What can one serving of dates a day do to your skin?

  • Dates are healthy sweets that have a marvelous effect on your skin.
  • Dates have an anti-aging, purifying, and glowing effect on your skin.
  • Dates nourish your skin from within, so its effect extends to the whole body skin and lasts longer than topical formulas.

What if you can have a healthy, delicious snack and make your skin glow along the way? Dates are among the most nutritious and tasty fruits. They come in different types and colors. They can be eaten either fresh or dried and incorporated into different recipes. 

You can find plenty of cosmetic products in the market. They come in different formulas, uses, and prices. However, the beneficial effect of most of them is limited to the time of their application and the area they cover. Good nutrition, on the other side, covers the whole skin. Beauty comes from the inside! Dates have a great effect on your skin because it is packed with nutrients. In this article, we will learn about dates and how they can have a marvelous effect on our skin. 

Nutritional value of dates

Dates are rich in vitamin A, C, D, E, B complex and about 16 minerals including manganese, phosphorus, iron, calcium, sodium and zinc, copper, selenium, potassium and magnesium, phosphorus, cobalt, and fluorine. Potassium is the predominant microelement in the date flesh.

Dates have an anti-aging effect

Dates are a good source of vitamin C which is involved in building collagen that maintains the skin’s elasticity. Moreover, it is rich in polyphenols and antioxidants, e.g., tannins, which protect the skin’s cells from the damage caused by free radicals, thus delaying the appearance of wrinkles, skin laxity, and other signs of skin aging

One study tested the anti-aging effect of topical application of a date-extract rich cream. It was found that, after five weeks of use of the cream, both the surface area and the depth of wrinkles were reduced, and the wrinkles improved in 60% of users. 

Dates protect from the harmful effect of UV rays

Excessive exposure to the UV rays of the sun causes damage to skin cells due to free radicals. This contributes to the aging of the skin in the form of skin laxity and wrinkles, which is called photoaging. Excess UV rays can also cause skin discoloration, freckles,  and changes in skin texture. Antioxidants like vitamin C, polyphenols, and vitamin E protect from this bad effect. Moreover, vitamin A was found to protect from sunburn, reducing UV rays’ effect. 

Dates can help with blackheads and acne

Dates are rich in vitamin A that help your skin get rid of dead cells and blackheads. It also supports your immunity and protects you from infections.

Dates contain quantities of vitamin B complex that prevents infections and treats acne. Deficiency of Vitamin B can also lead to skin dryness

Vitamin C in dates relieves the inflammation that accompanies acne.

 

Dates give you healthy lips

Since it is rich in vitamin A, it protects your lips from dryness, toxins, pollutants, and inflammations. Hence dates help you enjoy healthy-looking lips.

Dates make your skin glow

Dates are rich in iron needed for building red blood cells that carry oxygen to the cells. Thus dates help increase the vitality of all body tissues, including the skin. It is also rich in Pantothenic acid, which gives your skin a radiant glow.

Dates can help with your allergy

Several micronutrients are known to mitigate allergy. Dates contain some of them, such as vitamin C, which decreases histamine. Additionally, magnesium and vitamin D can reduce allergies. Moreover, dates promote the growth of probiotics which affect immunity, as we mentioned.

Dates help with stretch marks

Until now, there was no way to cure or prevent stretch marks completely. However, some nutrients, like vitamin C and zinc, are thought to reduce their appearance by boosting collagen production. 

Dates aid in wound healing

Research shows that vitamin C deficiency delays wound healing since it plays an important role in the formation of skin collagen and decreases the inflammatory process. Dates are a good source of vitamin C. It should be noted that vitamin C does not hasten wound healing in individuals who do not have a vitamin C deficiency. Also, dates contain vitamin A and D essential in wound healing.

You can use dates as a skin exfoliator

Have you tried to include dates in your skin routine? What you need is fresh dates, whole milk, and semolina. Soak the dates in a half cup of warm milk until they become soft, then mash them, and add semolina. Apply this mixture to your skin and scrub gently for 3-4 minutes before washing off.

 

Dates as prebiotic food

Recent studies have shown that skin microbiota is as crucial as gut microbiota in protecting the skin from infections and regulating immune response, and, as a result, reducing allergy. Consequently, probiotics and prebiotics are vital for skin health. Probiotics are food that contains beneficial microbes, while prebiotics is food that supports the growth of these beneficial microbes. Dates, being rich in insoluble fibers and polyphenols, constitute an excellent prebiotic food that may help develop healthy skin microbiota. 

Dates protect from the effects of pollution

Dates are used in detoxification of the body, but it has a lot to do with skin as well. It is packed with antioxidants that fight oxidative stress that results from pollution everywhere and causes premature aging.

Avoid the bad effect of unhealthy food

It was found that consuming a diet high in sugar like sweets and white bread, and pasta causes damage to collagen, which results in loss of skin elasticity and softness. This causes dry skin and wrinkles. Replace unhealthy sweets with dates to minimize this effect.

 

Dates protect from skin cancer

Excessive sun exposure is harmful to our skin since ultraviolet rays cause the release of free radicals that damage the genetic substance (the DNA) of the cells. This damage can not be reversed. It can cause skin cancer like melanoma. Applying sunblock is required and beneficial, but it is limited by the duration of its action and the area it covers. Dates are packed with micronutrients that protect from photodamage, including vitamins C and E and polyphenols. 

What is the daily serving of dates?

One serving equals a handful of dates or 100 grams. This contains 314 kcal, 2.14 gm of protein, 6.7 gm of fiber, 80.6 gm of carbohydrates (of which 66 gm is sugar).  

How to include dates in your diet

There are a lot of ideas to consume dates. You can have them as a snack. You can add them to milk, yogurt, granola mix, or fruit salad. You can also use them as a sweetener for your cakes instead of sugar. 

To sum up, dates are a good companion in your healthy life journey. Not only will it help you be more healthy, but also, it will help you look more healthy and beautiful.

Summary

Dates are healthy sweets that can help your skin look younger, healthier, and more beautiful. They protect the skin from the harmful effects of pollution and UV rays that can cause skin aging and skin cancer. They are also helpful in several skin conditions, including infections, acne, allergy, blackheads, and sunburns. They take care of the skin from the inside.

SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION:

Photoaging: It is early aging of the skin because of excessive exposure to ultraviolet rays from the sun.

Probiotics: They are good microbes that live inside and on the surface of your body.

Prebiotics: They are fiber and food of plant origin that help probiotics grow.

The DNA: It is the genetic material that stores our information. It is present inside the nucleous of the cell.

Written by:
Nancy Elrefaey, MS, MBBS
Ophthalmologist

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