Over the last few years, one of the biggest buzzwords in the skincare world has been collagen. So what is collagen, how does it work, and how can you boost your skin’s collagen supply? We’ll break it down for you!

What is Collagen?

Collagen is a protein in our body – it’s the structural component of the connective tissues and cartilage, and it also helps blood clot. There are 28 different types of collagen, with 90% of it being type 1, which is found in our skin, tendons, internal organs and the organic parts of our bones - this is the collagen that keeps our skin plump and youthful.

How Does Collagen Work?

You can thank collagen for keeping your skin supple! It’s found in skin, muscles and connective tissues, and helps your skin retain its elasticity. Collagen it made naturally by the body by breaking down dietary protein into amino acids. As you age, your body’s ability to produce collagen decreases, and your skin will start to show more wrinkles, sagging and fine lines – all the signs of aging.

Get a Little Boost

To help support the slow in collagen production, there are a few things you can do. Because collagen is made by breaking down the protein from your diet into amino acids, ensuring you’re eating collagen-rich foods regularly will help your body continue to create it. Incorporating proteins like chicken, beef and eggs, along with dairy, legumes, nuts and grains will help your body have the dietary proteins it needs to keep creating protein.

Topical skincare products can assist with collagen production, but you shouldn’t reply solely on them to rebuild collagen supplies once you’re over 40. While they can help slow the signs of aging due to a slower rate of collagen production, they won’t rebuild the skin’s collagen supply. Instead, think about taking a collagen supplement or adding a collagen powder to your daily diet. The collagen supplements you’ve likely seen on the market are actually collagen peptides, which is collagen that’s already been broken down in to amino acids that are more easily dissolved.

Super Supplements

Collagen supplements, whether you take it as a pill or as a powder, can help stimulate collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid in the skin, making your skin smoother as it plumps out wrinkles and increases hydration levels as well as skin elasticity. Because these supplements are ingested and broken down in the gut, the body is more likely to absorb them, versus topical skincare that promises to boost collagen production – instead they’ll likely help anti-aging related skin concerns that are the result of slower collagen production.

So if you’re starting to notice that your skin isn’t holding up as well as it used to, it might be time to add on to your skincare routine with some dietary changes and a collagen boosting supplement to keep your skin smooth, supple and youthful for longer. Add in some skincare products with collagen to help address those anti-aging signs and watch your skin become more supple and smooth!