Randomised trial · Nutrients · 2020Conflicts declared

Mango intake and facial wrinkles in postmenopausal women

Fam VW, Holt RR, Keen CL, Sivamani RK, Hackman RM · Free full text

In postmenopausal women with fair skin, eating 85 g of Ataulfo mango four times a week for 16 weeks reduced deep facial wrinkles, while 250 g increased several wrinkle measures.

The 85 g group also had more cheek redness.

What they found

Studies in people

Deep wrinkles, 85 g

In the 85 g group, deep wrinkle severity on the right side fell by 23% after 8 weeks and 20% after 16 weeks compared with the start. Deep wrinkle length also dropped by 32.7% after 16 weeks.

Wrinkles, 250 g

In the 250 g group, average wrinkle severity and length on the left side rose after 16 weeks, along with fine and emerging wrinkle severity. Right-side deep wrinkle severity trended upward.

Cheek redness

Left cheek redness increased in the 85 g group after 16 weeks. No change was seen in the 250 g group.

Skin carotenoids

Mango intake did not significantly change skin carotenoid levels within or between groups. Women who were overweight or obese had a significant increase from baseline at weeks 8 and 16, regardless of which mango amount they ate.

Blood pressure and lipids

The 250 g group had lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure and a 7.4% drop in serum cholesterol after 16 weeks. No significant changes in blood glucose were seen with either amount of mango.

What the authors conclude

“Results from this pilot study support the concept that regular intake of modest amounts of mangos may improve facial wrinkles.”

Fam VW, Holt RR, Keen CL, Sivamani RK, Hackman RM, 2020

Also in their conclusions

They conclude that regular intake of modest amounts of mangos may improve facial wrinkles.
They say the apparent beneficial effects on skin health may be lost if mango intake is particularly high.
They call for further prospective studies.

How it was done

Mangos are rich in beta-carotene, other carotenoids and phenolic acids that may protect the skin from UV damage. The authors wanted to see whether eating Ataulfo mango changed facial wrinkles and redness in people.

They randomly assigned healthy postmenopausal women aged 50 to 70 to eat either 85 g or 250 g of Ataulfo mango four times a week for 16 weeks. Facial photographs and skin carotenoid measurements were taken at weeks 0, 8 and 16.

What it can’t tell you

The study was small and exploratory, so the results need confirmation in larger trials.
The findings apply only to healthy postmenopausal women with Fitzpatrick skin type II or III, so they may not apply to other groups.
The study did not include a no-mango control group, so it cannot rule out other reasons for the changes seen.

Who paid

Funding: Funded by National Mango Board (from the PubMed record).
Conflicts: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Authors work at: California State University, USA; Pacific Skin Institute, USA

The paper

Title: Prospective Evaluation of Mango Fruit Intake on Facial Wrinkles and Erythema in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Clinical Pilot Study
Type: Randomised controlled trial
Evidence: Studies in people
Summarised from: Full text
Licence: CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
Cite: Fam VW, Holt RR, Keen CL, Sivamani RK, Hackman RM (2020). Prospective Evaluation of Mango Fruit Intake on Facial Wrinkles and Erythema in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Clinical Pilot Study. Nutrients. doi:10.3390/nu12113381Free full text PubMed 33158079 DOI

Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error