To start the day with glowing skin, a good cleanser, vitamin C serum and sunscreen are a must. And what you eat for breakfast can help keep your skin healthy too.
"Having a healthy, balanced diet is good for not just your internal organs, but also externally," Dr. Nada Elbuluk, an associate professor of clinical dermatology at the USC Keck School of Medicine, tells TODAY.com. "Your skin is your largest external organ and ... can really be a reflection of your health. So people should be conscious of what they eat."
While there's not a ton of conclusive evidence about using specific diets to help manage certain skin conditions, experts tell TODAY.com that some food choices — including breakfast foods — are likely to be better for skin than others.
How food affects your skin
Whether or not we can eat our way to better skin health is surprisingly complicated, Dr. Shasa Hu, an associate professor in the department of dermatology and cutaneous surgery at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, tells TODAY.com.
It's challenging to perform studies on the effect of nutrition on skin in a controlled environment, she explains. Even with rigorous summaries of previous data, "we'll find that there are a lot of inconsistencies," Hu says.
That said, experts generally agree on a few specific associations between food and skin health.
First, severe vitamin deficiencies can manifest as skin conditions, like hyperpigmentation due to a vitamin B12 deficiency. But you won't necessarily see benefits if you go above and beyond the recommended amount.
"We need certain vitamins to maintain hair and nail integrity, such biotin, B12, folate and iron," Dr. Shari Lipner, an associate professor of clinical dermatology at the Weill Cornell Medical Center, tells TODAY.com. "But that doesn't mean that taking mega doses of vitamins can make your nails stronger or your hair grow faster," she says.
There is also some data that supports a link between dairy — particularly skim milk — and acne. Foods with a high glycemic index (like sugary pastries) can also exacerbate acne, research suggests. Foods with a higher glycemic index cause blood sugar to rise more quickly than foods that have a lower glycemic index, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
There's some evidence that the Mediterranean diet can be beneficial for people with inflammatory conditions such as psoriasis, Lipner adds. "The Mediterranean diet has a lot of different food groups in it, so it's not one particular food group that's that's causing the benefit," she explains.
The Mediterranean diet, as well as similar plans like the DASH diet and the MIND diet, favor vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains, olive oil and lean protein (especially fish) over processed foods and refined carbohydrates.
“That data has been eye-opening for me,” Elbuluk says. Those findings led her to generally follow a Mediterranean diet and opt for foods that will calm inflammation, she says.
Finally, evidence is emerging that maintaining a balanced skin microbiome is an important part of keeping skin healthy. And eating probiotic foods may help with that, Hu says. "There are some really well-studied data linking the benefits of probiotics to improvement in the prevention of eczema, particularly atopic dermatitis," she adds.
What do dermatologists eat for breakfast?
Yogurt with nuts and berries
“I really like the Mediterranean diet, and I like the fact that it’s very anti-inflammatory,” Elbuluk says. "So I like to consume things that fall in that realm."
For her, that often means starting her morning with a source of healthy protein and antioxidants, typically Greek yogurt topped with berries, almonds and a little honey.
Most days, Hu also eats yogurt, but she goes with an old-world style of Bulgarian yogurt that's packed with even more probiotic benefits. It has a "really diverse mix of lactobacillus strains to support gut health," she explains. She usually adds a handful of berries and shaved almonds, which contain good fatty acids, vitamin E and niacin (vitamin B3) to help maintain skin health.
Egg whites with greens or veggies
Lipner's go-to breakfast is egg whites scrambled with veggies, like broccoli, which is rich in folate and biotin. "I'm cutting out the yolk so I lose some vitamins, but there's still a good amount of B vitamins, and we need that for hair growth and maintenance," she says.
She'll eat whole eggs on vacation, but for her everyday meals, "egg whites have this great protein in them, and I get my vitamins from the broccoli and other vegetables," she explains.
She'll have that with coffee, which she prefers iced because hot drinks can trigger rosacea.
Elbuluk also has egg whites for breakfast in the morning, which she'll eat alongside a piece of toast and a cup of coffee with almond milk.
On days when she has more time to prepare a meal in the morning, Hu will also go with eggs — but she'll opt for a fried egg sprinkled with salt, pepper, turmeric and cumin. "We know that those (spices) are also antioxidants for combating inflammation," she says. And she'll eat sauteed spinach on the side.
Steel-cut oatmeal
Elbuluk is also a fan of steel-cut oats, which are quite high in fiber. She adds her usual toppings — berries and almonds — for more vitamins and nutrients.
If you're going to eat oatmeal, though, Hu cautions against eating the instant oatmeal packs, which can contain a lot of extra sugar. Instant oatmeal "is not that low glycemic," she says, "and it really doesn't do much for your body."
What foods do dermatologists avoid eating for breakfast?
High glycemic index foods
"People who consume a lot of high glycemic index foods or excess amounts of dairy can trigger more inflammation that makes their acne worse," Elbuluk explains. That's why she and the other experts TODAY.com spoke to generally avoid classic breakfast items like pastries, pancakes, waffles and donuts.
"In moderation, obviously, treat yourself," Elbuluk says. "But (those foods are) not part of my regular breakfast."