The next time you run into that clump of seaweed or get tangled in kelp, you may want to rub it on your skin.

Go to a Japanese home, eat in a sushi bar, or eat a salad in Asia, and you are also bound to run headlong into the green (or brown or red) stuff.

Check out the skin of those that eat seaweed frequently. More than likely, it is smooth and healthy. The flora of the oceans are full of helpful vitamins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes, trace elements, calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese and zinc. And it has anti-inflammatory properties.

“For that reason alone, seaweed extracts are used for a variety of skin conditions, including acne and rosacea,” explains Dr. Joshua Zeichner, director of cosmetic and clinical research at New York City’s Mount Sinai Medical Center’s department of dermatology.

The Japanese words that define the most helpful kinds of seaweed include kombu (with loads of nutritional iodine), nori (heaps of protein), and wakame (helpful to produce collagen). So instead of swimming over or around the seaweed, perhaps you want to swim through it and receive a healthy topical dose?!?

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