Everyday Care Lab

  What Koreans Eat for Clear Skin — And What Happened When I Stopped When I was living in Korea, I never thought about eating for my skin. I just ate. Doenjang jjigae in the morning, kimchi with every meal, different vegetable side dishes, grilled fish a few times a week. That was just what food looked like. Whether my skin was good because of skincare or because of what I ate — I never thought to separate the two. Then I moved to Rome, and within two months something had shifted. I was eating pasta and pizza and loving every bite of it. But when I looked in the mirror one morning, my skin looked different. Duller. Breaking out more than usual. I was using the exact same skincare products I'd brought from Korea. Nothing about my routine had changed. That was the first time I thought — maybe it's the food. Over ten years and six countries, I've had enough chances to test this. When I eat close to a Korean diet, my skin tends to behave. When I drift far from it for long...