Skincare and Nutrition Belong in the Same Conversation

The first time I heard the words hyaluronic acid was in a lecture hall, nearly twenty years ago, while studying for my Diploma in Nutritional Therapy at the Institute for Optimum Nutrition.

Looking down at our notes, we could all see how it was written, but none of us were entirely sure how to say it out loud. There was a moment of collective hesitation, then a ripple of quiet laughter as we each attempted it. Dr Paul Clayton, whose lectures on skin nutrition were quite unlike anything I had encountered before, simply carried on as though we had managed it perfectly.

He went on to teach us about oxidative stress, and about vitamins A, C and E, not as isolated nutrients but as part of a protective cascade, helping to recycle each other and extend their antioxidant effect within the body. He talked about glycation, the way excess sugar can attach to proteins, including collagen, making them stiffer and less elastic over time. He talked about fatty acids, how they sit within cell membranes, influence fluidity, and help regulate inflammatory responses throughout the body, including in the skin.

I remember thinking, this is what skin actually is. Not a surface to be corrected, but an extraordinary living system.

That understanding sits alongside everything I have brought to this work: the restoration years, yoga, massage, nutrition, formulation, and the experience of moving through midlife in my own skin. It is always present when I formulate, a quiet reference point and a reminder that what we eat is not separate from how our skin behaves. It is part of the same conversation.

Which is why, when women ask me about nutrition and skin, I often find myself going back to that lecture room. The conversation was relevant then, before hyaluronic acid appeared on every serum bottle and oxidative stress became a familiar marketing phrase. It is still relevant now.

Why midlife changes the conversation

In younger skin, the system is often more forgiving. Collagen renewal, barrier repair and recovery from poor sleep, stress or a less-than-ideal diet tend to happen more efficiently, which is why the effects of a difficult week may pass without leaving much trace. 

In midlife, that begins to change. Declining oestrogen affects the skin’s ability to produce collagen, retain moisture and maintain a resilient barrier, which is why recovery can feel slower and sensitivity more noticeable. Skin may become drier, thinner, more reactive, or simply less familiar than it once did.

This does not mean skin is being difficult; it simply means the conditions around it begin to matter more.

At ION, we were taught to look at the whole nutritional picture before reaching for a supplement. Looking at what the diet was providing, what might be missing, and whether the body had the right conditions to do its work well. That question still feels deeply relevant to skin, because the nutritional environment we create shapes the way skin repairs, protects, hydrates and responds.

The nutrients skin keeps asking for

One of the quieter changes many women notice in perimenopause and beyond is a kind of dryness that does not fully resolve with moisturiser. The skin may feel tight before anything has been applied, then become unsettled again later in the day, as though it is asking for something deeper than another layer of cream.

Part of what is happening is a change in the skin barrier, the outermost layer that helps hold moisture in and keeps irritants at a respectful distance. That barrier is partly composed of lipids, and those lipids need replenishing from within as well as topically.

Omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids play an important role here. They are incorporated into cell membranes throughout the body, including skin cells, and influence how supple, permeable and resilient those membranes are.

Including oily fish, walnuts, flaxseed, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, avocado and good olive oil as a natural part of the diet is one way of eating with skin in mind. After years of low-fat messaging, it is worth remembering that some fats are not optional. Essential fatty acids have to come from food, and the skin relies on them for comfort, flexibility and barrier support.

Protein matters too. Collagen is a protein, and while the body makes it internally, it needs a steady supply of amino acids to do so, particularly glycine, proline and hydroxyproline. As we age, protein becomes increasingly important, partly because the body’s response to dietary protein becomes less efficient.

Protein is rarely discussed in beauty with much warmth, but it is part of the quiet scaffolding that supports skin, muscle, repair and resilience through midlife. Eggs, fish, legumes, tofu, tempeh, Greek yoghurt, nuts, seeds and good quality meat, if you eat it, all contribute. Spreading protein throughout the day, rather than relying on one protein-rich evening meal, can also be more supportive for tissue repair and steady energy levels.

Colour, antioxidants and collagen support

There is something genuinely satisfying about the idea that the colour on your plate is doing something useful for your skin, and broadly speaking, it is.

The pigments in deeply coloured vegetables and fruits are often markers of antioxidant compounds: carotenoids, flavonoids and polyphenols. These compounds help protect the body from oxidative stress, which contributes to collagen breakdown, uneven tone and loss of elasticity over time.

This is why I am always more interested in the pattern of someone’s diet than one heroic ingredient.

Vitamin C deserves particular mention because it plays a direct role in collagen synthesis. Without adequate vitamin C, the body cannot properly stabilise the collagen structure it is trying to build, which makes foods such as bell peppers, kiwi, citrus fruit, berries, parsley, broccoli and dark leafy greens especially useful.

Food also brings nutrients within a wider matrix of fibres, minerals and plant compounds, which is why it often offers more than an isolated supplement can.

Collagen supplements are having a very visible moment, and there is some emerging evidence that specific collagen peptides may support skin hydration and elasticity. But they are not a shortcut around the basics. The body still needs vitamin C, protein, minerals, antioxidants and a steady nutritional environment to build and maintain collagen well. For many women, improving those foundations is a more useful place to begin.

'Five a day' is still a helpful starting point, but it does not tell the whole story. More recent gut health conversations often focus on variety, with thirty different plant foods a week used as a guide rather than a strict target.

That may sound ambitious, but it can be surprisingly achievable. A handful of mixed seeds and berries on porridge, a squeeze of lemon, a spoonful of lentils or beans added to soup, fresh herbs in a salad, a few different vegetables roasted together, or cooking with dried herbs and spices all count. The variety matters as much as the volume.

