Collagen levels decrease with age and, unfortunately, there's no way to prevent this. The good news is that there are several cosmetic treatments that can rebuild or restore collagen.
Skincare and visiting the dermatologist to have certain treatments performed are great ways to help increase your collagen levels. Collagen can be restored, because when these treatments happen, the body forms new collagen to repair damage and injuries.
Collagen replacement therapy is a safe, non-surgical procedure that replenishes depleted collagen by injecting skin with highly purified bovine (cow) collagen. This collagen is so similar to human collagen that your body will readily accept it as its own.
Initial results from collagen restoration treatments are usually visible immediately. However, new collagen growth can take anywhere from four to 12 weeks to complete. Keep in mind that while certain procedures can be very effective at restoring and replacing collagen, these results aren't permanent.
Generally, collagen takes about 8 to 12 weeks to see its major results on skin health, joint pain relief and bone strengthening.
Eat a balanced diet that includes an adequate amount of protein. “High-protein foods contain amino acids that are critical for collagen synthesis,” says Garshick. Lean protein sources include fish, seafood, skinless chicken breast, and lean cuts of beef and pork.
You may notice the sagging effect on your jawline, cheeks, buttocks, and stomach. Since the loss of collagen leads to the dehydration and thinning of the skin, wrinkles and fine lines begin to appear. Hair begins to thin and stops looking as healthy as it did before. You may also notice hair loss.
Besides time, three main things will lower your collagen levels: sunlight, smoking, and sugar. Too much exposure to ultraviolet light makes its fibers unravel. This can lead to sun damage, such as wrinkles. Many of the chemicals in cigarette smoke can damage it, which can make skin sag and wrinkle.
Tapping also helps drain lymphatic fluid that makes you look puffy and eliminates toxins. The toxins can damage your skin, especially your collagen, leading to wrinkles. It may also stimulate collagen production to help fade fine lines.
Collagen loss can lead to skin losing its elasticity, reduce epidermal thickness and become prone to damage, increase wrinkles and sagging.
So caffeine is a collagen killer and we should steer clear? Not exactly. "It's worth remembering that coffee doesn't destroy collagen, it inhibits its production," says nutritional therapist at the Pulse Light Clinic, Lisa Borg.
Exercise—specifically heavy lifting—releases a growth hormone produced by the pituitary gland, which stimulates your fibroblast cells, resulting in collagen production.
UV damage is the main cause of skin collagen loss accounting for up to 80-90% of the appearance of skin aging. UV exposure causes both, less collagen to be produced, and. it also increases collagen degradation via matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and other proteases in the skin.
Signs of collagen loss include wrinkled skin due to elasticity loss and stiff joints. Additionally, collagen is directly related to gut health, with less of the protein causing ulcers and digestive problems. Aside from aging, however, the top reason people don't have enough collagen is poor diet.
In fact, our collagen production decreases as soon as we turn 20. At Rejuvenation Clinics of Australia, we have many anti-ageing treatments which can slow down the effects of ageing. However, in order to understand why we age, it is important to know the basics of the skin.
It helps to stimulate the production of collagen (the most abundant protein in the body) and elastin (highly elastic protein in connective tissue that helps the skin to resume it's shape after stretching or contracting. The elastic part of the skin)
Which Fruits Have The Most Collagen? Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit are known for being foods high in collagen-producing properties.
The best way to take collagen is to stir it into water or coffee. Putting collagen, like Skinful Marine Collagen Powder in your coffee is a great way to stack a habit so you don't forget. It also helps blunt the caffeine hit by adding protein, and if you combine it with some fat (like milk or MCT), even better.
You can begin taking collagen supplements at the age of 20 to 25 as a preventative or, as you start to notice the more visible signs of ageing. We'd always recommend starting in your early to mid twenties to get ahead of the body's natural depletion as you age.
After daily collagen supplementation for a few weeks, you will typically start to notice a few things: hair growth, skin hydration and skin moisture, improvement in joint health and skin health, lessening of fine lines, and other possible anti-aging improvements.
[1] Environmental exposures can damage collagen fibers reducing their thickness and strength, leading to wrinkles on the skin's surface.