A FRUITY TREAT FOR THE SKIN

Did you know that eating Cape Gooseberry (Rasbhari) could slow down the skin ageing process?

While eating our favourite fruit we rarely think about the nutrients that the fruit contains and how they maybe benefitting our body. As a child Cape Gooseberry or Rasbhari (that’s the name by which I have known it till now) has been my favourite fruit. While gorging on it I never thought that it could be benefitting my skin and body. Cape Gooseberry is a natural beauty care product. We hear it a lot from our elders, doctors and dieticians that fruits are good for health but none of us goes into detail knowing how they actually benefit us. So I set about researching all the benefits that my favourite fruit contains.

Cape Gooseberry, the small sized golden coloured fruit has a very attractive paper like cover and tastes sweet and little bit sour. It is loaded with nutrients like vitamins A, B1, B3, C, Calcium, Iron and Phosphorus, which are advantageous for skin and body. Moreover, having lesser calories the fruit helps in weight loss as well, which makes me fall in love with it even more.

Dermatologist Dr Varun Katyal adds to the benefits, “Cape Gooseberry’s leaf juice can be topically applied for solving the problem of skin inflammation. Its stem and leaf extracts help in treating serious skin ailments. Additionally Gooseberry juice is also known for preventing hair loss and improving the skin tone. The antioxidants present in Cape Gooseberry are much more than that present in broccoli, apples, pomegranates and goji berries.”

Here we share the list of the nutrients present in it and how they help in getting a healthy and problem-free skin:

– Vitamin A: Nowadays several skincare products like night creams and lotions are enriched with vitamin A. These products are most sought for by matured women who want to keep a tap on skin problems like fine lines, wrinkles and pigmentation. But why not opt for a natural source of vitamin A? Cape Gooseberry is rich in vitamin A helping in reducing wrinkles, fine lines and brown spots along with smoothening the skin. Vitamin A is believed to be good for eyesight also.

– Vitamin B3: It is another important nutrient present in Cape Gooseberry which helps in maintaining the moisture, softness and suppleness of the skin. It also reduces redness of the skin. This vitamin aids in boosting the skin’s outer protective barrier by producing more ceramides and fatty acids. And once this barrier is strong enough the irritants can’t affect the skin and the moisture remains intact.

– Vitamin C: After using several skin products having vitamin C in their labels everybody would know the importance of vitamin C to skin. With age the collagen production retards due to which our skin loses its firmness and elasticity. And vitamin C boosts the collagen production making the skin firm and young. It reduces skin ageing process and pigmentation as well.

– Calcium: We have always known that calcium is necessary for bones and teeth but did you know that it is important for skin as well. In skin calcium is mostly found in the outer most layer known as the epidermis. The calcium present in the epidermis helps the body control generation of new skin cells and shedding of old cells. Calcium also keeps the skin hydrated by producing sebum.

So next time you eat any fruit just try finding out how it actually benefits your skin and body.