8 Essential Juice Ingredients For Healthy & Glowing Skin

Are you an avid juicer—or looking to get into it as a new morning habit? Either way, expanding the amounts of fruits and vegetables you eat or drink is a wonderful way to diversify your diet and add skin-healthy nutrients daily. Here are just a few power ingredients you can add to your daily dose of green to give you a beauty boost:

Carrots are high in vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene. (Research shows that the beta-carotene is more bioavailable in pureed form1, so consider adding pureed carrots to smoothies rather than juicing.) Beta-carotene is a powerful antioxidant that helps manage cell health, helps to slow aging, and maintains a youthful appearance.* Vitamin A helps the body to maintain tissue growth along with healthy vision, bones, and teeth.* Carrots also have a nice amount of vitamin C, which helps the body promote collagen production.* Julia T. Hunter, M.D., founder of Wholistic Dermatology notes that, "If you don't have vitamin C, your collagen can't cross-link to lift and tighten skin." Collagen is essential for skin elasticity, preventing wrinkles, and slowing signs of aging.* The potassium in carrots plays a role in the growth of new skin cells, too.*

RELATED READ: The Health Benefits Of Carrot Juice & Creative Ways To Drink It

Kale is a powerful leafy green vegetable that packs plenty of nutritional punch. Kale, which is an incredibly effective anti-inflammatory food, is an excellent source of nutrition, including vitamins A, C, K, E, B1, B2, and B3; calcium; beta-carotene; phosphorous; iron; copper; magnesium; omega-3, and omega-6 fatty acids; and the carotenoid lutein.* The vitamin A content promotes the repair and maintenance of the skin, and the omega-3 fatty acids add to its anti-inflammatory properties.*

Beets are full of nutrients that are essential for healthy, glowing skin. "Beetroot juice contains powerful antioxidants and is a good source of vitamins, especially vitamin A, vitamin B-6, and iron3," says Jaime Schehr, N.D., R.D. "Beetroot juice can be a beneficial addition to any healthy diet." These anti-inflammatory veggies are also rich in potassium, niacin, copper, vitamin C, magnesium, calcium, zinc, and folic acid.* Their anti-inflammatory properties are going to be their strongest skin-helping properties, as they have shown in research to help manage oxidative stress4.*

Parsley is a popular herb rich in vitamins A and C. Anecdotally, it's thought to help clear blemishes and maintain an even skin tone (the research is out on this).* However, research does show that ingesting vitamin A is beneficial for skin turnover5 (similar to its topical use).* Parsley has high levels of vitamin K, which can improve skin elasticity and help manage the wound-healing process, however.*

Ginger is a power ingredient that can be added to any juice to increase the health benefits and support your immune system.* This root is supercharged to reduce inflammation6 and contains nutrients like magnesium, potassium, manganese, and vitamin B6, along with antioxidants.*

Due to its high sulfur content, watercress is a beauty vegetable that will assist in clearing and improving your complexion.* And one bowl of watercress salad greens contains almost half the recommended daily intake of vitamin A. In addition, eating watercress will give you a nice dose of vitamin C, vitamin K, beta-carotene, B vitamins, vitamin E, folate, iodine, calcium, and more. Watercress is also full of antioxidants, great for healthy aging.* While most of the available research on watercress has not been done on skin specifically, there's good evidence to suggest that watercress can help reduce inflammation and oxidative stress7 all over the body.* 

Lemons are powerful citrus fruits that are effective as a food and medicine. They contain vitamin C, citric acid, and B vitamins. They've been used as an at-home remedy for dark spots for years, but drinking lemon juice may have skin-healthy benefits as well.* Research suggests that drinking citrus-based juice mixtures may help manage wrinkles8.*