Glycation, the quieter side of skin ageing

This was the part of Dr Clayton’s lecture that stayed with me the most, although it took me some time to fully understand it. It is also the part we still do not talk about enough in skincare.

Glycation happens when excess glucose in the bloodstream attaches to proteins, including collagen and elastin. This creates compounds known as advanced glycation end products, or AGEs, which can cross-link collagen fibres and make them stiffer. Over time, this can contribute to skin that feels less supple and appears duller or less elastic.

This is not about eliminating sugar or becoming fearful around food. That kind of thinking is rarely helpful, and it has no place in how I think about care.

It is about understanding that blood sugar balance is genuinely relevant to skin structure over time. Eating in a way that avoids dramatic spikes and crashes creates steadier conditions for the whole body, and it can be as simple as having protein and healthy fats alongside carbohydrates, choosing more whole foods over refined ones, and increasing fibre through vegetables, pulses, oats, seeds and wholegrains.

These are not complicated interventions. They are simply the conditions in which the skin can do its best work.

The gut and the skin

The relationship between the gut and the skin was something I studied carefully at ION, and it has only become better supported by research in the years since. For many women, it also feels intuitively true, because periods of digestive difficulty often seem to show up on the face as dullness, flushing, sensitivity or a general sense that the skin is unsettled.

The gut microbiome influences systemic inflammation, immune regulation and the way the body metabolises hormones, including oestrogen. The oestrobolome, the collection of gut bacteria involved in oestrogen metabolism, plays a role in how oestrogen is processed and recirculated, which is one reason gut health becomes such an interesting thread to follow through perimenopause and menopause.

This does not mean every skin concern begins in the gut. Skin is more complex than that. But for women whose skin becomes suddenly reactive, persistently dull, or less predictable through midlife, it is a connection worth taking seriously.

Feeding the microbiome well means plenty of fibre from vegetables, legumes, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and fruit, alongside fermented foods if they suit you. Live yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi and miso can be useful for some people, while others, especially those with digestive sensitivity, may need to introduce them slowly or not at all.

As with skincare, more is not always better. The right support is usually steady, consistent and well-tolerated.

Hydration, and what actually counts

Hydration is the piece of nutritional skin advice most women have already heard, but the picture is more nuanced than simply drinking more water.

Water-rich foods make a genuine contribution to overall fluid intake: cucumber, courgette, watermelon, citrus fruit, soups, broths and leafy greens. Herbal teas count too, and despite the persistent myth, moderate tea and coffee intake does not cause meaningful dehydration for most people, because the mild diuretic effect is usually more than offset by the fluid they contain.

When it comes to skin, hydration is not only about how much water goes in. It is also about how well the skin holds on to the water it already has, and that depends heavily on the integrity of the skin barrier.

This is where topical care and internal nourishment belong together. Adequate dietary fats support barrier function from within, while a cleanser that does not strip the skin of its oils helps preserve that barrier topically. The two conversations belong in the same room.

A word about supplements

The supplement market targeting women has expanded enormously, and some of the claims attached to products can feel overwhelming.

My view, shaped by my training and by a healthy scepticism of anything promising dramatic results, is that food comes first. A varied, plant-forward diet with good quality protein, adequate healthy fats and genuine colour will do more for most women’s skin over time than any single supplement.

That said, there are situations where supplementation can be useful and well evidenced. Vitamin D through a UK winter is an obvious example, where dietary sources and sun exposure are both limited. Omega-3 may be helpful for those who do not eat oily fish, and magnesium may be worth considering for some women, particularly where stress, poor sleep or muscle tension are part of the picture.

These things have their place, but they support a good diet rather than replace one. If you are considering supplements, particularly around perimenopause or menopause, when other health factors may also be in play, it is worth speaking with a registered nutritional therapist, pharmacist or GP rather than trying to navigate the market alone.

The whole picture

Restoring 18th-century pieces taught me something I still carry into this work.

The things worth preserving do not need forcing. They need patience, the right conditions and steady, unhurried attention.

Skin is the same. It is part of a whole system, shaped by what we eat, how we sleep, how we manage stress, how much genuine rest we allow, and how gently we care for ourselves when life changes shape.

Skincare is one part of that. Nourishment from within is another. Neither is the whole answer, but together they bring us much closer to the kind of care midlife skin often needs: less correction, more support; less intensity, more consistency.

Related reading

Start with the Core Ritual: two steady steps for topical barrier support

If you would like to explore these ideas further:

Cold Pressed Seed Oils: Our Skincare Heroes
A closer look at the plant oils, fatty acids and antioxidant compounds used in Hux + Mū formulations.

How Restoration, Nutrition and Ritual Shaped Hux + Mū Skincare
A more personal piece on the threads that shaped Hux + Mū, from restoring 18th-century pieces to nutrition, ritual and formulation.

What Skin Strength Really Means in Midlife
A closer look at barrier resilience, sensitivity and why midlife skin often needs support rather than correction.

From Soil to Skin and the Role of Fibre in Radiant Midlife Skin
A deeper dive into fibre, gut health and the connection between what we eat and how skin behaves.

Shim holds a Diploma in Nutritional Therapy from the Institute for Optimum Nutrition, though she is not currently practising as a nutritional therapist or registered with a professional nutrition body. This article is for educational purposes only and is not intended as personalised medical or nutritional advice. If you have specific health concerns, particularly around perimenopause or menopause, please speak with your GP, pharmacist, registered nutritional therapist or another appropriately qualified healthcare practitioner.