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What happens when skin lacks vitamin E?

When the skin lacks vitamin E, signs such as dryness, peeling, premature aging and dullness will gradually appear. Vitamin E is an important antioxidant, helping to protect the skin from the harmful effects of free radicals, maintain moisture and enhance resilience. Lack of vitamin E not only makes the skin susceptible to irritation and inflammation, but also slows down the regeneration process, making wounds difficult to heal and prone to scarring. So how to supplement vitamin E to keep the skin healthy, youthful and always full of vitality? 

1. The role of vitamin E in the skin? What will vitamin E deficiency cause?

Vitamin E plays an important role in the skin due to its powerful antioxidant properties and natural moisturizing properties. The main roles of vitamin E in the skin include:

1.1. Antioxidant and skin protection

  • Vitamin E is one of the powerful antioxidants that helps protect skin cells from the harmful effects of free radicals, which are harmful molecules produced by metabolism or from external factors such as UV rays, pollution and cigarette smoke. Free radicals damage the structure of skin cells, which is the main cause of premature aging and wrinkles.
  • Vitamin E acts as a “shield”, protecting the skin from this damage and slowing down the aging process.

1.2. Moisturizing the skin

  • Vitamin E is a natural moisturizer for the skin, helping to maintain moisture and prevent dehydration. This is important because skin that lacks moisture will often become dry, lose its smoothness and become flaky.
  • In addition to maintaining skin moisture, vitamin E also helps protect the skin’s natural protective barrier, keeping the skin healthy and avoiding external irritation. 

1.3 Enhances skin elasticity

  • Vitamin E helps maintain the structure and elasticity of skin cells by supporting the synthesis of collagen – an important protein that makes up the structure of the skin. When there is enough collagen, the skin will be smoother and firmer.
  • Supplementing vitamin E helps slow down the process of collagen degradation, preventing the formation of wrinkles and other signs of aging.

1.4. Supports skin regeneration and scar healing

  • Vitamin E plays an important role in the process of cell regeneration, helping wounds and scars on the skin heal faster.
  • Vitamin E has the ability to promote the production of new cells, helping to restore the skin more effectively and minimize the risk of scarring.

1.5. Effects of vitamin E deficiency in the skin

When the body lacks vitamin E, the skin lacks vitamin E and the skin may experience a number of problems, including:

  • Dry, flaky skin: Vitamin E deficiency causes the skin to lose its natural moisture, making the skin dry, cracked and easily irritated.
  • Premature aging: Skin lacking vitamin E is easily affected by free radicals, leading to the formation of wrinkles, crow’s feet and loss of elasticity more quickly.
  • Loss of firmness and elasticity: Vitamin E helps maintain the structure of skin cells, when deficient, the skin can become flabby and less firm.
  • Wounds that take a long time to heal: Vitamin E supports the process of cell regeneration and recovery, helping wounds and scars on the skin heal faster. Vitamin E deficiency can slow down this process.

Lack of vitamin E will cause the skin to lack water and moisture, so supplementing enough vitamin E is essential to maintain healthy skin, moisturize, prevent aging and enhance the regeneration process, helping the skin to stay soft, smooth, firm and youthful.

vitamin e deficiency
Effects of vitamin E deficiency in the skin

2. What are the skin symptoms of vitamin E deficiency?

When the skin lacks vitamin E, the skin will show some easily recognizable signs of vitamin E deficiency as follows:

  • Dry and flaky skin: Vitamin E plays an important role in maintaining skin moisture. Vitamin E deficiency causes the skin to lose its ability to retain moisture, making the skin dry, rough and flaky. This is a fairly common sign of vitamin E deficiency. Dry skin is one of the earliest and most common manifestations when the body does not receive enough vitamin E.
  • Prone to irritation and dermatitis: When lacking vitamin E, the skin will become weaker and more vulnerable to environmental factors such as dirt, chemicals, and bacteria. This can lead to irritation, dermatitis, redness, and even itching.
  • Premature signs of aging: Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant, protecting the skin from harmful free radicals from UV rays and pollution. Vitamin E deficiency makes the skin vulnerable to free radicals, causing wrinkles, crow’s feet, and brown spots to appear earlier than age. The skin will lose elasticity, smoothness, and is prone to sagging.
  • Dull, lifeless skin: Vitamin E helps improve blood circulation and increase metabolism in skin cells, keeping the skin bright and radiant. Vitamin E deficiency can make the skin dull, uneven, lifeless, and prone to dark or pigmented areas.
  • Wounds take a long time to heal and are prone to scarring: Vitamin E supports the process of cell regeneration and wound healing. When deficient, the skin will have difficulty recovering itself, making wounds, scratches, or scars take longer to heal. Wounds are more susceptible to infection and have a higher risk of scarring.
  • Skin lacking in vitamin E is prone to problems such as dryness, premature aging, dullness, and irritation. Adequate vitamin E supplementation is necessary to maintain the health and beauty of the skin.
vitamin e deficiency
Directly supplementing vitamin E to the skin helps improve the condition of vitamin E-deficient skin

