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Spinach Strawberry Salad with Walnuts Contains Beneficial Plant Chemicals for Healthy Skin

Make a spinach strawberry salad with walnuts to help your skin look its best!

Lots of money is spent on cleansers, sunscreens and night creams made with high quality ingredients and not so high-quality ingredients to maintain a healthy complexion but what we eat may be our best weapon for fighting wrinkles, dark spots and saggy skin! Good nutrition from foods work from the inside out keeping our skin firm and elastic!

But what we eat may also protect our skin from cancer too! This post shares a little about the foods to put on our plates to maintain that youthful glow!

Here are a few a nutrients and foods that help maintain youthful skin:

  1. Many vitamins and even some minerals work as antioxidants help slow down the aging process of skin, here are some of these below. Food is always more effective than supplements and sometimes supplements may have less favorable results. Food also provides healthy plant chemicals called phytochemicals so eating a variety of colors in our diets can also be helpful!
  2. Vitamin C: is an important building block that produces collagen a protein in our skin and also helps prevent oxidative damage to our skin which may contribute tissue breakdown. Foods that contain vitamin C include oranges and other citrus, tomatoes, bell peppers, strawberries and mango, Check out the article for more on vitamin C and skin health.
  3. Vitamin E: helps protect our skin cell membranes and guards against UV radiation damage. It works along with vitamin C to boost anti–aging building proteins in our skin. Foods containing vitamin E include plant oils such as olive oil, avocado, nuts, and seeds.
  4. Beta carotene: benefits our skin by the growth and repair of skin tissue and may protect against sun damage. Foods that include beta carotene are broccoli, dark leafy greens, sweet potatoes, carrots and cantaloupe.
  5. Selenium: this trace mineral protects our skin from sun damage, delays aging process and protects the quality of the skin. It may protect from some skin cancers. Food sources grains, meats, seafood   and Brazil nuts (these nuts should be eaten sparingly because of their high amount)
  6. Essential Fatty Acids: Protects skin from damage and help keep it looking younger according to Web MD. Food sources include fatty fish such as salmon, trout, mackerel, sardines, walnuts, chia and flax seed.
  7. Water: Remember to hydrate skin with adequate amounts of water which Women’s Health Magazine reduces the look of wrinkles and minimizes the look of pores.

Spinach Strawberry Salad with Walnuts Recipe

Here is a delicious salad recipe that contains some of these age-fighting foods. I hope that you enjoy it as much as my family and I do!

Colorful Winter Salad with Antioxidants
Rich in vitamin C, E, omega 3 fats, beta carotene and selenium, this salad will help reduce the signs of aging!

Orange, Avocado, Strawberry, Walnut & Spinach Salad

The beautiful colors of orange, red, green and brown provide beneficial health chemicals that also add so many healing properties However, the best benefit is it’s fantastic flavor! It was inspired by a recent trip to Florida where we enjoyed some seasonal honey bell oranges and local strawberries!

Makes 4 servings

1 serving orange, sliced horizontally, cut into four pieces and peeling cut away

1 avocado peeled and cut into slices and then each slice cut in half

1 cup strawberries, stemmed and sliced into four pieces

4 cups of baby spinach, washed well and drained

1/4 cup walnuts

In four bowls divide the spinach, then add sliced oranges, strawberries, avocado and walnuts. Drizzle with salad dressing

Salad Dressing

Juice of one lemon

1/2 cup olive oil

Salt

Pepper

1-2 teaspoons of honey to taste

Mix all the ingredients in a cruet and shake well.

Local where you live!
While I was visiting in Florida, the honey bell oranges were available in the local farmers’ markets as well as several other varieties of citrus fruits!

Make a Spinach Strawberry Salad with Walnuts to Feel and Look Your Best!

Besides what you eat, Ingredients from our kitchen can even be used to make some face and body care products too! For example, mashed strawberries or mangos can be made into a mask that has vitamin C that can benefit the face just like many body care products on the market. Here are a few ideas to help get you started!

If you are interested in learning more about our Women’s Nutrition program, you can read more about it here. I also have a Plant-based eating program and/or we could individualize your plan to provide a combination of these topics!

As a registered dietitian nutritionist living in Asheville, I love helping others feel more youthful and healthy! I am also very happy to benefit from learning more about it too! If you are new to the Vine Ripe Nutrition blog, I hope that you come back soon! I will be sharing lots of great ideas coming in the next few weeks. You can sign up for my blog so you don’t miss a single post!

Orange, Avocado, Strawberry, Walnut and Spinach Salad
This salad is rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals which keep much more than our skin healthy!
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