Is Eating Papaya Good for the Skin?

Is Eating Papaya Good for the Skin?

Overview

You might have heard that eating papaya is good for your skin. This is true only in the most tangential of respects; papaya is high in vitamin C, which you need for production of healthy skin. Extra vitamin C, however, won't clear up your skin unless you're severely vitamin deficient.

Papaya

One of the components of papaya that is the subject of many myths and misconceptions regarding the fruit's ability to treat diseases and alleviate symptoms is called papain, commonly referred to as papaya enzyme. Papain is a protein-digesting enzyme that is very important to the papaya plant itself, but isn't particularly useful to humans, except as an ingredient in meat marinade, wherein it acts as a very effective tenderizing agent.

Skin

Whether you have healthy skin that you'd like to see develop an even more radiant glow, or problem skin due to acne or other disorders, you can't count on eating papaya to help you out, generally speaking. This is because skin physiology is complex, and skin disorders have a variety of causes. The most common skin condition, acne, is due to a combination of bacteria, oil production and hormones--papaya can't do anything about any of these.

"Glowing" Skin

Some beauty products claim that their power comes from papaya--and more specifically, from papaya enzyme--and that by using them, you can get the skin to "glow" much in the way a pregnant woman's skin does. "Glowing" skin, however, looks the way it does due to high levels of hormones, which increase blood flow to the skin and improve its color, quality and texture, explain Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel in their book, "What to Expect When You're Expecting." You can't duplicate the effect with fruit.

Considerations

There is one very tangential way in which papaya consumption may benefit your skin; it contains vitamin C, which you need to formulate healthy skin and connective tissue that lies below the skin, explains Dr. Lauralee Sherwood in her book, "Human Physiology." There's a common misconception when it comes to vitamins, however, that more is better--that is, if some vitamin C is good for your skin, more must be great for it. While you need vitamin C in the diet--and can get some of it from papaya--to maintain your skin, extra won't make your skin look better.

source : livestronge.com