Collagen has lately been a buzzword in the health and wellness industry.
An increasing number of people are turning to collagen-containing products to keep their skin healthy and maintain its youthful glow. But many are still unaware of its significance and wonder what the hype is all about. For all such people, let’s take a closer look at it and discuss the importance of collagen for the skin.
What is Collagen?
Collagen is a type of structural protein found in skin, bones, tendons, and cartilage. It is the most abundant protein in the body, accounting for about 30% of the body’s total protein reserve, and is the main component of connective tissues. As a structural protein, collagen serves a vital role in various body systems. Maintaining healthy skin is one of them.
Why is Collagen Important for the Skin?
Dermis, the middle layer of skin that makes up 90% of it in thickness, relies upon collagen for its structure and strength. The protein overall makes up 70% to 80% of the dry skin mass. Simply put, collagen is the most abundant and one of the most vital elements of the skin. It is what gives it the strength and firmness that signify a youthful appearance. Collagen also works with elastin (another type of protein) to give the skin signature youthful bounce and elasticity.
Since collagen gives the skin strength, structure, firmness, and elasticity, losing it affects all these aspects and leads to skin aging.
What Causes Collagen Loss in Skin?
Two primary underlying factors are behind the decline of collagen in the skin – reduced synthesis or increased breakdown. These can happen naturally due to aging and menopause or triggered by various lifestyle factors, such as photoaging, poor diet, stress, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption.
Collagen levels remain high in the body when we are growing, but its synthesis begins to dwindle from the mid to late 20s, and our body loses about 1% of collagen per year. Since this loss is only minimal, we don’t usually feel much difference in skin texture and appearance in the first few years. However, by the time we reach our 40s or 50s, our body has lost a good amount of collagen, resulting in the appearance of signs of aging on the skin.
How to Replenish Skin Collagen?
You can’t completely avoid the loss of collagen in your skin. But you can continue to replenish it to maintain healthy and youthful skin. Here are a few proven ways to do it:
- Add collagen-rich foods to your diet, such as bone broth, tough meat cuts, gelatin, and fish skin.
- Eat foods rich in amino acids to aid your body in making its own collagen. These include eggs, chicken, fish, legumes, tempeh, and tofu.
- Maintain a healthy nutrient supply; the body needs various nutrients to make collagen.
- Use collagen supplements, but always consult your doctor before taking them.
- Use skincare products that contain collagen or help protect or boost the cell renewal process in the skin.
- Make use of advanced skin treatments that help increase collagen production.
Jade Clinic Offers Secret RF to Boost Collagen Production
Secret RF is an innovative skincare treatment that helps protect healthy, younger-looking skin for as long as possible. The procedure uses a fractional radiofrequency microneedling system to prevent and address the signs of skin aging by boosting collagen production. Contact us for a skincare consultation to know how it can help with your skin concerns.
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
