A new 2025 systematic review and meta analysis published in the Journal of Physiological Anthropology has brought clarity on a hotly debated topic:
Can diet meaningfully change how our skin ages?
To answer this, researchers analysed 61 human clinical studies, evaluating how different dietary components influence visible skin ageing - wrinkles, hydration, pigmentation, elasticity, barrier strength and redness.
This is one of the most comprehensive analyses ever performed on skin nutrition, and the findings form a solid scientific baseline for what works, what works only for specific concerns, and where the gaps lie.
This blog explains these findings in a simple and practical way. Read this to understand which supplements you need to add in your personal wellness journey.
Does the Skin Respond to Nutrition?
The skin is a biologically active organ influenced by:
Collagen turnover
Lipid balance
Oxidative stress
Inflammatory signalling
Antioxidant capacity
Microcirculation
Gut-skin axis
Dietary components interact with all these pathways, which is why nutrition can visibly affect ageing parameters measured in clinical studies, including wrinkle depth, TEWL, melanin intensity, elasticity and erythema.
The Six Dietary Categories Studied
The meta analysis evaluated six groups of dietary interventions:
Below is a deeper look at what each category contributes, according to the evidence.
1. Collagen Peptides
Collagen peptides were one of the most consistent performers across multiple ageing markers.
Clinically demonstrated benefits:
Significant reduction in wrinkle depth
Improved skin hydration
Reduction in pigment spots
Why collagen works biologically:
Stimulates dermal fibroblasts
Reduces collagen breakdown
Improves dermal density and moisture retention
Supports the dermal epidermal junction, influencing pigment pathways
Most importantly, collagen was the strongest category for reducing pigment spots - an effect often overlooked.
This image from the meta analysis shows how collagen supplements work to keep us younger for longer.
2. Polyphenols
Polyphenols represent a wide group: procyanidins from French maritime pine bark extract, pomegranate polyphenols, green tea catechins, cocoa flavanols, citrus bioactives, and grape seed extracts.
Clinically demonstrated benefits:
Significant improvement in hydration
Strongest improvement in barrier function (↓ TEWL)
Reduced wrinkles
Biological pathways influenced:
Antioxidant protection
Inhibition of degradative enzymes
Enhanced microcirculation
Stabilisation of lipids
Reduced photo oxidative stress
Polyphenols were the most effective category for improving barrier integrity, a critical ageing determinant.
The pathways in the image below show how polyphenols contribute to anti aging.
3. Lipids & Fatty Acids
This category includes plant oils, ceramides, omega 3 fatty acids, and structured lipid complexes.
Benefits shown across studies:
Improved skin elasticity
Enhanced hydration
Reduction in wrinkle markers
Mechanisms:
Replenish lost skin lipids
Reduce inflammation
Strengthen the stratum corneum
Improve skin biomechanics
Lipid loss is a hallmark of ageing, and dietary lipids were shown to directly counteract that decline, acting through the mechanisms shown in the image below,
4. Carotenoids
Carotenoids from tomatoes, carrots, mangoes, citrus and leafy greens, were strongly associated with UV protective effects.
Strongest clinical effect:
Reduction in skin redness
Why:
Powerful quenchers of singlet oxygen
Reduce UV induced inflammation
Improve sun tolerance
Stabilise cell membranes under oxidative stress
Although carotenoids were underrepresented in studies on pigmentation or elasticity, their effect on redness was consistent and significant.
Carotenoids work to enhance antioxidant mechanisms in the skin through specific pathways.
5. Prebiotics & Probiotics
These interventions leverage gut skin pathways.
Core clinical benefit:
Improved hydration
Mechanisms:
Increased abundance of beneficial gut bacteria
Reduced inflammatory metabolites
Improved intestinal barrier
Enhanced cutaneous blood flow (via serotonin mediated pathways in certain strains)
Hydration improvements through microbiome modulation highlight how systemic the skin truly is, as shown below,
6. Vitamins
Although vitamins were the least studied group, the review did include them as a separate category.
What we know now:
Vitamins had limited but emerging evidence across hydration and skin thickness
No pooled statistical significance for redness, pigmentation or sebum
More trials are needed before any firm conclusions can be drawn
The authors highlight vitamins as an area where future research is strongly needed.
Clear Patterns from the Evidence
Across all 61 studies, two strong patterns emerged:
Pattern 1: Each dietary category has a “special strength”
| Nutrient Category | Strongest Evidence For |
|---|---|
| Carotenoids | Reducing redness |
| Collagen peptides | Reducing pigment spots |
| Lipids & fatty acids | Improving elasticity |
| Polyphenols | Strengthening barrier integrity |
| Pre/Probiotics | Improving hydration |
| Vitamins | Limited data; early signals only |
Pattern 2: Many nutrients overlap in their benefits
Wrinkles and hydration improved with:
Collagen
Polyphenols
Lipids
Probiotics
This overlap suggests shared underlying pathways - antioxidant activity, improved barrier function, and better dermal support.
Ageing is multifactorial, and dietary components with overlapping benefits often reinforce each other.
The key takeaway is this:
There is no single dietary intervention for skin ageing.
Different nutrients target different pathways, and patterns matter more than single ingredients.
A dietary pattern for antiageing based on the strongest evidence includes:
colourful fruits and vegetables (carotenoids + polyphenols)
collagen peptides and protein intake
plant oils, omega 3s and lipid rich foods
fermented foods and prebiotic fibres
These categories collectively support barrier function, pigmentation balance, hydration, elasticity, and resilience - the core pillars of healthy skin ageing.
Two of the most popular products at CHOSEN, TOR Collagen and White Pine Pycnogenol made it to this evidence based list of antiaging nutrients! Explore them here.