Most people know eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables is good for long term health, but unfortunately, not that many actually consume the recommended daily amount. Now scientists at the University of St Andrews in the UK are hoping to appeal to another motivator: vanity. They report in a study published recently in the American Journal of Public Health, that eating more fruit and vegetables can change skin tone, lending it a healthier glow, within a matter of weeks.

Apparently it is all down to carotenoids, the orangey-red pigments found in fruits and vegetables.

Study supervisor Professor David Perrett and colleagues found that just two extra portions of fruit and veg a day for six weeks was enough to cause a detectable change in skin tone.

For the study, they recruited 35 students and followed their diet and changes in skin colour over 6 weeks. They also monitored how much of a change in skin colour had to take place before it was noticed by others. Read more