Itch, flaky, peeling, cracking. Winter can really take a toll on your skin, and sometimes a medicine cabinet full of hydrating skincare products just isn’t enough.

Cold weather outside and dry heat indoors can strip moisture from your skin, causing dehydration. If you have dry skin due to genetics or certain health conditions, you may be more susceptible to dehydrated skin during the winter.

One of the best things you can do is make sure you’re hydrated from the inside out, starting with the food and drinks you consume. We talked to experts about edible ingredients that can make your skin more dehydrated, as well as ingredients that can actually help your skin stay properly hydrated.

How Do You Know If Your Skin Is Dehydrated?

Dehydrated skin loses elasticity, may appear flaky, and look dull. Hydrated skin is smooth, soft, reflects light evenly, and radiates radiance.

Keeping your skin hydrated not only makes a difference in how your skin looks, it’s also crucial to your skin’s long-term health. One way to hydrate your skin is from the inside out.

We may spend a lot of time using products that hydrate our skin from the outside when we really need to start from the inside, and that includes what we eat and drink.

Foods And Drinks That Can Dehydrate Your Skin

Caffeine

Beverages such as coffee, tea, sodas and energy drinks often contain caffeine.Moderate amounts of caffeine (about 400 milligrams or four cups of coffee per day, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration) are generally not associated with dehydration because the water in the drink usually counteracts the dehydrating effects.

But if you consume caffeine later in the day, it can disrupt your sleep, which can lead to dehydrated skin. (A study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that even moderate amounts of caffeine six hours before bed can disrupt your sleep.)

Lack of sleep can have a significant impact on skin health. As long as one night of poor sleep, our skin will obviously show reduced skin moisture, damaged barrier function, accelerated skin aging and dark circles.

One study also found that people with poor sleep quality experienced more transepidermal water loss (evaporation of water through the skin), which affects skin hydration.

What’s the bottom line? Our skin renews and heals overnight, and a good night’s sleep is essential for skin hydration and overall health. So if you’re going to drink caffeine, it’s best to drink it earlier in the day.

Alcohol

Alcohol is a diuretic and causes you to lose water through more urination. Excessive amounts can lead to overall dehydration, including dehydration of the skin. Drinking alcohol also depletes your natural antioxidants, making your skin more susceptible to damage from factors like pollution and UV rays. And, like caffeine, alcohol can disrupt your sleep.

Some patients notice significant improvements in skin hydration, radiance, and brightness after reducing alcohol consumption or eliminating alcohol from their diet.

Sodium

Consuming too much salt can cause your body to draw water from your cells and lead to dehydration.

Most Americans’ diets are too high in sodium. While the recommended daily sodium intake is less than 2,300 mg (about 1 teaspoon), most Americans consume about 3,400 mg, according to the FDA.

Frozen foods, canned foods, prepared foods like sandwiches and sandwiches, and sauces like soy sauce or ketchup often contain large amounts of sodium. Paying attention to how much salt you eat each day can help improve your skin’s tone and elasticity (among many other health benefits).

Added Sugar

We eat a lot of added sugar. It’s everywhere.If you overdo it, it can actually disrupt the body’s process of repairing and producing collagen. And collagen is essential for skin elasticity and skin health.

According to the American Heart Association, women should consume no more than 6 teaspoons of sugar per day and men should consume no more than 9 teaspoons per day. But a 12-ounce bottle of soda contains more than 10 teaspoons.

You should be aware of how much sugar you consume in drinks such as soda, tea, coffee and energy drinks, and recommend replacing it with water and fruit (which contain natural sugars) where possible.

While the main source of added sugar may be beverages, added sugar may also be hiding in other foods, such as desserts, nut butters, ketchups, nutrition bars, cereals and breads.

If there is added sugar on the food ingredient list, make sure it’s at the bottom. Also pay attention to the different sugar words that may appear on the label, such as glucose, molasses, sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, maltose, agave nectar, sucrose, and beet sugar.

Fried Foods

Greasy, fried foods like french fries, potato chips, and donuts can have a negative impact on our skin because they cause inflammation, which can be linked to dehydration.

Dehydration can cause redness and itching and may be associated with skin inflammation.

It is recommended that you bake your food or use an air fryer instead of frying.

One Way To Keep Skin Hydrated: “Eat Your Water”

What you put on your skin and what you drink (and eat) throughout the day are both crucial to keeping your skin properly hydrated.

In addition to drinking water, it’s important to eat water-rich foods such as spinach, cucumbers, berries, melons, and green peppers. Fluid is trapped within the cells of the food and slowly released during digestion, becoming a good, stable source of hydration.

You also need to pay attention to how you prepare your vegetables. Eating it raw or lightly steamed (so it doesn’t boil off the water) is key.

Eat foods containing healthy fats, such as omega-3 fatty acids found in avocados, chia seeds, flaxseeds, nuts, olives and fish.

Remember, even if you don’t have skin problems, getting enough fluids year-round is important for your overall health.

It affects your blood sugar, it affects the way you think, it affects your digestion. So whether your skin is dry or not, we all need to stay properly hydrated.