3. How to effectively supplement vitamin E to maintain healthy and beautiful skin

To maintain healthy and beautiful skin, effective vitamin E supplementation can be done through diet, using functional foods and skin care with products containing vitamin E. Some effective methods of supplementing vitamin E for the body and skin:

3.1. Supplement vitamin E through diet

Vitamin E is abundant in natural foods, especially those rich in healthy fats. Maintaining a balanced diet rich in foods containing vitamin E will help the body absorb vitamin E naturally and most effectively.

  • Nuts: Almonds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts are rich and easy-to-use sources of vitamin E.
  • Vegetable oils: Sunflower oil, olive oil, and canola oil contain high levels of vitamin E, helping the skin maintain moisture and elasticity.
  • Green vegetables: Green leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale, and broccoli provide natural vitamin E and other antioxidants.
  • Avocado: Rich in vitamin E and healthy fats, it helps keep the skin healthy and prevents aging.

3.2. Use vitamin E supplements

In case your diet does not provide enough vitamin E, you can consider supplementing it through functional food products. When using, note:

  • Dosage: According to the recommendation, the dose of vitamin E for adults is 15 mg (22.5 IU) per day. Too much vitamin E can cause side effects, so follow the instructions of your doctor or pharmacist.
  • Choose natural vitamin E: Natural vitamin E products (d-alpha-tocopherol) are often better absorbed by the body than synthetic vitamin E (dl-alpha-tocopherol).

3.3. Skin care with products containing vitamin E

Skin care products containing vitamin E such as moisturizers, serums, and oils, also help improve the health and beauty of the skin from the outside. When choosing a product, you should note:

  • Prioritize products that do not clog pores: Vitamin E can cause oiliness if used too much. Non-clogging products are more suitable for oily or sensitive skin.
  • Combine with other antioxidants: Vitamin C, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid when combined with vitamin E help increase the antioxidant and moisturizing effects of the skin.

3.4. Supplement by applying vitamin E oil directly to the skin

Pure vitamin E oil or natural oils containing vitamin E can be applied directly to the skin to moisturize and minimize signs of aging. However, you should:

  • Check for allergies: Before using vitamin E oil directly, test it on a small area of ​​skin to make sure you are not allergic.
  • Use in the evening: Vitamin E oil is often quite thick and greasy, so it is best to use it in the evening to avoid feeling heavy on the face during the day.

3.5. Protect your skin from harmful environmental factors

  • Vitamin E helps protect your skin from the harmful effects of UV rays and pollution, but vitamin E alone is not enough to completely prevent these factors. Combining the use of sunscreen and careful protection will also help maintain the effectiveness of vitamin E on the skin.

The combination of diet, supplementing functional foods when necessary, and skin care with products containing vitamin E will help keep your skin healthy, youthful and maintain its natural beauty. In addition, you should supplement your skin and body with enough water, and get reasonable rest to help slow down the aging process for plump and youthful skin.

References: health.clevelandclinic.org, lpi.oregonstate.edu, pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, healthline.com, nivea.co.uk

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Vũ Thị Quỳnh Chi

Vũ Thị Quỳnh Chi

Bachelor of Nutrition Vu Thi Quynh Chi has over 5 years of experience in nutritional counseling and collaborating on nutrition content with healthcare facilities. Dynamic, passionate, and always eager to provide nutritional knowledge and practices to improve community health. This helps enhance the quality of life for the general public and patients.

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