Your skin depends not only on external care. Nutrient availability, essential fatty acids and healthy blood formation all support normal skin renewal, repair and barrier function. The
Skin Nutrition Check looks at key nutritional factors from the inside — and can help identify deficiencies or imbalances that may otherwise be difficult to see.Iron Status
Ferritin, Iron, Transferrin & Transferrin Saturation
Iron is essential for normal cellular and tissue function. Iron deficiency can affect the skin and other rapidly renewing tissues, and low iron stores can be present before iron-deficiency anaemia develops.
Ferritin provides information about the body's stored iron, while serum iron, transferrin and transferrin saturation help assess circulating iron and its availability. Looking at these markers together provides a more complete picture of iron status than serum iron alone.
Research:
A dermatological review describes structural and clinical changes affecting the skin, hair, nails and mucosa in iron deficiency:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1764360/
Vitamin D (25-OH)
Skin Function & Barrier
Vitamin D has biological functions within the skin. Skin cells can produce and respond to active vitamin D, which is involved in keratinocyte differentiation, epidermal barrier formation and immune function.
Measuring 25-OH vitamin D provides an assessment of your vitamin D status and can identify deficiency or insufficiency.
Research:
Review of vitamin D metabolism and function in the skin, including epidermal differentiation and permeability-barrier formation:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21664236/
Research on the role of vitamin D in regulating keratinocyte differentiation:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15156556/
Zinc
Skin Renewal & Repair
Zinc is an essential micronutrient involved in numerous cellular processes, including cell proliferation, immune function and tissue repair. Zinc deficiency can affect skin integrity and is associated with impaired wound healing.
Measuring zinc can help identify whether zinc status may be inadequate.
Research:
Review of zinc physiology and its role in wound healing:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28448263/
Review of the cellular and molecular role of zinc in wound repair and the dermatological effects of zinc deficiency:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29295546/
Fatty Acid Profile
Essential Fats & Skin Barrier
Essential fatty acids are part of normal skin biology and contribute to the lipid environment needed for healthy skin-barrier function. A fatty acid profile provides information about key fatty acids, including omega-3 and omega-6, and can help show whether dietary intake or supplementation is reflected in blood fatty-acid levels.
Clinical research has also investigated the relationship between omega-3 status and skin characteristics. In randomized placebo-controlled pilot studies, krill-oil supplementation increased the Omega-3 Index and was accompanied by improvements in transepidermal water loss, skin hydration and elasticity. Changes in the Omega-3 Index correlated with changes in these skin measurements.
A fatty acid profile, however, is not a direct measurement of skin hydration, elasticity or skin-barrier quality.
Research:
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot studies examining Omega-3 Index, transepidermal water loss, hydration and skin elasticity:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39169540/
Complete Blood Count
Blood Health & Nutritional Context
A complete blood count measures haemoglobin, red blood cells and other blood-cell parameters. Haemoglobin is responsible for carrying oxygen to tissues throughout the body.
In this check, the Complete Blood Count is particularly useful alongside the iron markers: it helps determine whether depleted iron stores are accompanied by changes consistent with anaemia and provides broader context when interpreting iron and nutritional status.
Rather than being a specific "skin test", it helps complete the picture of the internal nutritional factors being assessed.