a lot of answers still needed and that will only come in the form of good quality, generously funded, control studies. Skin health is complex and I'd be the last person to tell someone with acne to "drink more water" or "stop eating fried foods"**, but looking after our overall health through a balanced diet, exercise, enough sleep and as little stress as we can get away with during this stressful lifetime, can help to make skins issues more manageable.


* In a recent small study done by Heights, it was found that more of the population may be deficient in the B-complex vitamins than previously thought! 71% of participants in a UK based study were deficient in thiamine and 93% were deficient in riboflavin! Interestingly the participants who weren't deficient were consuming fortified foods such as Huel replacement meals. (A food first approach is always recommended.)


** I actually would tell people to cut down on fried foods, because... job.


You can purchase access to the full talk from The Nutrition Society here It also counts as 1 hour of CPD for nutrition professionals.


If you're a nutritionist or dietitian who has experience working with clients with skin complaints, or a dermatologist who'd like to share their thoughts or experiences, hit me up: rosie@stemandpoise.com


References & further reading



















Comments

Post: Blog2_Post

Subscribe Form

Thanks for submitting!

bottom of page