It has long been known that tomatoes possess many health benefits. Whether you eat them raw in salads and sandwiches, or cooked and processed into soups, purees, pastes and sauces, the good news just keeps on coming.

We’ve heard about their effect in preventing various types of cancer, of prostate and the skin, and the humble fruit’s use against heart disease and stroke. Now it’s a great cosmetic too.

The benefits are credited to lycopene, the pigment behind the distinctive red skin and a powerful antioxidant.

Professor Birch-Machin, of Newcastle University believes tomatoes are a cheap and simple way of improving health and looking good.

After a joint study by Manchester and Newcastle universities, he said, “I went into the study as a sceptic, but I was quite surprised with the significance of the findings.”

The British Society for Investigative Dermatology’s annual conference was told that tests using ultra-violet lamps showed that tomato-eaters were a third better protected against sunburn at the end of the study than at the start. Other tests suggested a tomato-based diet boosted production of collagen, the protein that keeps skin supple.

Tomatoes also protect the mitochondria, the parts of cells that turn food we eat into energy. “Being kind to our mitochondria is likely to contribute to improved skin health, which in turn may have an anti-ageing effect,” Professor Birch-Machin said.

The researchers now recommend two tomato-based meals a day for optimum health.

Nowadays, both women and men are advised to moisturize their face twice a day after cleansing. Is this wise for the older person?

Tracey Chappell, a skin expert, says, “Often we allow ourselves to be pigeon-hole into a standard routine and stop listening to what our skin is telling us.

“The idea that we should moisturize twice a day is traditional beauty lore and does apply to a great many of us. But it’s not necessarily the best thing for everyone.

“The belief probably came about because our desire for squeaky clean skin has meant that traditionally cleansers are quite stripping and leave skin feeling tight and dry, making us reach for the moisturizer both morning and night after we wash our faces.

“Only you can know what your skin feels like on a day-to-day basis. Occasionally it is wise to let the skin breathe, particularly as over-using creams that are too rich can make the skin “lazy”, taking over from its natural functions and leaving us dependent on lotions and potions. We get trapped in a vicious cycle.”

As our skin ages, it gets thinner and laxer. It is more prone to wrinkles and fine lines than younger skin but also more susceptible to injury and ulcers. Now a study at the University of Michigan Health System says that lotions containing retinol have been shown to reduce wrinkles and also increase collagen production, making skin stronger and less prone to injury.

The U-M study used a lotion specifically designed for the experiment that contained retinol, an ingredient found in many commercially prepared skin lotions. In a double blind study, they applied the lotion with retinol to the skin on one arm and regular skin lotion on the other. The results were dramatic. The skin that was treated with the retinol lotion improved in appearance, looking younger, firmer and less wrinkled.

“With the population aging so rapidly, it is important that we find ways of treating skin conditions of elderly people – not just for purposes of vanity, but also for the healing of wounds and the reduction of ulcers,” says senior author Sewon Kang, M.D., professor of dermatology at the U-M Medical School.

This research serves as an important step forward in the understanding of how aging skin can be improved, researchers say.

Retinol lotion reduces the fine wrinkles from natural aging of skin, University of Michigan study finds

In a previous article we discussed the benefits of Vitamin D, the Sunshine Vitamin. The most effective way to get Vitamin D is through exposure to sunlight. We are also well aware of the dangers of over-exposure to sunlight and the increased risk of skin cancer.

But now researchers at Stanford University are saying a little Vitamin D-generating sunlight may be just the prescription for melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer.

UVB rays cause Vitamin D3 to be generated in the skin. Through contact with various enzymes in the liver and kidneys, the body turns D3 into an active compound that signals T-cells to migrate to the skin’s epidermis where they stand on guard against infection and even cancer.

Although sunlight is still considered to be the most avoidable cause of skin cancer, it appears that getting the right amount of light could actually strengthen the immune system. However, avoiding intense sun is still recommended.

“So, avoiding intense sun, protecting yourself when you’re out in intense sun — that’s still our [cancer society] recommendation, and this is not going to change that,” said Martin Weinstock, chairman of the skin advisory group of the American Cancer Society and professor of dermatology and community health at Brown University.

A Little Sun Might Shield Against Skin Cancer